Slade makes his point to Jones in Exeter win
On the day that Eddie Jones admitted he made a mistake by not starting him in the World Cup final, Henry Slade gave the perfect demonstration of his form with a vital try in Exeter’s stunning 31-12 win at La Rochelle.
Jones, the England head coach, told The Telegraph earlier in the week that he chose the wrong team to face South Africa and yesterday an extract from his new book revealed that if he had his time again he would have selected Slade ahead of George Ford, and Joe Marler in place of Mako Vunipola.
And Slade showed quite why Jones may have made an error with a superb interception score from within his own half as Exeter produced a sensational performance in the opening round of Champions Cup matches. La Rochelle were unbeaten at home in eight months but Exeter, who had lost two of their opening four Premiership matches, put them to the sword as tries from Dave Dennis, Tom O’Flaherty, Slade and Sam Simmonds secured a maximum five points.
Exeter head coach Rob Baxter said: “You saw the real Exeter stand up today. We’ve been building up to this game and we stood up strongly today. It’s the first time we’ve been at our best this season. We were very clinical and it’s as if the machine is back and purring.”
Saracens begin the defence of their trophy at Racing 92 today but they do so under the cloud of their alleged salary cap breaches, with the club being docked 35 points and fined £5.4 million by Premiership Rugby last week.
And it was last night reported that Saracens will not appeal against the punishments, with The Sunday Times stating they will accept the penalty.
That means Saracens will be on -22 points – 26 points adrift – when the Premiership resumes.
Henry Slade was wearing a triumphant grin as he made his way from the changing rooms towards Exeter’s bus after his side’s bonus-point win in which he played a star role. One has to wonder how much motivation the centre had used from being benched by Eddie Jones for both the World Cup final and semi-final.
The decision to omit Slade has been criticised particularly in the context of the final and it will be raised again after he not only scored a stunning intercept try but also played an instrumental role in the leadership of the backline. The 26-year-old looked to have learnt lessons from his time in Japan as he continually ensured his colleagues kept their defensive shape. Slade looked a much more confident and assured leader than last season.
Yet despite laying down such a statement of intent, Exeter Chiefs’ director of rugby Rob Baxter refrained from making any pronouncements around Slade’s England selection travails while still giving him a glowing endorsement, along with fellow returnees hooker Luke Cowan-Dickie and wing Jack Nowell.
Baxter said: “Henry showed why he was in that England World Cup squad and how good he can be. What was really good for me was that those World Cup players, when you drop them into the Exeter Chiefs team that is playing well, they look a million dollars.”
Baxter was keen to point out he had felt somewhat embarrassed with how his side had been going in the Premiership. He revealed he had almost to apologise to new signings former South Africa Under-20 Jacques Vermeulen and Scottish full-back Stuart Hogg. “Jacques has been exceptional for us but hasn’t played in a good game for us yet. It is the same for Stuart Hogg.”
There may have been a capacity crowd in La Rochelle with over 15,000 yellow and black flags distributed to the home fans with French sea shanties blaring before kick off but it was Exeter who played as if they were the home crowd.
The seafaring theme would have been certainly something the Simmonds brothers fly-half Joe and Sam would not have needed any getting used to as their father David is a fisherman. The Simmonds brothers both wreaked havoc for the visitors with Joe slotting all is kicks and controlling the midfield with help from Slade and inside centre Ian Whitten. Sam, the elder sibling, was strong at the break down and sealed the bonus point by scoring Chiefs’ fourth try.
Baxter revealed that after several seasons of domestic dominance Europe is now the focus. “Without doubt our European form over the past three seasons has been a big motivator,” said Baxter.
“When we spoke to players at the end of the season and the start of this season, a number of them identified success in the Heineken Cup beyond anything else and that is why we have been almost waiting for today.
“We needed today to happen, so our season can go on. I said to our players in the dressing room, ‘Thank God, this has happened’ because now that we are up and running in the Heineken Cup, we can move on. We can stop waiting.”
All the momentum went Exeter’s way starting with the opening try from Australian lock Dave Dennis. The hosts who have added Ronan O’Gara to their coaching ticket looked to equalise but Scottish referee Mike Adamson conferred with the TMO and ruled that wing Vincent Rattez had received a forward pass before he looked to touch down.
Exeter took control and were 14-0 up heading into the second half thanks to a try from man of the match Tom O’Flaherty, another who seemed to benefit from Slade’s presence outside him.
Baxter believes luck went his side’s way. “The score was a bit false, the difference in the teams wasn’t the size of the score. I though there were some very important moments,” he said. “One was what would have been La Rochelle’s first try which had the forward pass. Then just before half time, managing to hold out was key as was the [second half ] interception.
“I am pleased with how these things go your way when you are playing well. Managing to get the interception when the ball drops in your hands that went our way. In previous years those things have gone against us. Big credit to the players for the intensity they played with.”
La Rochelle scored two consolation tries, one from centre Geoffrey Doumayrou and another in the dying second from replacement full-back Kini Murimurivalu.