Exeter Chiefs simply must put Glasgow to the sword
In a relatively disheartening weekend for English clubs in the Heineken Champions Cup, Exeter Chiefs’ 31-12 win over La Rochelle was a definite and much-needed high point.
Gloucester, after being talked up prior to the game, fell to a disappointing loss at home to Toulouse, admittedly the reigning French champions, whilst Bath were unable to get passed Ulster at the Rec, in a game that will have them kicking themselves in hindsight. Sale Sharks failed to fire their shots away at Glasgow Warriors, Harlequins were comfortably and well beaten by Clermont and Saracens, having opted to focus on the Gallagher Premiership, were dispatched by Racing 92 in Paris.
The only other win for English clubs came via the resurgent Northampton Saints, whose 25-14 win over Lyon at Franklin’s Gardens was only a try bonus point away from being the perfect start for Chris Boyd’s side. It was an encouraging display from Northampton and bodes well for the coming rounds, but in terms of efficiency and the eye-catching nature of the performance, it fell short of what Exeter pulled off on France’s west coast.
It was no shadow La Rochelle side, either, with the likes of Victor Vito, Dany Priso and Grégory Alldritt all involved up front and the incisive talents of Geoffrey Doumayrou, Levani Botia and Jérémy Sinzelle deployed in the back line. It was a healthy and loaded XV that is more than capable of running through, round and over teams, particularly at home.
Impressive away wins in Europe are nothing new for Exeter, though. Their 27-24 win in Montpellier in 2017 was a memorable one for the club and its fans, whilst they recorded a 20-12 win over Bordeaux the season before. In recent seasons, they’ve also managed to pick up losing bonus points away at Munster, Ulster, Castres, Glasgow Warriors, Clermont and Leinster, as well as beating local rivals Gloucester last season.
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They’ve been doing enough on the road to qualify for the quarter-finals in those campaigns, though those results have usually come after the club had dug a hole for itself at Sandy Park, a venue which, despite being one of the toughest places to travel to in the Premiership, is not a European fortress.
In the 2016/17 season, they were beaten by Clermont and Bordeaux at Sandy Park, with Leinster raiding their Devon home the following year. Last season, they drew with Munster and lost to Gloucester in their home pool games. In fact, the only time that Exeter have made the knockout stages of the tournament, the 2015/16 season, was the only campaign that they had a clean sweep of wins in their three home games.
As good as they have been on the road in Europe, the club’s home form has let them down. Whether that is a mental barrier for the squad, the coaching staff not developing the right game plan for contests in which they should be considered favourites or simply opposition teams raising their own games for the challenge, it is something which needs to change if Exeter are to go from Premiership heavyweights to European contenders.
The complete nature of their win over La Rochelle certainly promises optimism for the club’s expectant fanbase, although like in seasons past, it will count for nothing if they can’t consolidate that performance and result at home against Glasgow this weekend.
If they can repeat that level of performance against the Scottish side, there’s a good chance that they will head into the December back-to-back fixtures with two wins and 10 points to their name. Their back-to-back comes against Sale Sharks, a side they know well from the Premiership and against whom they have had considerable success in recent seasons. On paper, Exeter look as though they could be in very good shape for not only qualification, but a home quarter-final come Christmas.
"I don’t think he even said, 'Hi', he just put it there," Tom Curry #EnglandRugby #Springboks #SaleSharks pic.twitter.com/IEdozZ0rVs
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) November 20, 2019
Paper can be misleading, though, and there a number of home games in the Champions Cup that Exeter have previously prepared for as favourites and then they have come unstuck.
The early return to action of the club’s England contingent was certainly influential in their win over La Rochelle and they will need those players to replicate that against Glasgow on Saturday. Henry Slade’s offensive and defensive decision-making was vital, whilst Jack Nowell and Luke Cowan-Dickie offered impact from the bench.
Fellow internationals Nic White and Stuart Hogg were also important cogs in the win, with the latter’s meeting with his former team certain to be one of the major narratives going into the game. Both contributed to efficiency of Exeter when in possession, whilst new signing Jacques Vermeulen was a force in the defensive line, as La Rochelle struggled to break down the relentless energy and discipline of the Chiefs.
Vermeulen and Dave Ewers, if the flank pairing is retained when Rob Baxter announces his squad for the game, will have their work cut out keeping Callum Gibbins, Fraser Brown and the mobile Glasgow pack quiet at the breakdown. If they can, and Exeter enjoy relatively secure ball at the contact area, they have shown they have the offensive precision to hurt teams in multi-phase attacks.
Something which will boost confidence in the south-west is that Glasgow’s away form to start the season has been poor. They have lost to the Cheetahs and Dragons so far in the Guinness PRO14 and although they chalked up a win over Zebre earlier this month, Exeter will be the biggest challenge on the road they have faced so far this season. It’s an unenviable task for head coach Dave Rennie, who recently confirmed he will be leaving the club at the end of the season to take up the same role with the Wallabies.
If Exeter are to truly count themselves among contenders for this season’s title, Saturday is the day for them to be ruthless and show they can consistently perform at the level they did last weekend.
The playing squad have experience of European competition, the young and promising players have matured into top-class contributors and with Saracens operating under a dark cloud of their own making, Exeter have now become the posterboys for English rugby.
Any excuses they may have had previously have run out and it’s time for them to make the leap.
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Comments on RugbyPass
Super rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
10 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
10 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
9 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
24 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
24 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
14 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
5 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
6 Go to commentsThe greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
22 Go to commentsJake White is a brilliant coach and a master in the press. This is another masterclass in media relations and PR but its also a very narrow view with arguments that dont always hold water. White wants his team to win, he wants the best players in SA and wants his team competitive. You however have to face up to the reality of a poor exchange rate and big clubs with big budgets. SA Rugby cant compete and unless it can find more money SA players will keep leaving regardless of Springbok eligibility and this happened in 2015 - 2017. Also rugby is not cricket. Cricket has 3 formats and T20 cricket is where the money is at. When it comes to club vs country the IPL is king but that wont happen because the international calendar does not clash with the club calendar in rugby. So the argument about rugby going down the same path as cricket is really a non-starter
22 Go to commentsNZ rugby seem not to have learnt anything from professional rugby. Super rugby was dying and SA left before they died with the competition. SA rugby did a u turn on their approach to international players playing overseas and such players are now selected for Bok teams. As much as each country would love to retain their players playing in local competitions, this is the way the world is evolving my friends. Move with it or stay 20 years behind the times. One more thing. NZ rugby hierarchy think they are the big cheese. Take a more humble approach guys. You do not seem to have your players best interests at heart.
10 Go to comments