'Better than Marcus Smith' Harvey Skinner earns new deal

Exeter Chiefs boss Rob Baxter admits that he doesn’t think that there has been a more consistent fly-half in the Gallagher PREM this season than Harvey Skinner, who has just put pen to paper on a new two-year deal to stay at Sandy Park.

Taunton-born Skinner has emerged from the shadow of Joe Simmonds and Gareth Steenson to become the Chiefs’ first choice fly-half after growing into the role over the last 12-18 months.

Baxter points out that Skinner, who has played 20 games this season for the Chiefs, consistently outplays the likes of Harlequins and England star Marcus Smith when they visit Devon and is one of the best defensive 10s around.

“When he plays against fly-halves that everyone says are better than him, he outplays them most of the time. Maybe it’s harder sometimes away from home. But he’s actually outplayed Marcus Smith every time he’s come to Sandy Park, genuinely,” asserted Baxter.

“Whether things like that just bring the best out of Harvey, I don’t know. But he’s playing very well this season. If anybody turns around to me and says, there’s another fly-half playing consistently way better than Harvey in the PREM this season, I’m going to go, I’m not quite sure because we’re in the top four at the moment.

“Who is there that’s continually out playing Harv? People might go Fin Smith or, you know, maybe George Ford. But are they really?

“He’s a local guy, he’s homegrown, EQP. There are lots of reasons in favour of Harvey. For me, it wasn’t that big a call. He’s become a very important player for us and is building a really good relationship with Dave Walder,” he added.

“For a fly-half, he’s got fantastic commitment towards defending – he loves to fly off the line and try to bang people! That’s a great asset for us to have in our 10.”

Skinner believes that Baxter is building towards another special era for the club, and he wanted to be part of it, so he quickly agreed to a new deal.

“I’m really happy to sign a new deal with the club, as I truly love playing here. I’m enjoying the connection we have among the group and the style of rugby we’re playing.” the fly-half said.

“I’ve grown up here and have now started a family of my own, so it felt like an easy decision to stay. As a team, we’ve had some challenges, and I feel like this squad is on a good track to really achieve something special together,” said Skinner.