Exeter light Ulster’s way to last eight
ULSTER have destiny in their own hands after Henry Slade and Luke Cowan-Dickie starred in a surprise Exeter victory at Bordeaux-Begles that has handed the northern province a massive boost in Pool 5.
Exeter’s eight-point raid on French soil rekindles the Premiership outfit’s hopes but more significantly gives Ulster a chance to leapfrog Bordeaux-Begles into second place with any point Rassie Erasmus’s side can snaffle from today’s visit to Clermont.
Hooker Cowan-Dickie scored the crucial second-half try and fly-half Slade was named man of the match as the Chiefs made amends for their defeat at Sandy Park last weekend.
Thomas Waldrom scored the visitors’ other try as a red card for Bordeaux wing Nans Ducuing proved to be the crucial moment.
‘Some of Henry’s passing was wayward at times and his performance was like ours as a team,’ head coach Rob Baxter said after his team’s first win in Europe this season.
‘But the important bits were there and that’s the most pleasing thing. Hopefully Henry will keep driving forwards now. He hasn’t played at flyhalf for a long time and he hasn’t had a lot of game time and this was Luke Cowan-Dickie’s first game back, so it was always going to be a bit fractured but this is a win we’ll celebrate.
‘Then there’s Jack Nowell, who has a lot more in the tank. Hopefully we should see some pretty special things from these players moving forwards.’
Exeter were always kept in the game by the boot of Slade, who booted two penalties and a conversion, with Bordeaux’s points coming via three penalties from Lionel Beauxis and one from replacement Baptiste Serin.
The home side were always up against it once Ducuing was red carded for clashing with Olly Woodburn in the air. Asked for his view on the second-half incident, Baxter said: ‘It’s a really difficult one. The referee made the right decision but as a rugby man I don’t like it.
‘Both players were committed to the ball, a collision happened but the directives these days make it that you can be red carded for quite an innocent act.’