Whitten keen to finish on a high
EXETER may be the underdogs in next Sunday’s Champions Cup semi-final against holders La Rochelle in Bordeaux, but Ian Whitten says recent history suggests the Chiefs should not be written off.
Whitten was an ever present in Exeter’s 2020 Champions Cup success when they defeated Racing 92 in the final at Ashton Gate having doubled La Rochelle in the group stage and overcome Toulouse, who are involved in the other semi-final against Leinster, in the semi-final.
“We know the task we face because La Rochelle have grown as a team in the last three years, but we have been successful on a number of French grounds,” said the 35-year old centre who is retiring at the end of the season having arrived at Sandy Park in 2012.
“Big players rise to the occasion in cauldrons and it does not matter where you play in the Champions Cup. The tournament holds a lot of good memories for us and I hope the lads play their best stuff on the day. We have not been great on the road in the league this season, but a big semi-final is something to be relished, not be afraid of.”
Fourteen of the side that started the 2020 final against Racing are still at Exeter. Jonny Hill is the one absentee having joined Sale, but Whitten is one of eight players from that side who will be following him out of Sandy Park at the end of the season, 11 years after joining from Ulster.
“I have had a long and great time here,” he said. “I am just very thankful to everyone persevering with me for so long. It is sad when you admit to yourself that you cannot play your best rugby for ever. You never want the party to end, but neither do you want to hang on.
“It was a difficult decision but I feel it is the right one. The club is heading into a new era and at my age I was never going to be part of a new team. All I have ever wanted to do was play rugby and I can go back to Northern Ireland happy having played in so many different places and won trophies.
“I do not have a job lined up, although I have a degree and have sat professional exams along the way, and I am worried about what it will be like. It will not be as good as this and I will have to set my sights lower.”
Whitten, who won two Ireland caps in 2009, made his final appearance at Sandy Park yesterday having made his debut there for the club against Sale in
September 2012, a season in which Jack Nowell, Henry Slade, Dave Ewers, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Jonny Gray, and Sam Simmonds served their apprenticeship in what is now the Premiership Cup.
“There is a bit of sadness about,” he said. “You cannot get away from the fact that we have played together for a very long time. It has been a great place to be and the camaraderie we generated showed how tight we were.
“We have been battling for performances as a team for the last couple of seasons, but it feels as if we are turning a corner with young fellas coming in. There is hope for the future and determination to finish off on a high note. I knew at the start of the season it could be my final one and it was always going to be emotional in front of fans who have been brilliant to me.”
The high point for Whitten
was the Champions Cup success, although with one regret. “It was sad that there was no one at the ground because of the pandemic,” he said. “The tournament has been good for the club and there is still something special in this group.
“We know we are going to have to beat two massive teams if we are going to win it again this season, but we defeated three huge French clubs three years ago. There are so many great memories from that run, the biggest matches of my career.
“When I arrived at Exeter I was worried about missing home. I quickly found out that there was a happy bunch of men here playing hard and partying hard. I was an average player from Northern Ireland and Rob Baxter and Ali Hepher saw something in me that the Ulster coaches did not. I will be forever grateful to them.”