Preview: Exeter v Newcastle
Newcastle have made just one change as they embark on the longest Aviva Premiership Rugby trip of the season to Exeter.
Newcastle have made just one change from the side which defeated London Wasps last weekend, as they embark on the longest Aviva Premiership trip of the season to Exeter.
Rob Vickerman comes into the team in place of Andy Henderson in the only personnel change from the 29-17 home victory, with one further positional switch for Saturday's game seeing Luke Eves slide from outside to inside centre.
Lock forward James Hudson once again skippers the Falcons.
“It will be a tough game,” said coach Alan Tait, ahead of his side's Sandy Park debut.
“Everyone that watched them play at Leicester last weekend on the TV, their eyes would have been popping out.
“They are nowhere near as bad as people were saying before the start of the season, they scored some great tries in the backs and cut Leicester to pieces.
“To be fair Leicester looked like they turned up thinking that it was going to be easy, so I think that's a lesson for anyone.
“There is no doubt about it, there is no hiding from the fact that Exeter would have targeted us in the pre-season, saying that this is a Cup final and it's the same for us. We look at them as a mini Cup final.”
Meanwhile, Exeter Chiefs head coach Rob Baxter insists Saturday's clash with Newcastle is the club's “biggest game of the season so far”.
Although the Chiefs opened up with a 22-10 victory over visiting Gloucester, before then forcing defending champions Leicester to hit back from a 27-16 deficit to win 37-27, it's the impending visit of the Falcons which is uppermost in the mind of Baxter.
With two notable performances already under their belts, Baxter is well aware that those displays have already set a high benchmark for his players who must now replicate their efforts not only this weekend, but in the coming weeks and months.
Alongside the Chiefs, Alan Tait's Newcastle side have also been tipped by a number of rugby pundits to be one of the sides set to struggle this season. It is little wonder then this first-ever league fixture between the two clubs – who are poised to meet five times this season in all competitions – is already been billed as a crunch encounter.
“In a lot of ways I think this is the biggest game of the three,” said Baxter.
“That emotional build up we had for the Gloucester and Leicester games was a big part of how well we did, now we have got to make sure we show that same emotion, attitude and work ethic in our second home game.”
Baxter has stuck with the same starting XV for the third game on the bounce, but there are changes on the bench where Samoan international Junior Poluleuligaga returns after a hamstring injury in place of James Honeyben, while summer signing Andrew Higgins comes into the squad for the first time in place of Matt Jess.
Form: Exeter Chiefs' only reversal at Sandy Park in any competition in their last eleven encounters was 10-22 to Leinster A in the British & Irish Cup on 13 February. Newcastle Falcons' have won just once on the road in their last seven matches in all competitions: 32-30 at Sale in the Premiership on 23 April. Incredibly this game in the first of five scheduled clashes between the Premiership's furthest flung sides, Exeter and Newcastle, during 2010/11. The two teams have met just once before in competitive rugby: in the 4th round of the Tetley's Bitter Cup at Kingston Park in January 1998, where the Falcons won 34-10.
The teams:
Exeter: 15 Luke Arscott, 14 Nic Sestaret, 13 Phil Dollman, 12 Bryan Rennie, 11 Mark Foster, 10 Gareth Steenson, 9 Haydn Thomas, 8 James Phillips, 7 James Scaysbrook, 6 Tom Johnson, 5 James Hanks, 4 Tom Hayes (c), 3 Hoani Tui, 2 Neil Clark, 1 Brett Sturgess.
Replacements: 16 Simon Alcott, 17 Ben Moon, 18 Chris Budgen, 19 Dave Gannon, 20 Chad Slade, 21 Junior Poluleuligaga, 22 Ryan Davis, 23 Andrew Higgins.
Newcastle: 15 Alex Tait, 14 Gcobani Bobo, 13 Rob Vickerman, 12 Luke Eves, 11 Charlie Amesbury, 10 Jimmy Gopperth, 9 Micky Young, 8 Ally Hogg, 7 Redford Pennycook, 6 Brent Wilson, 5 Tim Swinson, 4 James Hudson (c), 3 Tim Ryan, 2 Rob Vickers, 1 Jon Golding.
Replacements: 16 Kieran Brookes, 17 Micky Ward, 18 Grant Shiells, 19 Glen Townson, 20 Will Welch, 21 Chris Pilgrim, 22 Jeremy Manning, 23 Luke Fielden
Date: Saturday, September 18
Kick-off: 15:00
BST
Venue: Sandy Park
Referee: Greg Garner