Chiefs 23 Bath 27

Exeter Chiefs 23

Bath Rugby 27

Mark Stevens at Sandy Park

The Bath hoodoo shows no sign of abating for Exeter Chiefs after they were once again undone by their Westcountry rivals in a hard-fought derby encounter at a packed Sandy Park.

Mike Ford’s high-flying outfit edged out their Devon counterparts thanks to tries from Ollie Devoto, Kyle Eastmond and Nick Abendanon, whilst Ford’s talented son, fly-half George Ford, weighed in with the remainder of their points as he converted all three scores, as well as adding two penalties.

For the Chiefs, it was yet more Aviva Premiership heartache as Rob Baxter’s side, undone just seven days earlier by just a solitary point by league leaders Northampton Saints, again failed to do enough to sink one of the division’s leading lights.

Ben White and Ian Whitten both crossed for converted tries, whilst Irish fly-half Gareth Steenson again produced an unblemished display with the boot as he added a further three penalties for the hosts.

The frustration, disappointment – even anger – at the final whistle was clear to see from Baxter and his players. Not one of them needed any kind of reminding that this was a glorious opportunity to post a first win over Bath since 1978.

Ahead of kick-off, the Chiefs had made only slight tweaks to their line-up from that which had lost to the Saints. Flanker Tom Johnson was recalled to the starting XV after being released by England and his inclusion meant Dave Ewers reverted back to the base of the scrum.

The other changes in personnel saw Ben White take over at open-side from former Bath favourite James Scaysbrook, whilst Hoani Tui was given the nod in the front-row ahead of Alex Brown.

Bath, meanwhile, were also boosted by the return of several international names. Back into the frame came Paul James and Dave Attwood, along with David Wilson who was making his comeback from injury.

James and Wilson were joined in the front-row by Ross Batty, whilst behind there was a rare start for Micky Young at scrum-half and Horacio Agulla on the right wing.

With personnel in place, it was the Chiefs who set the early tone. With their ears no doubt still ringing from Baxter’s criticism of their first half display against the Saints, this was a much-improved opening from the Devonians.

A solid first scrum from the home side, one in which Tui got the better of James, set the benchmark for what was to follow for much of the game. In the set-piece the Chiefs were more than happy to showcase their credentials and it was that foundation that helped them to take the lead with ten minutes played.

Steenson potted over the first of his three penalties after Bath’s South African flanker Francois Louw has been pulled up by referee Andrew Small for not rolling away.

However, no sooner had the Chiefs nudged themselves in front, they preceded to allow their rivals back into the contest as skipper Dean Mumm was penalised for a similar indiscretion to that of Louw, allowing marksman Ford to fire away at the target.

With conditions greatly improved on that of 24 hours earlier when part of the posts at the South West End of the ground had been damaged by the gale force winds, it was the Chiefs who were playing the smarter and attacking rugby.

But despite bossing possession and territory for long periods, they could not turn their advantage into points and it was Bath who countered with aplomb to claim the game’s opening try on 27 minutes.

Collecting the ball just inside his own half, centre Devoto shook off the attentions of opposite number Phil Dollman before then brushing aside Luke Arscott to race in unopposed to score the try, which Ford duly converted.

The Chiefs countered minutes later as Steenson slotted a second penalty after Agulla had held on in the tackle; then on the stroke of half-time Baxter’s side edged themselves in front with a try of their own.

A penalty kick to the corner laid the foundations for a series of attacks, the last of which saw White burrow his way over the whitewash. Referee Small sought clarification from the TV match official, but countless replays merely confirmed the obvious. Steenson added the extras to give the home side a slender 13-10 lead at the turn.

HALF TIME EXETER CHIEFS 13 BATH RUGBY 10

On the resumption the Chiefs were again quickest out of the traps as Steenson extended their lead with a third penalty of the game when James was again adjudged to have dropped a scrum under pressure from Tui.

Exeter’s grip on the game looked promising, but instead of building the pressure yet further they allowed their visitors to strike back.
England international Eastmond picked a lovely line, albeit with a bit of juggling, to claim Bath’s second converted try on 54 minutes and then replacement Abendanon got in on the act as he landed a telling blow just past the hour mark.

Soaking up the Exeter pressure, Bath turned defence into attack in an instant, switching the ball from one flank to the other where Abendanon collected at pace. Still with plenty to do, the full-back chipped over the top and then won the eventual foot race to the try-line.

Small, just as he done earlier, again went to the TMO for clarification and again Keith Lewis delivered a similar response. Ford’s conversion put Bath eight points clear with less than 20 minutes remaining.

The Chiefs needed a rapid response and with fresh muscle added from the sidelines, their attacking endeavours were rewarded when Whitten muscled his way around three defenders to score a priceless try for the hosts. Steenson duly slotted the conversion to leave just a point in it.
With the capacity Sandy Park crowd now revved up for a thrilling climax to the contest, the Chiefs sensed the opportunity might be there for them to claim that elusive first win in 36 years.

Sadly, it was not to be. With their attacking pedal flat to the floor, the Chiefs went through wave upon wave of attacks in search of a killer blow. However, just as they were poised to strike, Dollman coughed up the ball within yards of the Bath line.

It allowed the visitors to relieve the danger and – in a ruthless conclusion to the game – they masterfully played out the time, muscling their way down field to win a final penalty that Ford arrowed between the sticks with the last kick of the game.

Again it was a case of ‘so near, yet so far’ for Exeter, who must use the disappointment of this loss as a driver for a big display at Saracens next Sunday.

Chiefs: L Arscott (H Slade 64); M Jess, I Whitten, P Dollman, T James; G Steenson, D Lewis (H Thomas 62); B Moon, J Yeandle (L Cowan-Dickie 67), H Tui; D Mumm (capt), D Welch; T Johnson, B White (D Armand 55), D Ewers (K Horstmann 64). Replacements (not used): C Rimmer, A Brown, F Vainikolo

Tries - White, Whitten; Conversions - Steenson (2); Penalties - Steenson (3)

Bath: A Watson; H Agulla, O Devoto (G Henson 68), K Eastmond, M Banahan (N Abendanon 51); G Ford, M Young (P Stringer 55); P James (N Catt 66), R Batty (E Guinazu 68), D Wilson (A Perenise 45); S Hooper (capt, D Day 62), D Attwood; M Garvey, F Louw, L Houston (A Fa’osiliva 66). Replacements (not used): E Guinazu, G Henson.

Tries - Devoto, Eastmond, Abendanon; Conversions - Ford (3); Penalties - Ford (2)

Referee: A Small

Attendance: 10,745

UP NEXT FOR THE CHIEFS: v Saracens (A), Aviva Premiership, Sunday, February 23 (3.15pm)