Chiefs side to face Bordeaux-Begles
Exeter Chiefs assistant coach Ali Hepher is confident he will see a response from his side as they look to get their European Champions Cup campaign up and running with victory over Bordeaux-Begles on Saturday night (21 November, ko 7:45pm).
Undone 25-13 by the Ospreys in Round One, the Chiefs know this latest match-up against their French visitors is vital if they are to stand any chance of progressing out of Pool Two this season.
The Chiefs have spent this past week reviewing in detail their disappointing display at the Liberty Stadium, one in which Hepher admitted the Devon club had been found wanting in certain areas.
However, never a team to get carried away by victory or defeat, the Chiefs have responded brightly in training and a response of sorts is expected against their Top 14 counterparts, who themselves sat out their opening round encounter with Clermont-Auvergne following last weekend’s tragic events in Paris. “You have to win your home games anyway, so nothing has changed on that front,” said Hepher.
“You’d like to pick up the odd away win and that is how you get out of groups, but first and foremost, you have to win your home games.
“We’ve really focused on ourselves this week. We’ve looked at the game in detail and tried to get a real understanding of where we made our errors.
We’ve done that now, rectified them, and now we’re looking to move on again. “It’s only a week ago since we beat a very good Leicester Tigers side here, so we know we’re not a bad side by any means. We just need to reset ourselves, concentrate on what we do really well and bring that on Saturday.”
Although in contention for large parts of last week’s game against the Ospreys, it was Exeter’s ill-discipline and their high error count that came back to haunt them as former Chief Josh Matavesi raced over for a late try, alongside 20 points from Welsh international Dan Biggar.
“There were certain areas of our game that were missing, the breakdown and our physicality especially, so we’ve put a lot of attention into those areas this week – and hopefully we will see the results at the weekend.” added Hepher.
“Up until last week, those areas we have been doing very well in and it’s always difficult to change things when you’re winning. Mentally we have to learn to reset ourselves every week. We put a lot of attention into those first four weeks of the Premiership because if you start poorly, you will ned up in a real fight all season.
“If we’re honest, we dropped our intensity and our standards last week which, against a good side like the Ospreys, you will get punished and we did.” Any thoughts, however, that the task would get any easier for the Chiefs were quickly dismissed by Hepher, who knows tomorrow’s visitors will offer a creditable threat to the English club.
“There are no easy games at this level, it’s a quality competition with world class players on show,” warned the Chiefs coach.
“That in itself adds to the spectacle and the challenge for our guys is to go up against some world beaters.
“We’re well aware Saturday will be another huge test for us, but it’s an exciting challenge for us and one we’re really looking forward to.” Hepher also played down talk of the difference in rest time between the two clubs, insisting Exeter would be more than ready for the match.
He continued: “We’ve managed the guys well this week. Before the Leicester game we only had a six-day turnaround and we won that day. The guys are comfortable with where they are, they’ve trained well, and there has been a really positive reaction in training.
“The guys are frustrated with how they played last week and we’re expecting a good reaction. At the same time, we know they [Bordeaux] are a top quality side, so we’ve got to focus on ourselves first and foremost and look to bring our ‘A’ game.”
Ahead of kick-off, the Chiefs have made a number of changes to their side from a week ago. Up front, there is a new-look front-row made up of Ben Moon, Jack Yeandle and Moray Low, while behind Geoff Parling is poised for his first start for the club having recovered from a groin injury, and in the back-row Ben White and Tom Johnson are both handed their first starts of the season.
Behind the forwards, England star Henry Slade (pictured) is shunted from the centre to fly-half, Sam Hill and Ian Whitten provide the midfield pairing and there are starts for Phil Dollman at full-back and Olly Woodburn on the wing.
Tickets for tomorrow night’s game are still available either online by clicking here.
Chiefs side to face Bordeaux-Begles
15 Phil Dollman
14 Jack Nowell
13 Ian Whitten
12 Sam Hill
11 Olly Woodburn
10 Henry Slade
9 Will Chudley
1 Ben Moon
2 Jack Yeandle (capt)
3 Moray Low
4 Geoff Parling
5 Damian Welch
6 Ben White
7 Julian Salvi
8 Tom Johnson
16 Elvis Taione
17 Carl Rimmer
18 Alex Brown
19 Ollie Atkins
20 Don Armand
21 Dave Lewis
22 Gareth Steenson
23 Michele Campagnaro
