Whitten agrees new Chiefs contract

Irishman Ian Whitten is looking forward to exciting times ahead after he became the latest Exeter Chiefs player to commit his future to the Aviva Premiership club.

The 26-year-old back follows club-mate Jack Yeandle in agreeing terms on a new two-year contract to remain at Sandy Park.

Signed in the summer of 2012 from Ulster, Irish international Whitten has settled well to life in the Westcountry, establishing himself as a prominent member of Rob Baxter’s first-team squad.

To date, Lisburn-born Whitten has featured 34 times for the club, either in the centre or on the wing, and has scored two tries in the process.

Now, with his immediate future secured, the talented ace is looking to build on what has been an encouraging first two years in Devon.

“Signing on again was a fairly easy decision for me to make,” said Whitten. “I’ve had two good years here already and hopefully I’ll have two more good years,

“At the moment I feel I am doing well; that I’m improving as a player and I like where the club is going. The systems they have in place are good ones, I like the way we play, so I can only see success for the club going forward.”

And with two years’ experience of English rugby’s top flight under his belt, Whitten insists there is still more to come from him as a player in Exeter colours.

“The Premiership has been tough, it’s tougher than the Pro12 in the fact that you can’t ever have an off week and get away with it,” he said. “The Heineken Cup also has been a great experience for us all. I think having had a couple of years in Europe we are getting better and we are getting used to the bigger occasions. We have a big one on Saturday [against Toulon], so it’s great be part of it all.

“On a personal level, my target for the future is to do well and be successful with the Chiefs. I want the club to start pushing into semi-finals and latter stages of competitions. You can see we are improving year on year, so hopefully over the next two years we can move onto that next level. I want to be ambitious with the team and contribute to Exeter doing well.”

However, it seems it’s not just playing that clearly appeals to Whitten love of the region. Off the field, the Ulsterman insists he is happily settled and enjoying the ‘craic’ of his team-mates and the Exeter fan base.

“The craic is brilliant here,” added Whitten. “The big thing for me is you have to enjoy playing rugby and I enjoy playing here. The banter is great, there is a lot of it and it’s pretty relentless. I deal with it as best I can, but it will be great to have a few more years of it.

“The Chiefs fans are great, I’ve had a few pints of Guinness with them in Dublin and I’ve experienced the Whimple Fun Bus, so I’ve enjoyed that side of things. It’s nice to come to a new place and settle in so well. Devon, as I said, is great and I wouldn’t have a bad thing to say about the place.”

And it’s that support from the sidelines which helps to drive Whitten on in games, he continued: “I have come from Ravenhill and that’s a great atmosphere on match-days, but here is just as good and our fans make great noise, home or away. Having that kind of support behind you each week, you just want to do well all the time and push the club forward.”

Exeter Chiefs head coach Rob Baxter expressed his delightat the new two-year deal with the Aviva Premiership club.

“We’re really pleased that Whitts is staying with us,” said Baxer. “Not only is he a great player, but he’s been a great character ever since he arrived. He’s a very popular member of the squad for lots of reasons.
Some of them are to do with what a good rugby player he is and some of them are do with the character he is.

“As I said, we’re really pleased to have him around for another two years because we also believe he’s a guy we still see as improving all the time. We want guys who have bought in to what we are trying to do here and be part of where we are heading as a club.”

Equally efficient in the centre or on the wing, Baxter says Whitten’s versatility make him a valuable asset to have within the Chiefs make-up.

Baxter said: “I think there’s a bit of a misconception with Whitts as he has done a very solid job for us, but we’re starting to see a bit more than that come through now. He’s had a few games this season when he’s really had a cutting edge with his pace and his power.

“We think he’s improving all the time as a rugby player and decision maker. I think we see him more as a centre, we’re looking to get the majority of his game time in the midfield now and I think that’s where he’s really going to push through.

“He’s done very well for us in the last couple of years as we’ve pushed up towards the top half of the league and we’re confident that at his age, ability and work ethic he’ll be one of the guys who will keep Exeter improving in the foreseeable future.”

With both Yeandle and Whitten now safely on board for the next two years at least, Baxter will switch his attentions to a number of his other stars who are out of contract at the end of the current campaign.

Already the Chiefs coach has been in detailed dialogue with a number of them and is confident of yet more of his squad extending their stays.

“Contract talks are going well,” added Baxter. “We’re not far off with a couple of important players and we hope to announce those guys next week. We have a lot less contracts to deal with this year than last, which is fantastic for us, and that means already that we will be very settled come next year.

“Already we are in a position of having a strong team available to us, so anything we add now will only be strengthening what is a very strong squad.”