Simmonds hat-trick helps Exeter sweep aside Quins
Harlequins 3
Exeter 33
It was not quite as if Exeter had walked straight across the road after their Premiership final win at
Twickenham 27 days ago and straight onto the Harlequins pitch, but it was not far off.
Even with some early season rustiness, there was the usual control, the usual frightful power and yet more majesty from those Simmonds brothers.
This time it was the elder, Sam; his hat-trick of tries laid the foundations for this bonus-point win that showed that the Chiefs remain the team to beat.
At times, the home side did give the champions plenty to think about, and Exeter’s late flurry of tries did make the contest seem more one-sided than it was.
Harlequins whipped the ball about accurately at times, with halfbacks Danny Care and Marcus Smith providing impressive direction and poise, and some of their thunderclap tackling did knock the wind out of the Chiefs’ sails.
Against this Exeter side, however, you must take every chance that presents itself, and this proved to be Harlequins’ flaw.
The hosts grafted for good field position on numerous occasions and, while their willingness to chuck the ball about might have looked pretty, three measly points – from the boot of Smith – was never going to be enough against a Chiefs side who have built a reputation on the insidious way in which they mature into matches.
Soon enough, after riding out the Harlequins gust, Exeter struck in an instant. The Simmonds brothers combined in midfield from a firstphase move with so many runners that it looked like the London Marathon start line.
Sam Simmonds ghosted through a Harlequins midfield gap, stepped off his right foot to bamboozle Nathan Earle, and his locomotive acceleration was enough to take him away from the cover defence. Joe Simmonds converted, and the writing already looked on the wall for Harlequins.
The score encapsulated the difference between the two sides, too. In one corner was Exeter, with that touch of stardust, turning it up to 11 after only a handful of visits into the hosts’ 22; in the other was Harlequins, plenty of heart, plenty of endeavour and enough skill, but lacking in end product.
Once Exeter had their noses in front, it was going to take an exceptional side to stop them.
When blindside Dave Ewers extended Chiefs’ lead to nine points after a motoring maul obliterated the Harlequins’ pack, the game looked dead and buried. And when centre Luke Northmore had a try ruled out due to No 8 Alex Dombrandt’s cumbersome blocking line, it was.
But this match was not a catastrophe for Harlequins. Yes, they were well beaten at home, but Exeter are champions of both England and Europe for a reason.
Quins possessed someone who made a strong case for the game’s outstanding player, openside flanker Will Evans – a man who surely cannot be far away from higher recognition – and his backrow partner Dombrandt showed touches of brilliance, too. These are two relatively young men around whom a side should be built.
Not even that sprightly duo could stop the Chiefs, however, and another Sam Simmonds try, again from a line-out maul, gave his side breathing space, before his hat-trick score – another from close range – ensured Exeter finished with a flourish. Replacement Stu Townsend’s late score was the final touch on Exeter’s first win at the Stoop since 2018.