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Irish snap a winless 11-game run with deserved victory at Exeter
London Irish registered their first victory of the season as the recent Gallagher Premiership resurgence by Exeter stalled at Sandy Park, in the process snapping an eleven-game winless streak in the league dating back to last March versus Bath. The Exiles never trailed in a tense match they clinched 33-21 and they showed tenacity as well as ingenuity to humble the title contenders with something to spare.
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Tries from Agustin Creevy and Curtis Rona gave Irish a dream start but they were forced to weather the storm as Exeter fought back and once that was subdued, they pulled clear when Benhard van Rensburg, Ben Loader and Ollie Hassell-Collins touched down.
Despite having to wait until round six to triumph, Irish were already positioned on the coattails of mid-table after registering two draws and accumulating four bonus points. While their season has lift-off, the Chiefs will be asking why they lacked edge and were surprisingly brittle, playing only in bursts.
Exeter’s soft edges were exposed as early as the fourth minute when Nick Phipps escaped around the around ruck and once Albert Tuisue made yards with a hard carry, Creevy arrived to exploit weak defence on the whitewash. An enterprising start by Irish continued with breaks by Terrence Hepetema and Ollie Hoskins and, once a spell of forward pick and goes was finished, Rona powered over despite the attention of two tacklers.
The rampaging Creevy had been a thorn in Exeter’s side but, having taken a bang, he was ordered off for a head injury assessment and he reluctantly complied having initially indicated he wanted to take a lineout. Inside centre Tom Hendrickson swept the Chiefs onto the front foot with two carries, finding a way through on the second when he appeared to have been halted and from close range, there was no stopping Will Witty.
It's now two years since Ireland outcast Paddy Jackson first came to play for London Irish #Ireland #Irish #GallagherPrem #EXEvLIRhttps://t.co/4vQTGAW4Gj
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 21, 2021
The fightback continued and at its heart was Hendrickson, who collected Henry Slade’s pass and slipped through the midfield defence before timing the scoring pass to Stuart Hogg to perfection. With the score level, Exeter began squeezing Irish as they kept possession for phase after phase and only determined defending kept them out just after the half-hour mark. But it remained 14-14 at the interval and, in strong echoes of the start of the match, when play resumed the Chiefs showed a lack of intensity that left them vulnerable.
After a lineout drive and several pick and goes, space was created on the blindside that allowed Phipps’ bullet pass to send van Rensburg over, but Exeter were also to blame for their missing defence. The Exiles’ fourth try was entirely of their own making, however, as Paddy Jackson’s trickery created space for Loader to slip over.
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To continue mirroring the first half, Exeter responded with waves of full-blooded attacks but this time instead of scoring from close range, Witty dropped the ball over the line. The pressure was building but Irish showed tenacity in scrapping for every ball and were rewarded with a turnover when danger loomed and then a home knock-on.
And when it became their turn to attack, they showed ruthless accuracy as replacement scrum-half Ben White shaped to pass right before switching left where a small overlap created a try for Hassell-Collins. Even when Jack Nowell weaved over the whitewash after a cute off-load from Hendrickson, Irish still led 33-21 with 12 minutes remaining and there was no way back for the hosts.
It wasn't that long ago when the hype was for Joe Simmonds to be in the England squad, but he currently can't even get his Exeter start…#England #Chiefs #GallagherPrem #EXEvLIR
https://t.co/hzuN9OHk3y— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 21, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
A wallaby front-row of Bell, Blake and Tupou…now that would be hefty
1 Go to comments“But with an exceptional pass accuracy rating “ Which apart from Roigard is not a feature of any of the other 9s in NZ. Kind of basic for a Black 9 dont.you. think? Yet we keep seeing FC and TJ being rated ahead of him? Weird if it’s seen as vital to get our backline beating in your face defences.
1 Go to commentsThanks BeeMc! Looks like many teams need extra time to settle from the quadrennial northern migration. I think generally the quality of the Rugby has held up. Fiji has been fantastic and fun to watch
13 Go to commentsLets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper 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?
11 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.
10 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.
11 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.
24 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.
10 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…??? 🤑🤑🤑
35 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
35 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
17 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 comments