Chiefs side to face Leinster

By Mark Stevens

The European escapades of the Exeter Chiefs may come to an end for another year tomorrow, but head coach Rob Baxter is hoping his side can finish with a flourish as they prepare to welcome reigning Heineken Cup champions Leinster to Sandy Park (6pm).

A hefty 46-3 defeat to unbeaten Pool 5 leaders Clermont Auvergne a week ago extinguished any remaining hopes of Exeter advancing into the last eight of the competition, but Baxter and his troops remain upbeat ahead of their battle with the visiting Irishmen.

Holders Leinster travel to Devon knowing they have to win - most probably with a bonus point - to ensure they advance to the quarter-final stage and thus keep alive their hopes of reclaiming their crown.

That said, the Chiefs are no mugs at home and since their elevation into English rugby's top flight back in 2010, only two visiting teams have exited Sandy Park with a try bonus point. The first was Bath last season in the LV= Cup, the other was Clermont in the Heineken Cup back in October.

It's a tough order for Leinster, particularly as the Chiefs are themselves keen to end their first-ever campaign in European rugby's top competition with a positive outcome.

"It would be a fantastic achievement if we could finish with a win, primarily because of the pressure Leinster are under pressure to come here and win and chase a bonus point," said Baxter.  "They will be coming here full-on, which is good for us, and the kind of scenario we want to play in.

"I don't want us to be playing in a dead rubber of a game because you don't learn too much from those types of game. What we need to do is learn to cope with the intensity, like that of last week in Clermont, as well as look to bring our own to the game.

"This has been a tough group for us this season, but we've won two out of five games so far, and I would love us to say at the end we've won three out of six. To get a statistic like that, especially in our first season in the Heineken Cup, would be a fantastic achievement and something for us to build from."

Although humbled by Clermont at the Stade Marcel Michelin, Baxter has refused to be too downbeat in the aftermath of the game. Indeed, having reviewed the video a number of times, the Exeter leader saw enough in his side's display to give him encouragement for the future.

"Sometimes you have to accept the reasons why you lose, the mistakes you make first and foremost, and that's the important thing," added Baxter. "You have to be prepared to say you weren't good enough on the day and that there are things you can learn from it. Here at the club like to think we tend to deal with that pretty well.

"I think the experience of playing in Clermont last week is worth playing a dozen Premiership games - and that is how you have to look at it. If we work on the lessons learnt, down the line I'm sure it will improve as a side.

"My ambition would be take an Exeter team back to Clermont and do better than we did. You have to use the experience as a positive and be prepared to learn the tough lessons. It would be easy for us to say they haven't lost at home for 54 games, but we haven't done that at all. We've looked at the game this week in detail and we've picked out certain things which we'll look to improve on.

"There was intensity and physicality about some of the things Clermont did that we have to learn to cope with and probably introduce into our own game. There was also an element of control' when to change tempo' and a little bit of work on how they created space, which maybe we don't do. Combining those few things, we've already worked on things in training this week and we are already beginning to see some rewards."

Certainly Leinster and their array of international talent will pose just as big a threat to the Chiefs this weekend, but Baxter says his side are relishing the challenge it poses.

"Is there a better game to look forward too than this one?" continued Baxter. "Not only are we facing the current holders of the Heineken Cup, but it will be a sell-out crowd at Sandy Park and a game with something riding on it.

"In some ways it's a great reward for what we did last season and it's also a great reward for our supporters, some of whom have been to some dire grounds over the years and seen us play some dire rugby. That said, as a club; a management group and for the players; we have to say this is the type of challenge we want every week, not just every now and then in cup competitions.

"Moving forward this kind of environment and challenge has to be the driver for us to get even better in everything we do."

Team news for the Chiefs sees Baxter make two changes in his back division where injuries rule out both Phil Dollman and Gonzalo Camacho. Into the side come Sireli Naqelevuki and Ian Whitten (pictured); whilst in the pack Aussie international Dean Mumm is given the nod over James Hanks in the second row. On the bench, there are recalls also for flanker Ben White and utility back Nic Sestaret.

CHIEFS SIDE TO FACE LEINSTER

15 Luke Arscott
14 Ian Whitten
13 Sireli Naqelevuki
12 Jason Shoemark
11 Matt Jess
10 Gareth Steenson
9 Kevin Barrett
1 Ben Moon
2 Neil Clark
3 Hoani Tui
4 Tom Hayes (capt)
5 Dean Mumm
6 Tom Johnson
7 James Scaysbrook
8 Richard Baxter

16 Jack Yeandle
17 Carl Rimmer
18 Craig Mitchell
19 James Hanks
20 Ben White
21 Will Chudley
22 Ignacio Mieres
23 Nic Sestaret