Chiefs side to face Montpellier
By Mark Stevens
31/3/23
Exeter Chiefs Director of Rugby Rob Baxter has told his players to shake off the ‘emotional baggage’ of last weekend’s loss at Bath and focus their minds on the visit of Montpellier to Sandy Park in the last 16 of this season’s Heineken Champions Cup.
The reigning French champions will arrive at Sandy Park on Sunday (12:30pm) looking to inflict further woe on the Chiefs, who were left somewhat shell-shocked in the wake of their disappointing Gallagher Premiership display at The Rec just seven days earlier.
Tuesday’s review of that performance would not have been pretty for anyone, but Baxter was quick to stress that he - and his players for that matter - have looked to address the issues in some open and honest discussions and now is the time for the Chiefs to re-ignite themselves on the big European stage.
“There was some tough talking, but I did think their needed to be,” said Baxter. “As a group, we all our had say, we all got things off our chest and now it’s a case of moving forward, starting with this weekend. For me, personally, I’m really looking forward to the game. I know some people will ask why, but the first thing I’m looking forward to is that first scrum, just to see if we have taken on board what happened last week and take on board what has happened in training this week. I want to see if we go: ‘Right, I’m here and I’m ready to stand up and fight.’
“Some things we can keep really simple for ourselves because as the game wore on last week, we got more and more frantic, more and more hectic and got more and more things wrong just because we wanted the game to go differently. The one thing that was really evident and all the discussions I’ve had with the group or individually, there was a frustration with each other and how we were playing that is causing more of the problems than is helping.
“Actually, what we have to do is settle down a little bit, focus in on our own jobs, focus on what we do, focus on our roles within the team and if we get anywhere near the level of doing those bits really well, I know we’re a very good side. That’s my job and that of the coaches to try and knock us back into alignment and not get frustrated with one another. We just need to chill a bit!”
As he warned, Baxter has made changes to his line-up and has rewarded some of those who impressed in the recent Premiership Rugby Cup Final victory over London Irish. Tom Wyatt, Sean O’Brien and Will Becconsall all get their chance from the outset on Sunday.
He acknowledged the freedom that was shown by that team is something he is keen to have within this weekend’s ranks and has used this week to tell his players to focus on their own games which, collectively, can produce a performance to topple the visiting Frenchmen.
“I have no doubt the players want to play well,” added Baxter. “Some of our issues on how we end up not winning games is because of a kind of desperation to do well at this end stage of the season. As a side, though, we have to try and guide that desperation in the right channels and that energy in the right places. Sometimes we have guys who are saying the right things and desperate to do well, yet they are looking at someone else and whilst they are doing they, thinking why are doing that, they are not doing anything themselves, so we are losing out both ways.
“These are the things that we just have to level out because on the whole we have done that at home. We’ve only lost one game here, that was to the last kick of a game, but this is where we are. Sometimes we forget this and you can let the feeling growing that everything is wrong. When everything isn’t wrong, we are sixth in the Premiership, we’re halfway in the league with half the sides below us and half the sides above, all of whom are just doing things that little bit better than us.
“The key for me - and this is probably why I spoke so much about the team that played in the Premiership Cup Final - is they are probably a bit free of that emotional baggage and frustration that some of the other guys have. For them, it’s pretty simple, they just want to get on the field and play. A perfect example is that we were out scrummed and out mauled by London Irish in that final, but did it affect us to the point where we fell apart?
“No, it didn’t and that’s because it didn’t create any baggage for us. Instead, we just got on with things and wanted to go out and win the game. That was how simple it was. Against Bath, there wasn’t any one thing that needed to de-rail us like it did, yet pretty much everything did. We let things kind of snowball and that comes with what I said about that baggage.”
Standing in the way of the Chiefs in their pursuit of victory and a potential place in the quarter-finals are Montpellier, who on their two previous visits to Devon have shipped over 40 points on both occasions.
Baxter, though, is aware of the threat they pose to his side and has issued a timely word of warning ahead of kick-off this weekend.
“They are a good side, but I’m kind of pleased about that,” he said. “Some of our best performances, particularly in Europe have come against good sides. Knowing it will be a challenge this weekend, I know will bring the best out of our guys.”
Team news for the Chiefs sees Baxter make two changes to his pack of forwards, bringing in the sizeable frames of both Jonny Gray and Jannes Kirsten. Outside of them, there is a new half-back pairing of Becconsall and Joe Simmonds, the former replacing Sam Maunder, who is set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines with a serious knee injury. O’Brien comes into the midfield in place of Solomone Kata, while Wyatt will make his first-ever European appearance, replacing Josh Hodge at full-back.
