Exeter v Newcastle: Five takeaways as ‘immense’ England bolter fires Chiefs back into Champions Cup mix
Exeter Chiefs' Greg Fisilau with an inset of Steve Diamond
Following Exeter Chiefs’ 17-15 win over Newcastle Falcons in round 13 of the Premiership, here are our five key takeaways from Sandy Park.
The top line
Despite there being no threat of relegation, this battle at the bottom still felt pivotal for both sides in the context of their seasons. A win for Exeter would put some extra breathing room at the foot of the table, while Newcastle could move to within touching distance of the Chiefs in ninth.
And, in the spirit of the occasion, Exeter came out firing as Will Rigg crossed after just seven minutes.
But their lead didn’t last long as Joe Davies waltzed under the sticks after a clever interception.
Exeter had a couple of golden chances to regain the lead as the half went on, but it was in fact the visitors who made the next dent in the scoreboard as Max Clark crossed for their second of the game.
The hosts responded well, though and pulled level through Martin Moloney, but it was advantage Newcastle going into the sheds as Brett Connon knocked over a three-pointer to make it 15-12 at half-time.
And that’s just how the scores remained until the 79th minute too, as Greg Fisilau crossed to seal a dramatic win for his team.
That victory keeps Exeter’s slim Champions Cup hopes alive, with Rob Baxter’s side eight points behind Northampton Saints while Newcastle, despite a strong showing, are
A tale of two systems
The sides could not have been more different in their approach to the game. Exeter, buoyed by their scoreathon at Ashton Gate, adopted a free-flowing, fast attack with their backs getting a lot of touches, while Newcastle turned to their power game up front with their scrum and maul.
Crucially, both seemed to work well for their respective sides too. Exeter’s backline seemed to get good change whenever they fired out wide – even despite their second-half showing – with the likes of Rigg, Hodge and Slade carting through multiple times. Newcastle’s scrum and maul also became a real weapon for them, particularly in the red-zone, and again got some decent results off the back of it.
While these differing styles created an interesting contest today at Sandy Park, they also showed exactly what both teams will be looking to do moving forward. This has been a tough season for both teams, but the lack of relegation this season means they can just set themselves a foundation to properly attack next year now, and their performances today showed they are doing exactly that.
Coach killers
Exeter dominated possession and territory for large chunks of the game, but they shot themselves in the foot with silly penalties and handling errors.
For all of their attacking flair, which they deserve praise for, they shot themselves in the foot multiple times as they brought their own chances to a halt.
This has been a major trend for the Chiefs throughout the campaign, but today it played right into Newcastle’s hands. Take the Falcons’ second try of the game as the prime example of this, it came as a direct result of two quick-fire Exeter penalties. Again, a needless penalty at the end of the first-half allowed the Falcons to take the lead at the interval as well. Newcastle also managed to milk penalties at ease in the scrum, which again just allowed them to relieve pressure and work their way up the pitch.
Even on their own side of the ball, they still managed to concede penalties and just gifted Newcastle multiple reprieves just as they looked like scoring.
It wasn’t just penalties either, far too often Exeter just made a mistake at a crucial time. Again, you need to admire the intent behind their offloading, but far too often things just didn’t stick and let Newcastle off the hook.
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Spare a penny for Rob Baxter’s thoughts tonight when reviewing the game.
Best chance gone
Away wins are so hard to come by for Newcastle, but today felt like their best chance to end their two-year wait.
While Exeter dominated much of the opening stanza, the Falcons fronted up incredibly well in defence and managed to stop them at almost every turn. Around that, they boxed incredibly smart and managed the game well, be that through some clever kicking from Davis and Connon or by just hitting the right carriers at the right times to break through the Exeter defence.
One thing that was especially pleasing, from a Falcons perspective, is they showed genuine game smarts to take the sting out of almost every Exeter impact. They simply wouldn’t have been able to do that this time last year, so again it shows they are taking serious steps forward and kicking on under Steve Diamond.
It’s been a long 862 days since their last away win (when they beat Gloucester away on 12th November 2022), but they will just have to wait a little while longer now. You feel it’s coming soon, though.
England bolters?
With a large contingent of the regular England squad likely to be away with the Lions this summer, there are some places up for grabs in Steve Borthwick’s side for their tour of Argentina, and a few players put their hands up today at Sandy Park.
England A star Greg Fisilau was immense all day for the Chiefs, and his match-winning score in the 79th minute was just reward for his performance. Yet again, he was right at the heart of the action for his side, popping up with carry after carry in the tight and making consistent yardage too.
There is an outcry for genuine 12s in this England side, and Will Rigg and Max Clark both gave a very good account of themselves in their respective outings.
Exeter’s Paul Brown-Bampoe again looked incredibly powerful with ball-in-hand, and things just seemed to happen whenever he touched the ball. Crucially, he also showed his aerial ability which is exactly what Borthwick wants from his wingers.
Jamie Blamire was just as solid as ever, which will also please Borthwick considering he might be without his two frontline hookers this summer.
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