Baxter praise for ‘fantastic’ Woodburn
OLLY Woodburn is excited to be ‘centre of attention’ at Exeter Chiefs this season.
With Rob Baxter‘s options for personnel in the midfield currently hindered owing to injuries to the likes of Henry Slade, Zack Wimbush and new signing Tamati Tua, the 32-year-old has moved in from his regular spot on the wing to start in the No.13 jersey.
For some it would be a difficult switch to undertake, but for Woodburn he has no such issues, having played the role throughout his childhood.
“Back in the day about 14 or 15 years ago, I signed my first contract at Bath as an outside-centre,” he said. “It’s kind of like a return to my roots, so I’ve been excited to play there. It’s always a position that’s lent itself to a lot of my strengths.
“I’ve really enjoyed the different ways you have to adapt, both in attack and defence. Normally being in the back field you have to do a lot of running and covering certain areas, but at the end of the day, I’m a rugby player, not just a winger.”
Woodburn has happily settled into the role for the Chiefs, who have endured a tough start to the season so far, going down to Leicester Tigers, Northampton Saints and Saracens in their opening three fixtures.
“It’s been tough, especially losing so late in the game against Leicester,” he added. “We’ve a couple of points on the board, so there’s no real panic stations at this stage. but what we have to do is dig in as a group and look to produce some big performances.
“We’ve shown in all the games that when we get things right we can cause teams problems, it’s just we’ve not been able to produce those long spells of pressure that you need in games.”
Signed by the Chiefs back in
2015, Woodburn – who is fast closing in on 200 first appearances for the club – has enjoyed a stellar spell in Devon, helping the club to two Premiership titles, as well as a Champions Cup.
He is now one of the club’s elder statesmen in what is a very youthful-looking squad, but he insists there is plenty of talent and knowhow within the ranks to ensure the future looks rosy.
“We’ve got some real talent within the squad,” said Woodburn. “Last season, a lot of those younger players were unknown and we really used that as an advantage. It’s different this season, clubs know more about them, so we have to try and come up with different plans, different ideas as such.”
Woodburn’s switch to the centre is certainly different, but Exeter’s director of rugby Rob Baxter, left has been impressed by the way in which he has coped with his change of role.
“All I can say is fantastic,” he said. “Sometimes, you look at the guys and you say, ‘fair play, you have done an amazing job for us there, and he’s done beyond that. He hasn’t just filled in, he has actually been one of our better players.
“If anything, now we’re kind of sitting here and thinking, ‘have we found his best position?’
“He has certainly put himself in contention to play there regularly. I can’t see any reason why we say we can’t put Olly Woodburn in midfield, because he is there and he is doing it. I think that is the biggest endorsement I can give him.”
Praise indeed for Woodburn, who is confident the Chiefs will rediscover their form, both in the Premiership and in Europe later in the season.
“I love playing in Europe, just because it gives you that chance to come up against teams and players you wouldn’t normally face,” added Woodburn. “We’ve had some great games, great results over the years and some of the things you get to experience, they last a lifetime.
“We had a trip to South Africa only a year or so ago and it was amazing. We’ve got another coming up this season, so hopefully I can stay fit and get the chance to go over there again.”
