Chiefs side to face London Irish
By Mark Stevens
5/5/23
Exeter Chiefs will wrap up their latest Gallagher Premiership campaign with Director of Rugby, Rob Baxter, looking to the future and the start of what he hopes will be the unearthing of his next golden generation at Sandy Park.
Much has been made of the multiple, big-name departures that will occur in EX2 come the end of the season. However, the building blocks moving forward are already being set in place and Baxter is hoping his side’s trip to London Irish tomorrow will be the start of something new for him and his squad.
Last week’s Heineken Champions Cup semi-final lost to La Rochelle in Bordeaux was, according to Baxter, the most fitting occasion for the Chiefs to bid farewell to their departing cast. Sure, it ended in defeat and not the way many would have wanted their careers to end, but Baxter gave a more philosophical view on things this week.
“The week’s been alright,” he said. “Yes, it’s been tough in some ways and great in other ways. The first meeting I had with the players, I filled them in with how we were going to select the team, just because we are going to make considerable changes for the weekend. I don’t mind saying, if we give selection away to London Irish nice and early, the team is going to be largely based on players who are going to be here next season.
“I think that’s the right thing to do, but the first message I put out to the players was ‘right guys, nobody is being punished here’. My job is to look ahead and move forward. I know there are guys who want to play this weekend because they want to play their last game for the club in the last game of the season, but in some ways - and I know the game was a loss - that game last week was a pretty fitting way for some of those guys to finish their careers with us.
“Playing in a fantastic stadium in what was a huge game, that for me is a great way to finish. I think this is something that will probably get their heads around in the next day or two because they were very frustrated after the game. What they have to remember, however, is good teams lose semi-finals. Some incredible teams have lost in Heineken Cup semi-finals over many years. Two good teams advance and two good teams bow out, but you should that experience to move forward.
“If that game defines your career, it’s still a pretty big game to play in. If that’s your last game, it’s still a great occasion to be involved in. That’s what I will remind the guys of this week. Yes, this week will be full of emotion because we are losing quite a few boys who have been here for some time. Together they’ve been incredible men at this club and enjoyed some incredible times together. The flip side, however, is we have to make it exciting as well for the group who are here and staying.
“I’ve always been a big believer in saying it’s the men in the room that will make things happen. I actually said that to the lads before the La Rochelle game. I told them how we start that game, what we do here, is all about you as the men in the room. The stadium may be packed with French supporters, but what we do is about what we say and do in here. To be fair, we turned up, we got into the game and we were competitive for large parts of that game. At the end of the day, we weren’t quite good enough.
“Moving forward, though, I know we will be better for the experience. When you look back, especially some of those early years, we went to France and we got annihilated at times. Clermont that first time was scary, we faced Toulon in their pomp. Every one of those trips, however, was a learning experience and that is the stuff you look back on and you draw strength from.
“Not one of those games defined us as a club and not one thing now will define us. Guys will learn from it all and I know we will be much better for it in the future.”
Standing in the way of the Chiefs for their final outing will be an Irish outfit who, it has to be said, have not had the best week of prep leading into the game. With doubts about their overall future and chat of staff and players not being paid, it’s another worrying time for one of the top flight’s most established names.
That said, the game at the impressive Gtech Community Stadium is set to go ahead and Baxter is looking for his players to finish with a flourish in the capital.
“We’re excited and ready to go,” he added. “We’ve made changes and it won’t be perfect, I know that. Games, though, are never perfect. What I expect from our guys is an energetic, enthusiastic, never-say-die performance. If we can produce that, then hopefully the result takes care of itself. What it will also do, however, is set the foundations from which I want us to build next season.”
As mentioned, Baxter has made wholesale changes with only five of last weekend’s starting line-up in Europe remaining in place for the clash with the Exiles. Henry Slade is one of them and will skipper the side from centre, but he is joined in the backline by highly-rated winger Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, who is set to make his first-ever Premiership start.
Up front, Jannes Kirsten is the only confirmed departee who features this weekend. Jonny Gray’s knee injury and Dafydd Jenkins’ suspension mean the Chiefs are light in the engine-room and he packs down alongside the recalled Jack Dunne.
