Exeter player ratings v Bath: Wallabies man ‘the heart and soul’ despite Chiefs’ ‘epic rescue act’ falling short
Olly Woodburn (right) and Tom Hooper (left) were among the top performers for Exeter Chiefs
Following Exeter Chiefs’ 33-26 defeat to Bath in the PREM, here is how we scored Rob Baxter’s side from the Rec.
Exeter Chiefs player ratings v Bath
15 Olly Woodburn: Seems to be taking well to life at full-back. Always in the right place to sweep up a Bath kick and had some positive moments around the park too. His try was also very well taken. 7
14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso: Started off with a brilliant catch direct from the kick-off and carried on from there. Always threatened ball-in-hand, particularly when carrying from deep, and managed to get his side over the gain line with each carry. Got a deserved try as well. 7
13 Henry Slade: His kicking for touch was what lit this epic rescue act, aside from the horror kick late in the first-half. He also had some lovely flashes around the park. 6
12 Will Rigg: Always willing to get his hands on the ball and truck through traffic. Potentially unlucky not to get the break he deserved, but cannot fault his effort. 6
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11 Campbell Ridl: A day to forget for the promising England U20s wing. Knocked the ball on in the first attack of the game, and was soon shown a 20-minute red card for an aerial collision with Henry Arundell. 3
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10 Harvey Skinner: Steadied the ship well after a rocky start and eventually got his side playing some nice rugby. Threw two gorgeous assists as well. 6
9 Stephen Varney: Another decent game in Chiefs colours for the most part, but had his day cut short through a nasty head knock. 6
Back-row
8 Greg Fisilau: Was kept quiet in the first-half by an aggressive Bath defence, but grew into the game as it went on to become a key part of their comeback effort. Always managed to get over the gain line ball-in-hand, which took some doing considering he was met by multiple defenders. 7
7 Ethan Roots: This was a big day for him, coming up against a lot of fellow England hopefuls, and he didn’t really put a foot wrong. Got stuck into the battle up front from the off and brought heaps of physicality. 6
6 Tom Hooper: A big game from the Wallabies ace, who was the heart and soul of the comeback. Came up with three crucial turnovers to halt promising Bath attacks and backed that up with some gritty efforts in the loose. 8
Tight five
5 Andrea Zambonin: Not as visible as his previous outings, but that’s not necessarily a criticism. Still came up with some big interventions in the tight, and again played a key role in the lineout. 6
PREM Rugby, Bath v Exeter Chiefs: Result, match details, stats, line-ups
4 Dafydd Jenkins (c): Typically busy shift from the Welshman. Always found himself in the thick of the action in the tight and led the lineout well. His eye-watering tally of 25 tackles deserves some flowers. 7
3 Bachuki Tchumbadze: Held his own in the scrum against a powerful Beno Obano and got involved in the loose. Solid without setting the pitch alight. 6
2 Joseph Dweba: The Springbok continues to look solid for the Chiefs. Trucked hard in the tight and grabbed a try for his efforts. 7
1 Scott Sio: Could almost copy and paste his prop colleague’s summary. Did a decent job in the scrum and got around the park well. 6
Replacements: A mighty fine effort from the Chiefs’ bench, despite falling short at the final hurdle. Kane James continues to get better and better with each moment, one Steve Tandy might want to tempt back to Wales sooner rather than later, while Will Goodrick-Clarke, Jimmy Roots, Jack Yeandle and Rusi Tuima got stuck into things right from the off. Charlie Chapman was also pretty steady throughout, while Dan John also looked comfortable. 7