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England the only team not represented in official Six Nations team of the Championship
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Mixed fortunes for Roots brothers at Exeter
By Josh Raisey
Exeter Chiefs flanker Ethan Roots has been ruled out for four to six weeks with a calf tear, meaning he will miss a large section of the Gallagher PREM run-in as well as their Challenge Cup round of 16 tie with Munster.
The 28-year-old picked up the injury while preparing for Exeter’s PREM Rugby Cup semi-final with Northampton Saints, but the club have confirmed that the England international will not require surgery.
Exeter provided the injury update the day after Roots’ younger brother, Jimmy, signed a new deal with the club.
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The tighthead is in his second season at Sandy Park after arriving from CHAMP Rugby’s Ealing Trailfinders, and said he is “living the dream”.
“I just love it here,” he said after signing. “The group we have, how we’ve managed to turn things around, is pretty exciting to be a part of. My first year here, even though we were struggling, I was still living my dream at the highest level of the sport, so to be able to be successful has been an eye-opener. I want to continue being a part of that.
“The group of boys here are class. I get to be close to my brother and spend lots of time with my family, so it was really a no-brainer when we spoke about extending my contract. This is the place for me.”
Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter added: “Jimmy is one of those guys who got his opportunity to join us through doing well in Champ Rugby. We’ve seen a good rate of improvement from him during his time with us so far and he’s moving into an area now of being very competitive in all aspects of his game.
“His strengths are his speed into ball carriage, his speed into tackle and clear-outs but he’s also worked very hard on his set-piece work, which we’re seeing improve all the time. He’s becoming an important member of a strong pack of forwards.
“He’s a good guy around the changing room, a real energy giver – sometimes too much, but that’s not the worst quality to have. That kind of attitude towards loving the game and getting on the field, to throw yourself about and get into the game, is what we’ve always been about. So, for all those reasons, he fits in perfectly here.”
Roots will feature from the bench on Saturday as Exeter return to the PREM against Sale Sharks at home.
Exeter Chiefs XV: 1 Scott Sio, 2 Jack Yeandle, 3 Bachuki Tchumbadze, 4 Dafydd Jenkins (c), 5 Andrea Zambonin, 6 Tom Hooper, 7 Ross Vintcent, 8 Greg Fisilau, 9 Stephen Varney, 10 Harvey Skinner, 11 Campbell Ridl, 12 Will Rigg, 13 Henry Slade, 14 Paul Brown-Bampoe, 15 Olly Woodburn
Replacements: 16 Julian Heaven, 17 Will Goodrick-Clarke, 18 Jimmy Roots, 19 Lewis Pearson, 20 Finn Worley Brady, 21 Tom Cairns, 22 Will Haydon-Wood, 23 Dan John
