Exeter Chiefs player ratings: Yellow card ‘costly’ for Devonians while ‘fantastic signing’ enjoys ‘showstopper’ in final

Following Exeter Chiefs’ 26-17 defeat to Northampton Saints in the 2026 PREM Rugby final, here is how we scored Rob Baxter’s side. 

Exeter Chiefs player ratings v Northampton Saints

15 Olly Woodburn: Continued his form from across the run-in, really. Consistently made positive things happen for his side ball-in-hand and was in exactly the right place at exactly the right time when his team needed him. 7

14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso: Grew into the game as it went on and had some big effects along the way. Not at his explosive best, but did make a sizeable impact. 7

13 Henry Slade: Always looked to take the positive choice when given the ball, and again made a real impact in defence. 6

12 Len Ikitau: Very willing to put in the hard yards for his side on either side of the ball, and mixed in a few flicks of flair to boot. 7

11 Campbell Ridl: Really mature effort from the ever-improving youngster, which probably reflected the growth he’s had this year. Bagged a good try early on, and backed that up with some huge efforts across the 80. 8

10 Harvey Skinner: Steadily went about things today. Kept the Chiefs ticking along nicely and got them playing in the right areas. 6

9 Stephen Varney: Proved to be a fantastic signing for the Chiefs, and this was yet another reminder. Ran the attack superbly well from nine, flung some outright showstopping passes and got Exeter on the front-foot in the process. 9

Back-row

8 Greg Fisilau: His head-to-head with Henry Pollock was really interesting, and one where both players probably come out with credit. Fisilau again just looked to take the fight to the Saints in the tight, and packed a proper punch in the contact too. 7

7 Ethan Roots: A real bruising shift from the Exeter back-rower, who came up with some thundering tackles. 6

6 Tom Hooper: Pretty much what we’ve come to expect of the Wallabies man in an Exeter shirt. Hugely physical and never too far away from the action. 7

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Tight five

5 Andrea Zambonin: Quietly went about his business, doing all the ugly work his side needed out of him. Another who has enjoyed his first season at Exeter. 6

4 Dafydd Jenkins (c): To be fair, he actually went really well for the most part, and got himself a deserved try, but his yellow card ultimately proved costly as Saints grabbed 12 points in that time. 6

3 Josh Iosefa-Scott: An enjoyable ding-dong with Emmanuel Iyogun in the scrum, got about in the loose and waltzed over the try-line for a try. What more could you want. 7

2 Max Norey: Busy start, but came off after eight minutes with an injury. N/A

1 Scott Sio: Nuts and bolts stuff from the departing loosehead, who bowed out on a pretty good note. 6

Replacements: Joseph Dweba’s early introduction and subsequent strong display warrants a 7, and the rest of the bench probably followed in his footsteps. Ethan Burger and Bachuchki Tchumbadze came on and, once again, won some scrum penalties, while Christ Tshiunza and Ross Vintcent made themselves busy. 7

READ MORE: Northampton Saints v Exeter Chiefs, LIVE BLOG: Our coverage of the PREM Rugby Final