Almost 12 months ago to the day Exeter shipped 79 points in front of the Shed, precipitating a major coaching reshuffle and a finger-wagging post-match lecture from their chair Tony Rowe. This eventful defeat was not remotely on the same scale but there could yet be a sizeable price to pay as the end-of-season playoffs loom larger.
The Chiefs have certainly chosen an awkward moment to suffer back-to-back league defeats, leaving them looking over their shoulders in fourth place with four regular season rounds remaining. On this occasion they could have no complaints whatsoever as a revitalised Gloucester grabbed only their third league win of the campaign with Max Llewellyn and Will Trenholm scoring two tries apiece.
Having led 26-12 at half-time, the home side had to survive a last-quarter fightback but deserved their breathless victory which lifts them up to eighth and boosts their prospects of Champions Cup rugby next season.
Exeter came away with a couple of points but their mood was not improved by a last-minute red card shown to Ethan Roots for retaliation. Roots is a key member of the Chiefs back-row and will be a major loss if he is unavailable for Saturday’s Challenge Cup semi-final against Ulster.
Chiefs also lost the in-form Paul Brown-Bampoe in the opening 40 minutes after the winger took a heavy blow to the head while their fit-again Wallaby centre Len Ikitau looked more than a little rusty on his first appearance since Christmas. To compound matters their scrum came under frequent pressure and their defence, similarly, fell short of the standards they now set themselves.
So much for all the pre-game talk of declining jeopardy with no relegation to keep lower-placed sides honest. That said it is mighty hard to second-guess Gloucester at the moment. If you were being polite you would describe the pre-match stadium vibe as pensive following last week’s 53-12 drubbing down the road at Bristol. This was certainly the sort of up-and-at-em reaction the management and fans were hoping for. “It was all about showing up,” said their director of rugby, George Skivington, “If you’re emotionally there you’ve got a chance.”
Club insiders still concede “a lot of work” will have to be done to propel Gloucester back to the upper reaches of the table on a consistent basis but here was welcome evidence that happier times might be around the corner.
For a start they did not fold at the first hint of trouble which swiftly materialised when Brown-Bampoe competed strongly in the air and laid the platform for Ross Vintcent to skip over for the first try inside the opening minute. Better still they were taking their chances.
First Llewellyn cut back against the grain to put the hosts on the board before Tomos Williams sliced past some more flat-footed defenders to score a second. The Sunday afternoon atmosphere cranked up even further when the lively Ben Loader escaped another couple of sub-standard tackles and fed the supporting Llewellyn for his second. Exeter badly needed some kind of counterpunch and duly found one when Manny Feyi-Waboso, excellent all day, glided unstoppably away from the cover for a quietly brilliant solo score.
It proved only a brief respite as Gloucester once again attacked with purpose and sluggish defence around the fringes gave Trenholm the opportunity to crash over and secure a bonus point after just 32 minutes. The forceful No 8 moved west from Harlequins last year in search of more opportunities and showed a healthy appetite for the fray here.
The non-appearance of Exeter’s entire front-row for the second half was a clear indication the visiting management were less than impressed. Greg Fisilau had his side’s third try on the board within four minutes of the restart but again it owed most to Feyi-Waboso who slalomed past numerous opponents to within a few metres of the home line.
It helped to ensure a frantic finish after Trenholm’s second had put Gloucester 34-19 up and seemingly clear. A penalty try followed by a television match official-approved try by Henry Slade made things much tighter but Gloucester held their nerve when it mattered in a frenzied finale.
Exeter will now have to dust themselves down and refocus on their trip to Belfast on Saturday, with their director of rugby Rob Baxter acknowledging their sluggish first-half performance had been “a bit of a concern.” He must also now wait and see if Roots will be available this weekend after taking exception to a tackle from the former Exeter hooker Jack Innard. “I haven’t seen (the incident) and I haven’t spoken to Ethan but everyone knows you can’t react now,” said Baxter.
