Armand hails defensive effort

Don Armand hailed the defensive effort that helped Exeter Chiefs beat London Irish – and hopes that has now set the standard for the rest of the campaign.

The 25-year-old appeared off the bench as the Sandy Park outfit beat the Exiles 18-0 on Saturday.

That was the club’s first clean-sheet in the Aviva Premiership, and first in any match since a 68-0 hammering of Cavalieri Prato at home in the Amlin Challenge Cup in November 2011.

The last time they stopped their opponents scoring in a league match was in January 2009 in the old National League One as they beat Plymouth Albion 29-0.

After three successive losses, Armand was pleased he and his teammates could turn things around against London Irish.

“The pressure was definitely on but I think it was awesome to be able to do it in a home game,” he said. “We lost some games we should have won, which was very disappointing, but it was awesome to come out here and keep them scoreless, that’s a good achievement.

“They came out with their intentions, they went for the touchline when they could have got a few points, and luckily they didn’t get any reward from that. We kept them out when they were five metres out, the boys put their bodies on the line.

“It’s a good standard to set. Finally we’re putting some good ‘D’ sets together. We got a yellow card and we pulled through that, then gave away some back-to-back penalties which put us on the back foot but we managed to dig ourselves out of that as well.”

Some of the pressure the players were under against the Exiles came from head coach Rob Baxter, who told his squad they had to win the match after their recent run of results.

Armand backed his boss’ focus on the result against the Madejski Stadium outfit, and felt they answered a few of their critics by recording a victory.

“Last week he (Baxter) said it was the first time he’s ever said it was a must-win game,” said Armand.

“There’s nothing wrong with that, it was a must-win and the boys had to react to that and they did. We put the pressure on and we came through with the win.

“A few people doubted us after last week’s result, especially on the back of the previous two losses, but it was nice to come away with a win.”

Exeter’s players report back for training today as they begin the build-up to Sunday’s LV= Cup clash.

However, Armand will not be among them as he is returning home to South Africa to get married.

He was given permission by Baxter to take the week off to get hitched, but the former Stormers player intends to keep in touch with how his teammates are getting on somehow.

“It’s a special date for us both, but Rob said family does come first – this is something that’s once in a lifetime,” he said. “It’s one week off, but I’ll be secretly on my phone and on twitter following the game on the internet.”

The final of the LV= Cup takes place at Sandy Park a week on Sunday, with Northampton hosting Saracens in the other semi.

And Armand hopes the Chiefs make it through to the final to help showcase the club to a wider audience.

“As the final would be at home, it’s a big opportunity,” he said. "It would put us back on the map as well. We are in the middle of the league and I know it’s a different competition, but it will get Exeter Chiefs’ name up there.

“We’re hosting games in the World Cup in 2015 and it would be nice to get our name up there, especially with an LV final win.”