Williams late show keeps Exeter in hunt
The Exeter fightback is on, token as it may turn out to be in the grand scheme of things, the Chiefs rising from the canvas on which they had been dumped by Gloucester last weekend to put in the sort of remorseless, nuggety performance that is their hallmark, all control and pressure.
It was a chastening night for Gloucester, with two yellow cards against them and losing playmaker Danny Cipriani to an arm injury before half-time, when he took a heavy blow as Exeter hammered at the try-line. The fly-half left the ground in a sling with fears he may have damaged a pectoral muscle.
“Danny got a bad knock and we will do a full investigation to determine the damage,” said Johan Ackermann, Gloucester’s head coach. “It looks more of a pectoral issue than shoulder. We shall see.”
The Chiefs claimed the bonus point in the last minute with a Harry Williams try to keep their flickering hopes of qualification alive although, in truth, Munster have the whip hand in Pool 2.
“There’s a glimmer, isn’t there?” said Rob Baxter, Exeter’s director of rugby. “It does mean there is real value now in our home game against Castres in January and if we can then go to Munster on the final weekend with something still to play for, that’s what we want.”
Even if Cipriani had gone the distance, it is unlikely he would have had much influence, given Exeter were dominant for long stretches. This was to be Gloucester’s acid test, the chance to back up a super performance in Exeter with an assured, dynamic display to prove they were genuine contenders. The jury still needs persuading.
Gloucester did, at least, have enough spirit to keep fighting to the death. Gloucester managed to stay in the chase, briefly raising hopes of an upset when a late Tom Hudson try and Billy Twelvetrees conversion brought them to within five points. It would have been a stunning about-turn in fortunes.
It was make-or-break from the outset for the Chiefs, who opted for line-outs over penalty pots at goal in search of maximum points. Four times they went to touch. Gloucester were alert and duly denied them on the first three occasions. On the fourth, they cracked, ceding a try in the 22nd minute to lock Sam Skinner, who was driven over.
Chiefs dominated territory and ball, doing what they failed to do at Sandy Park, keeping their composure and churning through the phases. They were intent on rediscovering their true selves.
The Cherry and Whites had to knuckle down, absorb the pressure as best they could and strike on the rare openings they got, which is what they did on the half-hour.
Ollie Thorley and flanker Gareth Evans made the initial inroads, before a long, floated ball from hooker Jaco Visagie found full-back Jason Woodward, who touched down.
It was a brief respite. Exeter had Gloucester under the cosh, their superiority shown again before half-time with another short-range try from Don Armand to send Chiefs into the break leading 14-5.
It got worse for Gloucester when Billy Twelvetrees was shown a yellow card within minutes of the restart, for killing the ball on his own try-line as Chiefs pressed hard through wing Santiago Cordero and No8 Tom Lawday.
Chiefs could not finish off their opponents, partly through Gloucester cussedness and partly through their own carelessness. Gloucester needed no second bidding. Once again, when they had half an opening they took it, working the field along the flanks, Owen Williams firing out passes in midfield before a sequence featuring Ed Slater and Thorley was finished off again by Woodward.
The Chiefs’ scrum pressure, brought about through replacement props Ben Moon and Harry Williams, drew a yellow card against Josh Hohneck. It all made for a frantic finale. Exeter hooker Jack Yeandle went over from a lineout before Gloucester hit back with a try from Tom Hudson. The crowd roared their approval, but Exeter still had a card to play, Williams touching down after Joe Simmonds ran back a loose kick.
The Chiefs have a lifeline.