Short warns of Irish threat

By Mark Stevens

James Short says Exeter Chiefs can expect to face a much different London Irish side when they lock horns in the Aviva Premiership this Saturday at Sandy Park (6pm).

Short departed the Exiles this summer for a new start in Devon, but before he left he did briefly get to experience the club’s new coaching regime, headed up by New Zealander Tom Coventry.

“I was up there for a week during pre-season and the new coaches will certainly bring something different to last year,” warned Short. “They’ll be better drilled and they’ll be much tougher opponents to previous years.”

Last term the Chiefs and Irish shared a win apiece in the top flight – and with both clubs both suffering opening day losses last weekend – Short knows the importance of this latest match-up.

“It’s a big game for both teams,” said the winger. “Last week was a close game for us, one we could - and probably should - have won at the end of the day. We did a lot of good things and we know we’re not miles off point.

“Now, we’ve got to build on those positives this weekend and hopefully it will put us in good stead for the game at the weekend.”

And with Short likely to feature against his former employers, the 26-year-old is himself keen to build on what has been an encouraging start to life in the Westcountry.

“I’ve settled in well,” he said. “Coming to a new club you’re always a little bit nervous, but I’ve been here a while now and I’m enjoying the atmosphere of the club, the group of guys and the style of rugby we’re playing.”

Certainly the Redhill-born speedster wasted little time in introducing himself to Chiefs fans at The Rec last week - as he opened his account for the season inside 44 seconds of the game, the quickest-ever try scored by an Exeter player in the top flight.

“I was happy with that, but obviously not the end result,” he continued. “We’ve had one game so far and we’ve got 20-odd games to go, so there is lots to build on. As I said, this weekend will be a tough game for us, but we’re looking forward to it and hopefully we can come away with the right result.”