Cup loss disappoints Pellow
By Mark Stevens
27/1/18
Ricky Pellow felt his Exeter Chiefs side came up “a little bit short” after they went down 31-21 to rivals Worcester Warriors in their latest Anglo-Welsh Cup clash at Sixways.
Having led 14-0 thanks to converted tries from Tom Lawday and Harry Strong, the Midlanders hit back before the break to land tries of their own through Josh Adams and Dave Denton, one of which was converted by Jamie Shillcock, to leave just two points between the teams at the turn.
Tom Howe’s converted score gave the Warriors the lead for the first time after the break, but that was quickly cancelled out as Pellow’s youthful Chiefs responded with a third converted try from Shaun Malton just past the hour mark.
Sadly, the visitors - who lost Ollie Atkins and Wilhelm Van der Sluys to yellow cards during the contest - could not hold on and it was the Warriors who pulled clear in the last quarter, adding further points through Adams and replacement Luke Baldwin to ensure their first win of the campaign.
“We have a few disappointed players in the changing rooms, just because we feel we could have ripped the game away from them,” said Pellow. “The side we put out, the energy that we put into the game, it’s all a bit frustrating. As coaches we can’t fault the effort the guys put into the game, but in the end we’ve just came up short in the end.
“We talked in the week and this morning about coming here as a group trying to create memories that won’t get taken away from them. It’s frustrating that things didn’t quite go our way at the end, the bonus point slipped away, as did the opportunity to win the game. But I’m very proud of the guys and the way they played.”
After getting a dream start thanks to Lawday’s score after three minutes and Strong’s touchdown not long after, the Chiefs had put themselves in a strong position to maintain their position at the summit of Pool Two.
The Warriors, however, had other ideas and they used their experienced stars such as Donncha O’Callaghan, Francois Hougaard, Ryan Mills and Denton to haul themselves back into the match before the break.
The two tries before half time gave them a lifeline back into the contest and after the break the hosts cranked up the gears, the fruits of which eventually sealed their victory on the day.
“We knew if we could put our game onto them nice and early and put them under pressure, it would cause them a few problems,” added Pellow. “We did that very well, especially early on, but because we are a young side it’s how you react when that pressure comes on.
“I thought Worcester were very good at strangling us at key points of the game. We fought hard to get out of those situations, but then we were guilty of giving them ‘ins’ to get back into the game and that’s when they took their opportunities. For a lot of our young guys, today has been a big learning curve for them and they will take a lot from it.
“Now we know we have a big task next week at home to Saracens where we not only have to get a win, but probably a bonus point win as well. Yes, we will see what happens in other games, but first and foremost we have to put in a big performance at home and we have to get that win if we want to stand any chance of progressing into the latter stages.
“Harlequins have got a tough game going to Northampton, so from that perspective if they win it is out of our hands. However, our focus this week will be on ourselves - and if we can get a win and push for a bonus point, that will put pressure on Quins to get their result.
“As I said, there are disappointed players in the changing room right now, but I like that, as they know they could have won that game today. What I want them to do now is take those frustrations into next week and put in a really big performance against what will be a very good Saracens side.”