Exeter Chiefs player ratings vs Northampton Saints | Gallagher PREM final 2025/26

Exeter Chiefs player ratings: Exeter’s fairytale route to the Gallagher PREM final ended in misery on Saturday, as Northampton Saints won 26-17 in the final at Twickenham’s Allianz Stadium.

After a disastrous start for Rob Baxter’s side, they grew back into the game, and had the lead in the second half, only to see Saints pull away in the final quarter.

It may have been a defeat, but there were some decent displays in there. Here’s how the players rated:

15 Olly Woodburn – 5
Was strong enough under the high ball and linked play effectively, but was caught up in a howler of a mix-up to gift Saints a score with just seconds on the clock. Couldn’t consistently threaten the Saints defence.

14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso – 6
The other offending party in the mix-up with Woodburn, which saw Tommy Freeman score a gift of a try in the opening seconds after they failed to communicate with the ball bobbling to their line. Saw less ball than he would have liked but still threatened whenever space opened up. Saints were clearly wary of his pace and physicality, which limited his opportunities.

13 Henry Slade – 6
Looked Exeter’s most composed back whenever they needed direction. Distributed cleverly, kicked accurately and defended well in midfield, often foiling promising positions alongside Len Ikitau. His place-kicking was off in the first half, and that gave Saints a small buffer at the break.

12 Len Ikitau – 7
Snapped up a loose pass back infield by Freeman and then distributed in contact to put Campbell Ridl in for Chiefs’ first try. Carried hard and repeatedly got Exeter over the gainline. His directness caused Northampton problems in patches and he remained committed defensively throughout, tasked with disrupting the rhythm of the slickest backline in England. A solid outing even if he was unable to stamp himself fully on proceedings.

11 Campbell Ridl – 7
Showed some clean heels to race in for Chiefs’ first score of the match. Was racing down that left wing again moments later and looked to have put Stephen Varney in for a score, although the scrum-half slowed down trying to retrieve a slightly wayward pass. Was surprisingly composed given his age, 21, and the occasion, although there were some errors in his display, including a knocked-on goal-line dropout. His try-saving tackle in the second half, when Alex Mitchell looked destined to score, would have left many thinking it was going to be Exeter’s day. Kept coming off his wing to carry hard, and kept coming even though he was caught in a strange collision with Henry Pollock late on.

10 Harvey Skinner – 5
Looked somewhat nervey at the start, as Saints got off to a flying start – perhaps the entire team was, it is just more noticeable with a 10. Grew into the game, although he was unceremoniously run over by Alex Coles, which eventually led to Saints’ second try. Just couldn’t quite trouble the Northampton defence as much as he needed to.

9 Stephen Varney – 6
Gave his side a golden opportunity to score with his 50:22 from the back off a scrum midway through the first half. Kept Exeter moving with his usual energy and provided quick service for large periods. A respectable performance against a side that put enormous pressure on Exeter’s breakdown.

1 Scott Sio – 5
A difficult afternoon against a Northampton pack that managed to gain the upper hand at key moments, but did win a penalty of his own after the break. Worked hard around the field, but Exeter struggled to establish the platform they needed through the set-piece. Bowed out as a Chief after 47 minutes.

2 Max Norey – N/A
Didn’t last 10 minutes before being carried off the field, but looked nervous at the lineout before then.

3 Josh Iosefa-Scott – 6
Found life tough against a confident Saints front-row. Put in plenty of effort around the park, pirouetting and smashing his way over from close range to give Exeter their second try, but Exeter never quite gained enough dominance at scrum time to relieve pressure. Came off after 47 minutes with 11 tackles, which is a decent return.

4 Dafydd Jenkins – 6
Led by example physically, hitting a nice line and having the power to crash over to put his side in the lead in the second half. Tackled relentlessly, with 14 tackles before leaving the field, and looked determined to drag Exeter into the contest whenever momentum threatened to swing away from them. His yellow card in the second half for a high shot swung the match back in Saints’ favour – he went off with his side in the lead and didn’t return as Saints scored two tries in the 10 minutes after.

5 Andrea Zambonin – 6
Busy and committed throughout. Did the unseen work in the tight exchanges and never stopped grafting. Not the headline-maker but certainly one of Exeter’s more reliable performers.

6 Tom Hooper – 7
The weighting and timing of his pass to put Jenkins in for the try that put the Chiefs in the lead summed up what a class act the Wallaby is. Got through a mountain of work and carried aggressively into heavy traffic.

7 Ethan Roots – 6
A physical presence at the breakdown and in defence, folding Fin Smith in half in the first half to force a turnover and evoke 80,000 winces. Eye-catching, but he wasn’t really able to establish himself as the enforcer in the Chiefs’ pack.

8 Greg Fisilau – 7.5
Exeter’s most dangerous forward with ball in hand, although not as potent as last week. A match-leading 20 tackles was the kind of effort that ensured the Chiefs remained in the contest.

Replacements – 8
The bench allowed Exeter to remain competitive until the final whistle and arguably helped swing momentum during parts of the second half, as the replacement props did a similar job to the one they did against Bath last week. Christ Tshiunza provided impact after entering the contest. Ethan Burger and Bachuki Tchumbadze added physicality in the front-row exchanges, but Exeter ultimately fell short. However, one glaring issue was Joseph Dweba’s throwing, which was an immediate problem seconds after coming on in the opening 10 minutes, albeit his overthrow actually resulted in Exeter’s second try before half time.