Chiefs through to Champions Cup last 16

Match Report: Exeter Chiefs 19-17 Glasgow Warriors

Exeter Chiefs are through to the last 16 of the Champions Cup after an enthralling match of rugby at Sandy Park. 

Following last weekend’s narrow home defeat to Northampton in the Premiership last week, it was vital for Exeter to bounce back and secure themselves a place in the Champions Cup knockout stages. The team that reduced Exeter Chiefs to their first home defeat in 15 months are already through to the round of 16- Exeter already had a mountain to climb [on points difference] if they wanted to finish top of pool three and secure the coveted home tie. 

The match started entertainingly, with both sides battling it out over the early phases, with Glasgow Warriors looking strongest within the first 10 minutes. Exeter’s number eight, Greg Fisilau, was given a yellow card for a high challenge; pressure was on the Chiefs for a sustained period.

Exeter survived being down to 14 men, but an unfortunate error by Chiefs winger Ben Hammersley led to the first try of the match. He misjudged the bounce, gifting the Glasgow winger the ball to subsequently touch down. 

On the brink of halftime, Exeter continued to knock on the door of the try line. The Chiefs spent seven minutes around the five-metre line after countless attempts, Exeter’s Jacques Vermeulen smashed through Glasgow to score a vital try. The score was Exeter 7, Glasgow 10 at the break. 

The second half started quite slowly; it took a while to get going, with errors for both teams, meaning it was very stop-start. But the team from Scotland capitalised on another Exeter error and a moment of brilliance for Glasgow extended their lead even further. 

The Chiefs began to get their tempo back and responded quickly with replacement Dan Frost, who touched down after many phases. An equaliser try was ruled out for Exeter because of an offside. When referee Pierre Brousset ruled out the try, booing surrounded Sandy Park from the tumultuous Exeter supporters. 

Exeter was looking more dominant, and with minutes left on the clock replacement winger Zack Wimbush touched down in the far corner to level the match. Chiefs’ centre Henry Slade converted and the scenes around Sandy Park were incredible. Every Exeter fan was on their feet!

But that wasn’t it. Glasgow pinched a try in the final minute to take the lead and Exeter supporters fell silent. They could not believe what they had just witnessed- the win snatched from them right at the death.

To Exeter’s delight, they got away with it and TMO disallowed the try and Exeter qualified for the last 16 of the Champions Cup. The final score was Exeter 19, Glasgow 17.