Match Report: Exeter Chiefs 14 – 48 Bath Rugby

Exeter Chiefs were beaten by a strong Bath Rugby side at Sandy Park this Sunday afternoon in the Premiership Rugby Cup Final.

A more than 11,000 strong crowd had packed into the Devon stadium to cheer on their Chiefs but the Exeter men were unable to get a foothold in the game as Bath took charge for the majority of the encounter.

Chiefs were dealt a hefty blow in the opening 10 minutes when stand-out performer Tommy Wyatt had to be helped from the field. The fullback had carried to the edge of the 22 before being caught slightly wrong in a tackle and hitting the deck in some noticeable pain.

Showing no signs of being shaken by the loss of their man, Chiefs looked to have gotten on the board just a minute later. Working the phases on the Bath line, scrum-half Stu Townsend picked and went himself, diving over the line for the score. Unfortunately, a TMO check came in and Chiefs were judged to have knocked the ball on.

It took 10 minutes, but the Chiefs got the points readded when Christ Tshiunza barrelled over in front of the East Terrace. A short, trick lineout to Stu Townsend at the front was popped straight back to hooker Jack Yeandle who made vital yards to be brought down just shy of the line.

With a latcher on his back, the Welsh second rower grounded the try for the game’s first points which Josh Hodge promptly added two more to.

Bath responded immediately. A slightly messy restart was regathered by the men in Blue, Black and White with Alfie Barbeary breaking through the Chiefs line. He popped the ball to his scrum half and Tom Carr-Smith cleanly finished the score by the posts.

Ciaran Donoghue added the conversion to bring the sides level.

The visitors took the lead when Joe Cokanasiga scored tight to the corner flag on 25 minutes played. Tearing down the wing, he had Austin Emens and Ruaridh McConnochie in support but didn’t need them as he forced his big frame through contact and over the line. Donoghue’s conversion was successful for the extra two.

As Chiefs lost another influential player in Ethan Roots, so too did Bath as winger and try-scorer Cokanasiga had to be helped from the field before a half hour had been played.

Youth and experience combined for Exeter’s second of the day. Carving lines from Will Haydon-Wood and Hodge put Chiefs on the front-foot with a carry from Yeandle in the five-metre channel putting his side closer within range. Assessing options at the breakdown, Scott Sio went himself, stretching an arm out for the score.

Hodge’s conversion brought the sides back level with two converted tries apiece.

A penalty at the breakdown in the closing minutes of the half enabled Donogue to opt to go for goal, eating up the remaining clock and kicking his side ahead.

Half-time: Chiefs 14 – 17 Bath

A prolonged period of pressure on the Chiefs’ line at the outset of the second half saw Bath add a third try. Replacement prop Thomas Du Toit was the man in charge of the ball when the litter of bodies crashed over. Donoghue added the conversion.

As he has many a time throughout this cup competition, Paul Brown-Bampoe thought he had gotten himself on the scoresheet next with a try in the corner. However, a TMO check showed Hodge with a toe in touch earlier in the phases and play returned to the edge of the Bath 22 for a lineout.

Frustratingly for Chiefs, they lost another talisman just shy of an hour played when captain Yeandle was shown a yellow card for a tug on the shirt of Bath’s Carr-Smith as the opposition were on the offensive deep in Chiefs territory.

Making use of the man advantage, Bath stared down the Chiefs line and replacement hooker Tom Dunn managed to borrow his way over for a bonus-point score. Donoghue’s conversion took Bath over the 30-point mark.

Despite looking held up over the line originally, Bath squeezed a fifth try in at the corner when Ewan Richards found a sliver of daylight to put the ball down into.

Dunn then got his second on 68 minutes when the maul trundled from 10 metres out to be torn down just short. However, the hooker peeled off the edge for the score. Donoghue added the conversion.

The damage was already done when Bath struck again. Cantering downfield from their own half, Chiefs desperately tried to back-track in defence, but replacement Louis Schreuder was able to find the line for the score.

And so, Bath were the men to lift the domestic cup silverware in Devon this afternoon as the league-toppers show no sign of losing their form as teams prepare to head in to the Gallagher Premiership run-in.

Full-time: Chiefs 14 – 48 Bath

Chiefs: T Wyatt (Haydon-Wood 9’); P Brown-Bampoe, J Hawkins, T Tua (Rigg 60’), J Hodge; H Skinner, S Townsend (Cairns 49’); S Sio (Blose 56’), J Yeandle (c) (Pearson 66’), J Iosefa-Scott (Street 56’), F Molina (Frost 59’), C Tshiunza, E Roots (Capstick 28’), J Vermeulen (Molina 62’), G Fisilau.

Tries: Tshiunza, Sio Conversions: Hodge 2

Yellow card: Jack Yeandle

Bath: A Emens; J Cokanasiga (Ojomoh 29’), C Redpath, W Butt, R McConnochie; C Donoghue, T Carr-Smith (Schreuder 65’); A Cordwell (Obano 40’), J Spandler (Dunn 14’, Spandler 26’, Dunn 40’), K Verden (Du Toit 40’), W Jeanes (Richards 49’), E Richards (c) (Reid 44’), A Green (Pepper 40’), E Staddon, A Barbeary (Coetzee 54’).

Tries: Carr-Smith, Cokanasiga, Du Toit, Dunn 2, Richards, Schreuder Conversions: Donoghue 5 Penalties: Donoghue

Referee: Sara Cox