Chiefs U23s 83 Navy U23s 0
Exeter Chiefs U23s 83
Royal Navy U23s 0
Mark Stevens at Sandy Park
Exeter Chiefs Under-23s coach Ruairi Cushion said he was delighted with the showing of his young side as they ran riot against their Royal Navy counterparts at Sandy Park.
In an often one-sided encounter, the hosts were able to run in 13 tries in a polished performance that certainly augurs well for the future.
Flanker Alex Sheridan set them on their way before prop Bailey Williams (2) and winger Josh Davies crossed before the break to make it 26-0.
The second half was virtually one-way traffic for the young Chiefs, who were able to add further scores through Will Cornish, Ethan Pearce-Cowley, Matt Pritchard, Harry Wilkinson, Ethan Battle, Will Gibson, Charlie Levick, Wilf McCarthy and Haydn Lidstone, who also added four conversions.
Fraser Honey completed the scoring by landing a further five conversions for the Chiefs, who the previous week had come up against the Cambridge University Varsity side.
It took just five minutes for the hosts to break the deadlock, determined work from Gibson saw him turnover possession, before the ball was worked through a handful of phases, allowing Sheridan to drive over from close range.
Lidstone banged over the extras to that score and Exeter’s second, which arrived just five minutes later when prop Williams bulldozed his way over by the posts for the first of his two scores.
The Navy were doing their best to contain a sprightly Chiefs outfit, but they fell further behind when Davies was the next to cross, the fleet-footed winger scorching down the right flank to add a third try.
Already 19 points to the good, the Chiefs would round off a solid first half showing when Williams claimed his second, finishing off some determined play from the home side with the last move of the half.
HALF TIME EXETER CHIEFS U23s 26 ROYAL NAVY U23s 0
Having introduced a sprinkling of fresh faces at the break, it didn’t take the Chiefs long to get into their stride on the restart. Just three minutes has elapsed when a decent break from Levick created the platform for hooker Cornish to cross.
Worse would follow for the Servicemen who, it has to be said, battled valiantly throughout. Pearce-Cowley was next over for the home side, quickly followed by fellow forward Pritchard, who was able to touch down from a well-drilled catch-and-drive move just five metres out.
The final quarter, though, saw the youthful Chiefs really open up as they added six further tries.
Wilkinson, Battle and Gibson all crossed within a five minute period, before Lidstone rounded off a clever backs move, instigated after the Chiefs went quick off a tap penalty midway inside the Navy half.
Lidstone then turned provider for Levick, who was able to race down the left wing for a 12th try, before McCarthy wrapped things up with the score of the night, slaloming his way through a handful of tackles before dotting down with just two minutes remaining.
Post-game, Cushion said: “As coaches we’re really happy with the performance. Although the scoreline looks rather flattering, our guys had to work hard for their points. What we liked was how much pace we put on the ball, we did the basics very well and there was real energy in the performance.
“After what was a tough game up at Cambridge last week against a well-drilled, experienced side, this was a great response from the boys. It shows the talent we have within the region and the benefit of fixtures like this, just because it allows to monitor the progress of those players within our system.
“As I said, it’s all very promising for us and with a number of other fixtures coming up against Bristol and Ealing, both home and away, it’s a great opportunity for us to not only give players good game time in a competitive fixture, but also see how they are progressing week by week.”
Chiefs U23s: W McCarthy (R Weeks 50), W Trewin (W McCarthy 60), B Parsons (capt), I Welch, J Davies (C Levick h/t); H Lidstone (F Honey 46), J Pilkington (F Musgrove h/t); E Pearce-Cowley (D Arthur 53), W Cornish (M Pritchard 53), B Williams (H Wilkinson 53); M Mulcahy (E Battle h/t), A Sheridan; A Thomson (M Osborne 52), W Gibson, J King.
Tries - Sheridan, Williams (2), Davies, Cornish, Pearce-Cowley, Pritchard, Wilkinson, Battle, Gibson, Lidstone, Levick, McCarthy; Conversions - Lidstone (4), Honey (5)
Navy U23s: R Dingemans (F Marsden 66); J Davis, O Raynor, G Prentice (C Penrose-Tomms 66), K Teear-Bourge; K Manson, J Toogood (B Angliss 58); D Cleverley, B Rees, J Johnston (O-Sanders Mortimore 63); D McAdams, A Watson; S Walker, K Leyland-Jones, E Holland.
Referee: M Weston
Attendance: 1,200