Exeter have grown up when it comes to Europe
Champions have learned from mistakes and will approach Glasgow game with a different attitude
Four years ago, Exeter centre Henry Slade woke up one Saturday morning and realised just what lay ahead of him. Toulon were in town. He would be up against Jonny Wilkinson. It was the Heineken Cup. And it dawned on Slade that this was the big time. Toulon went on that season to retain their European title with a dominant 23-6 win over Saracens at the Millennium Stadium.
Twelve months later, Toulon became the first side in history to claim three in a row, an achievement that confirmed their status on the global rugby map, from anonymous outpost of a decade earlier to one of the finest on the planet.
Exeter and Slade are on that continuum somewhere, having gone from one-time country cousins to Premiership champions and looking to take the next step. They have achieved much but now comes another test, to be something in Europe. This is Exeter’s fourth season among Europe’s elite. They have only once progressed to the knockout stages and, tellingly, have only once won their opening match.
Tonight against Glasgow Warriors will be revealing. Can the Chiefs in Europe be the Chiefs of the Premiership: hard-nosed, obdurate and potent? Too often, Exeter have made the faux pas that afflicts so many when in exalted company – not being themselves.
“That’s exactly it,” says Slade. “We have performed well in the Premiership by doing what we do best. There is no need to change that for Europe. Of course, the intensity and all that are a notch up. We’ve been up and down in past years. And we realise that this is the challenge. We’ve focused on the Premiership but we have a good enough and big enough squad to compete on both fronts. It’s where we want to be. I grew up watching the likes of Munster in the Heineken Cup, then Toulon. It puts you on the map. We’re all looking forward to getting stuck into Europe.”
In some ways, the Chiefs are a victim of their own rapid rise. As English champions, there is, and rightly, increased scrutiny as well as expectation, even though they are newcomers to the big boys’ club, albeit they have no intention of using that relative lack of experience as any sort of excuse.
“We’re more than ready to commit to Europe,” said the Exeter chairman, Tony Rowe. “There is no
‘We have performed well by doing what we do. There is no need to change that’
pressure or rush but, yes, we do want to show our colours. You’ve got to have ambition and we do. ”
In keeping with the tone of Exeter themselves, Pool Three is something of an under-the-radar group. Leinster have pedigree as three-time champions, although that lustre has not shone so brightly of late. Yet, they, the Chiefs, unbeaten Pro14 leaders Glasgow and Montpellier all have bona fide credentials. Their squads have depth as well as class, even if Exeter will be without one of their principal assets in wing Jack Nowell for these opening rounds.
There is a different air around Sandy Park these days. There is nothing smug or presumptuous, but they are no longer the battling underdog out to snap and snarl at more celebrated opposition but a champion side with a clear outlook. The Chiefs have never relied on a cast of galacticos as Toulon did – and do – but have a well-established roster of reliable performers in the likes of fly-half Gareth Steenson and flanker Don Armand to the new whizz kid of the back-row, No 8 Sam Simmonds.
Above all, Exeter have the right attitude. Gone is the wide-eyed demeanour of the naifs occasionally overawed by the big time, as they were in their first Premiership final in 2016, when they seemed content merely to be at Twickenham as Saracens swamped them in the first half. They know now what it takes, and are intent on showing that against Glasgow and beyond.
“My biggest fear is that we would have any fear,” says head coach Ali Hepher. “You have to attack big games, not be daunted by them or do something different or go into your shell. The boys are comfortable with that notion. Saturday is a big moment for us.”
Glasgow are the form side with a perfect 6-0 record from their Pro14 games, including an impressive win over the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein last weekend.
“We’re fully aware of how tough it will be,” said director of rugby Rob Baxter. “And we’re fully aware that we have never started this competition well. That is our simple goal – to perform in the opening rounds so that Europe doesn’t become a secondary consideration before the end of October. It’s a special tournament, yes, but we have to be ourselves. Our mindset and emotional state is what I’m interested in, to see how we cope with it all. It will be the deciding factor.”