Hogg’s back and so is the Exeter ‘edge’

Paul Rees talks to Henry Slade and Rob Baxter about Exeter's stumbling start to the new season

PREVIEW…

Sale v Exeter

Today, Kick-off 3pm, AJ Bell Stadium

The Gallagher Premiership touts itself as the most competitive league in the world, a tournament in which any one of the 13 clubs involved can beat any other, and the table after the first two rounds this season backed up the boast. Last season's top two, Bristol and Exeter, were perched at the bottom with the Chiefs a losing bonus point better off than the twice well-beaten Bears.

It is too early in the season to make judgements and Exeter are not overreacting to their defeats against the East Midlands duo Leicester and Northampton. They have been here before, back in 2016 when they lost their opening two matches to Harlequins and Saracens but recovered to finish second in the table, level on points with Wasps who they beat in the play-off final to secure their first Premiership title.

“It is a marathon, not a sprint, even if our start has not been ideal,” said Exeter's England centre, Henry Slade. “There has been a good reaction from the boys in training and we were better against Northampton last week than we were at Leicester. You sensed that the attitude had changed a bit and there was more of an edge, which you could see in the faces of everyone.

“The intent has been really good and the way everyone has applied themselves in training and in matches has been impressive. We are not where we want to be and we all understand the effort you have to put in to win a game. You learn from certain situations: you can get caught up in things after losing a couple of games and we have taken it back to the basics.”

Exeter face Sale at the AJ Bell Stadium today, the side they defeated twice in a week at Sandy Park last June, first to clinch a home draw in the play-offs and then to qualify for their sixth successive final at Twickenham. Both matches were closely fought, as was the February meeting between the sides in Salford when the Chiefs lost by five points after Jack Yeandle was sent off.

“There has been a good reaction in training — the attitude's changed”

“You always know you are in for a big challenge there,” said Slade, who trained with the new-look England squad at the beginning of last week. “What is important is that we do not look too far ahead after our start. You have to concentrate on the next game. “We lost five league matches last season and we have plenty of games to pick up points in what is a long season. We have to go hard each week and front up physically. We are always thinking outside the box about how we can improve and we have set ourselves a clear plan which everyone has bought into.

“Even in the season when we won the league and European double, we were always adding to our game and tinkering. It is good to have that and the mindset we have has been established for a long time. We have blooded a number of players this season and they will be the better for having played in a couple of tough matches.”

Manu Tuilagi impressed in Sale's opening two matches against Bath and London Irish, but Slade will not have to contend with his powerful England colleague in the midfield with the Sharks making eight changes from last weekend's draw in Brentford. Sam Hill, once of Exeter, partners Rohan Janse van Rensburg in the midfield while the wing Denny Solomons is a surprise pick at fullback.

The Chiefs were without their four summer Lions in the opening two rounds but Stuart Hogg returns at full-back this weekend. Harvey Skinner starts at outside-half with Joe Simmonds on the bench after a run of 11 consecutive Premiership starts.

“We know we are going to have to be right on it,” said Slade. “When I first got into the England camp, I struggled to switch modes after returning to Exeter but now I am able to do it seamlessly. It was a good England camp with the squad getting to know each other. We had a couple of tasty early morning sessions.”

Exeter have had to contend with law trials this season which some felt would impact on their staple of kicking penalties into touch and using a line-ut to launch a driving maul.

Teams held up over the line now concede possession and there has been a crackdown on latching, but the Chiefs' head coach Rob Baxter does not believe the changes have been a factor behind his team's slow start.

“I think we are playing within ourselves,” he said. “I've not seen someone have the game of their life or a game of the season so far. I want players to go out there, perform and show me why I can't not pick them next week or for the next five weeks.

“The only thing that is hurting us at the moment is us, not the laws. We are not as good at what we are doing as we need to be and we are not doing what we are doing with enough conviction. Even in our double-winning season, we lost games, so we just have to pull our boot straps up and not look to feel sorry for ourselves.

“We've got a few more players available this week and then we've picked up a couple of injuries as well. That's how a season goes. I'm not someone who looks around the corner waiting for the cavalry – we have got to get on with it.

“The sparks of wins are there and I'm not despondent, wondering what to do. But I'm also not going to be complacent enough to think a change of players will change things. You've got to work to improve all the time and whether it's two games lost or two games won, that scenario doesn't alter. Sometimes you've just got to take it on the chin and keep moving forward.”

Exeter were not just without their Lions in the first two rounds. Back rowers Dave Ewers and Richard Capstick return from injury at Sale to make their first starts of the season and the Chiefs' other three Lions, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Jonny Hill and Sam Simmonds are expected to be available for Saturday's home match against Worcester.

Their defeat at Sale last season ended a run of four consecutive league victories at the ground and since they won promotion to the Premiership in 2010, they have won seven of their 11 league matches away to the Sharks and 17 out of 23 in all.

“We never get heartbroken by a loss nor over celebrate a victory”

“Sale are a good side and you know you're going to be in for a tough battle,” said Baxter. “We've been there before on good form and fully loaded and still lost the game, so it will be up to this group of players to show what they are worth.”

Hogg, the Scotland captain who started the first two Tests for the Lions in South Africa but was dropped for the decider, will be keen to make an impact after being demoted to the bench for the playoff semi-final against Sale last season and then the final against Harlequins with Jack Nowell taking his place.

“Stuart has looked really motivated and sharp in training this week,” said Baxter. “I spoke to him at the start of the week and asked if he was ready to go. He said he felt good. He has nothing to prove to me or anyone else.

“Whatever is behind us is behind us and it has to be the same for the guys who went on the Lions tour whether they went well or badly. All that Stuart needs to know from me is that we are keen to get him on to a rugby field and see him playing well.

“We have got considerable faith in his ability and he will get over any little blips or what everybody thought about the end of last season and get out there and show what a good player he is.” If Exeter win at Sale, it should provide them with a platform to further climb the table. Their next two matches are at home to teams who finished in the bottom four last season, Worcester and London Irish, and in between is a trip to Wasps. A journey to Gloucester follows before Newcastle visit Sandy Park, although by then England will be in camp for the Autumn Internationals.

“We are a side that never gets heartbroken by a loss nor over celebrates a victory,” said Baxter. “Once you become a side full of highs and lows, you are a team that is going nowhere. We just look at the good and the bad and then get on with things.

“We would have beaten Northampton had we been fractionally better in what we did. Had we won, we would have been in a position of one win from two and feeling pretty good about ourselves.”