Pellow warns of Welsh threat

By Mark Stevens

Ricky Pellow insists there is real excitement amongst the Exeter Chiefs players as they gear up for Sunday’s LV= Cup encounter with the Newport-Gwent Dragons at Rodney Parade (2:30pm).

Just a week after they ensured their place in the quarter-finals of this season’s European Challenge Cup, the Devon club have now switched their attentions to booking a last four place in the Anglo-Welsh competition they won back in March of last year.

Victory in Newport, coupled with Harlequins failing to defeat Bath tomorrow, will guarantee Rob Baxter’s side a semi-final place with one round of competition still to play.

However, skills coach Pellow knows the Welsh region will be tough opponents and insists any trip across the Severn offers a daunting challenge to any side from England.

“We’ve played the Dragons a couple of times and every time they have been physical and they’ve got stuck into us,” warned the Cornishman. “With it being a Welsh side against an English side, that just adds to the fixture, so we know what we have to do.”

But buoyed by recent European wins over both Connacht and Bayonne, Pellow says it’s vital the Chiefs look to maintain their winning habit at the weekend.

“The mood in the camp is good, especially having qualified for Europe with the last two games,” said Pellow. “It’s meant we have come into this week having got into the last eight of the Challenge Cup, fifth in the Premiership and top of our LV group.

“We’ve also got a new group of players to work with, all of whom are excited and hungry to play, and when you look at the team we’ve put together for the weekend, it’s a good mix of senior and academy guys, all of whom want to put their hands up for selection.”

Pellow says preparations for Exeter’s third LV= Cup game of the season have been good and the players are aware of the rewards on offer should their prevail in the Principality.

“Qualification into the semi-finals will be in the back of their minds,” he added. “But first we have to go out and perform on Sunday. As always we’ll take things one game at a time and not look too far into the distance. The most important thing for us this week is making sure we put in a performance that will hopefully get us the right result down in Newport.”

As expected, head coach Baxter is expected to utilise his playing squad to the full with the likes of former Dragons, Ceri Sweeney and Adam Hughes, expected to line-up in a powerful back division, whilst up front England international Tom Johnson will pack down in the back-row alongside highly-rated youngsters Sam Simmonds and Sam Skinner.