Stu Townsend scored Exeter’s third strive simply earlier than being despatched to the sin-bin
| Tries: Oghre, Heward Cons: Sheedy 2 |
| Tries: Iosefa-Scott, Feyi-Waboso, Townsend, Vermeulen Cons: Slade 2 |
Exeter moved prime of the Premiership with a rare bonus-level win on the street as they prevailed 24-14 at Bristol.
Tries from Josh Iosefa-Scott and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso twice had Chiefs forward however Gabriel Oghre and Noah Heward replied in a see-noticed first half.
Stu Townsend put Exeter again in entrance on the resumption and Jacques Vermeulen wrapped up the bonus level late on.
Exeter’s seventh win of the marketing campaign lifts them above Bath on the summit forward of the weekend’s fixtures.
Rob Baxter made modifications to the Exeter facet that beat Leicester final weekend with strive-scorers Iosefa-Scott, Feyi-Waboso and Townsend amongst these returning to the beginning 15 for less than the Chiefs’ second win on the street since October 2022.
The sport happened in entrance of a bumper crowd of greater than 24,257 inside Ashton Gate, the most important attendance for a Bears match for greater than three years, nevertheless it was the visiting followers who had been celebrating first throughout a primary 40 minutes that noticed the lead swap forwards and backwards.
Exeter off-loaded shortly from a 5-metre line-out, shifting the ball swiftly to arrange Iosefa-Scott to drive over from shut vary, Henry Slade including the extras.
Bristol immediately retaliated with their very own strive following a line-out, hooker Oghre powering by means of the Exeter defence and Callum Sheedy’s conversion levelling the scores.
An glorious staff strive noticed Exeter return in entrance after Ollie Woodburn made the essential line break, the ball unfold out vast for Feyi-Waboso to the touch down in the suitable nook.
But Heward sprinted by means of a slim hole down the suitable touchline earlier than acrobatically diving over within the nook, Sheedy changing to present Bristol a slender two-level half-time lead.
The Bears had been left to rue a poor catch from the second-half restart nonetheless, gifting Exeter possession. While Feyi-Waboso’s spectacular 30-yard run was stopped inches from the tryline, scrum-half Townsend was available to the touch down from shut vary.
The successful margin may and may have been increased for Exeter as Slade missed his second conversion proper earlier than Townsend was despatched to the bin for a deliberate knock-on.
The Chiefs had been awarded a second penalty in entrance of the posts for a sure three factors, however selected to go for the faucet didn’t convert the possibility.
They finally made their strain pay 5 minutes from time as alternative Vermeulen barged his means over to safe all 5 factors and nudge Exeter forward of Bath on the prime by some extent.
Winger Feyi-Waboso agrees new Chiefs deal
After Feyi-Waboso scored his fifth strive of the season and gained the participant-of-the-match award, Chiefs director of rugby Rob Baxter revealed after the sport the 21-year-outdated has this week agreed a brand new “long-term” deal to remain with the membership.
Image supply, Rex Features
Immanuel Feyi-Waboso scored his fifth strive of the season, and his fourth within the Premiership
The Cardiff-born winger, who’s eligible to play for each England and Wales, can also be learning for a medical diploma at Exeter University alongside his rugby profession.
“He has just agreed a long-term contract, so I’m glad we got that done this week before the game. I will be tracking him down now for his signature on it,” Baxter advised TNT Sport.
“He is very determined to mix his rugby with his medical career, although I guess that depends how busy he becomes as a rugby player. We are making it work for him and he is making it work for us, so long may that continue.”
Bristol director of rugby Pat Lam advised BBC Radio Bristol:
“We’re disenchanted as a staff clearly but in addition for our followers, with such an excellent end up. It was definitely a sport that was going neck-and-neck and was all the time going to come back right down to territory and taking part in in the suitable areas and we did not put sufficient strain.
“We turned the ball over, we gave penalties away and we gave them alternatives, notably after half time.
“We had an opportunity to win the sport and we went for the nook and sadly we did not win the road-out after which we conceded proper on the finish too to take the sport out.
“It’s simply disappointing to come back away with nothing from the sport.”
Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter advised BBC Radio Devon:
“If you watch the sport, you could possibly see we may have grabbed extra management of it actually. We gave some mushy midfield penalties, it is a bit of the bane of my life as a coach actually, however the guys are preventing, they’re working arduous, they turned up and so they labored arduous from the off.
“I’d truly mentioned to myself weirdly within the altering room, ‘if we did not let Bristol rating within the first 10 minutes, we would win the sport’ and that is truly the way it transpired.
“We stored them at arm’s size, we scored first, we seemed like we would turned as much as play, our set piece turned up and that will get you within the sport and if you’re within the sport and you are a good staff, something can occur.
“A five-point win away from home, you can’t ask for more really. It keeps us pushing up the table and we’re the first game of the weekend, so it pushes pressure onto other people and that’s how you want things to go.”
Bristol: Malins, Heward, Vakatawa, Janse van Rensburg, Lane, Sheedy, Randall; Lahiff, Oghre, Sinckler, Dun, Batley, Luatua (c), Thomas, Bradbury.
Replacements: Capon, Woolmore, Kloska, Caulfield, Owen, Marmion, Williams, Ravouvou.
Exeter: Hammersley, Feyi-Waboso, Slade, Devoto, Woodburn, Skinner, Townsend; Abuladze, Frost, Iosefa-Scott, Tuima, Jenkins (c), Roots, Vintcent, Fisilau.
Replacements: Norey, Hepburn, Street, Pearson, Vermeulen, Cairns, Hawkins, Wimbush.
Sin bin: Stu Townsend (45 minutes)
Referee: Christophe Ridley
