A week in Europe can be a very long time in both politics and rugby. Last Saturday Exeter were desperately disappointed to lose at home to Gloucester in a result which appeared to have scuppered their European hopes. This time it was the Cherry and Whites who experienced a similar sinking feeling as Chiefs finally secured a relieving victory to throw Pool Two wide open.
Munster and Castres will have enjoyed this result, with both English clubs now facing an uphill battle to progress. Exeter’s last-gasp try bonus point, secured by their England prop Harry Williams, has further clouded the outlook for Gloucester; should they and the Chiefs both win their finaltwo matches with maximum points, Exeter will be first among equals courtesy of Williams’s late close-range effort.
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Nor was the evening a memorable one for Danny Cipriani who, in front of the watching England head coach, Eddie Jones, was injured late in the first half and left the ground with his right arm in a sling. Initial examinations suggest he has suffered a pectoral muscle injury, which can take months to heal, and Gloucester face an anxious wait this weekend to learn the full extent of the damage. “Hopefully it is something that does not see him out for weeks or months,” said their head coach, Johan Ackermann.
Ackermann was also left to curse his side’s sluggishness in numerous aspects, with two yellow cards and a penalty count of 14 against four giving Exeter a significant helping hand. The visiting set piece also enjoyed a strong evening, to the delight of their director of rugby, Rob Baxter. “There’s a glimmer,” suggested Baxter.”If we can go to Munster with something to play for in our final pool game that would be fantastic.”
There were moments, even so, when it seemed the Chiefs might not capitalise on the platform established via first-half tries from the excellent Sam Skinner and Don Armand, until Jack Yeandle and Williams, with Josh Hohneck in the sin-bin, forced their way over in the final six minutes to settle the outcome. Gloucester took an age to find some rhythm but a brace of tries from the full-back, Jason Woodward, and a 76th-minute effort from Tom Hudson kept them in contention until the closing seconds.
The home team’s chances of reaching the quarter-finals for the first time since 2007-08 are now receding fast, with big wins over Munster and Castres now required in January to stand any chance of progressing. Even had Cipriani stayed on for the full 80 minutes, they were never remotely as physically intense or focused as they had been at Sandy Park, whereas Exeter were the precise opposite.
The visitors’ only possible escape route into the last eight after failing to win any their opening three pool games was to be positive and Gareth Steenson duly spurned four early kickable penalties in favour of driven mauls. The first three yielded nothing but the fourth was perfectly worked, with Skinner at the bottom of the heap. Steenson’s wide-angled conversion was also spot on, rewarding the visitors for their first quarter dominance.
Gloucester had no choice but to rouse themselves. Their pack made some menacing yardage and, with advantage being played, a long ball out to Woodward on the left belatedly put the hosts on the scoreboard. Cipriani badly mishit his conversion attempt but the choristers in the Shed finally had an excuse to clear their throats.
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Baxter, however, had spent all week urging the Chiefs to set the record straight even in the absence of a number of high-profile players. “The big question we have to ask as a group is why are we not getting our heads around the whole Heineken Cup thing yet?‚” stressed the director of rugby. Part of the solution clearly involved going back to basics and, following Cipriani’s departure, another trademark maul produced a try for Armand, converted by Steenson.
With two-thirds of first-half territory and possession and a favourable penalty count, the Chiefs’ half-time advantage of 14-5 was entirely deserved. Only a professional foul by Billy Twelvetrees prevented Chiefs from scoring again three minutes into the second half but Woodward’s second try in the left corner set up a frenetic if frozen-fingered finale. Hudson gave the Gloucester faithful momentary hope before a poor clearance from Owen Williams in the final minute was smartly returned by Joe Simmonds and Williams rumbled over to put Exeter’s season back on track. The prospects of either team featuring in the quarter-final draw, though, appear unlikely.
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