Moon aims for the sun
IT IS a measure of how far ahead of the rest of the pack Saracens and Exeter have been this season that third-placed Gloucester are closer to the bottom of the Premiership than the top.
Last season’s finalists – who for all money will also be this season’s finalists – have played 18 domestic games between them and lost only once.
Exeter’s slip at Harlequins, when they rested their England contingent, means they go into today’s showdown just behind the defending champions, who have not lost in any competition for 22 games.
Saracens are the drone dominating English rugby’s airspace but if there is one side equipped to shoot them down it is the Chiefs.
They did just that in the 2017 Premiership semi-final and in the league last season, and although Saracens beat them 27-10 at Twickenham last May, Exeter have reasons to be hopeful today.
First, they have dragged themselves out of the mini-slump that set in following the defeat to Quins. The following week’s home performance against Gloucester in Europe was underpowered, imprecise and even a little lazy – the polar opposite of what everyone has come to expect of the Chiefs.
But the response at Kingsholm in the return tie was emphatic as they bulldozed aside Gloucester to exact their revenge and reassure themselves there was plenty of chop left in the old Tomahawk.
“We didn’t do anything particularly different at Gloucester, we just got back to the way we were playing before,” said Exeter prop Ben Moon. “Uncharacteristic things were creeping in which we highlighted and addressed in training and sorted out for Gloucester.
“It was important for us to get back to that Exeter Chiefs performance. We kind of got our mojo back last week and that feeling was really good.
“You could feel it on the pitch, everyone was up for it, ready for it, and hopefully we can do the same this weekend.”
The other potentially important factor is Billy Vunipola’s continued absence for Saracens. The No8 was close to being ready to tackle the Chiefs but is instead likely to return from a broken arm next week. With no Maro Itoje either, Saracens will be missing two of their most valuable components.
Exeter are also without England stars Henry Slade and Jack Nowell but it is up front where the clash of these two juggernaut sides tends to be decided.
While statistically the pair have been mirror images of each other this season, there is one area where Exeter shade the numbers game.
When the Chiefs are in their opponents’ 22 there is no one
better in the country at making the position pay. More often than not the reward comes through the power of their maul and pickand-go game.
Moon said: “Billy will be missed and Maro is a very strong, athletic guy, and is key for their lineout and around the field. But they have good strength in depth like us with players who can fill in.
“They’re 15 blokes who do what they do very well. We’ve just got to make sure we do what we do better. We’re going to treat them as we have in the past. But if we turn up and put the game we want to play on them then we’ve got a good chance of winning.”
As the standings show, there are not many other clubs in the country who can say that. ❒ENGLAND scrum-half Ben Youngs has been included by Leicester for today’s game against Harlequins after a fortnight on the bench, while Test flanker Tom Curry will return to the Sale starting lineup
at home to Bristol. Wales centre Hadleigh Parkes, meanwhile, will start at stand-off for the Scarlets in today’s Pro14 derby at the Ospreys.
And Northampton have been handed a 28-0 bonus-point win by European bosses after the cancellation of Saturday’s European Challenge Cup match at Timisoara Saracens due to heavy snow.
The Romanians were fined €30,000 for failing to provide a suitable alternative venue.