Exeter Chiefs Face Bath in Round 15 Top-Four Test — Exeter Vs Bath
Exeter vs Bath arrives with the Chiefs in fourth place and Bath Rugby in second place, setting up a round 15 Gallagher PREM meeting at Sandy Park on Sunday afternoon. The 15:30 kick-off in Devon comes after both sides exited their European campaigns one week earlier, and Exeter now face another direct test in the top-four race.
Rob Baxter on Exeter
Rob Baxter said Exeter are almost in four knockout games from now until the end of the season, with collecting points still everything as Bristol Bears and Saracens close in on the top four. He also said the bigger the game, the more the team has to focus on winning it rather than not losing it, a line that fits the stakes around this one.
That pressure sits over a side that has kept Josh Iosefa-Scott in the matchday line-up at tighthead. He packs down with Scott Sio and Max Norey in the front row, while Dafydd Jenkins partners Andrea Zambonin in the second row and Tom Hooper, Christ Tshiunza and Ross Vintcent stay in the back row.
Exeter Chiefs Line-up
Stephen Varney and Harvey Skinner start at half-back, with Henry Slade and Len Ikitau in the midfield. Paul Brown-Bampoe and Campbell Ridl take up their preferred positions on the wing, while Bachuki Tchumbadze is on the bench alongside Joseph Dweba and Ethan Burger.
Immanuel Feyi-Waboso is still working back through the HIA protocols after last weekend's match in Belfast, so Olly Woodburn returns to the line-up in his place. Rusi Tuima joins Finn Worley Brady on the bench to cover the back five of the scrum, with Tom Cairns, Will Haydon-Wood and Ben Hammersley covering the backline.
Sandy Park Stakes
Baxter said Bath are one of the markers Exeter have to hold themselves against now in the PREM and said his side must stick with them and try to get a decent result at home. With Bath in second place and Exeter in fourth, the match is a direct check on whether the home side can keep pace in a crowded top-four chase.
The game kicks off at 15:30 in Devon and will be broadcast live on TNT Sports.
