Exeter Rugby Chiefs

February has been a busy month for the Chiefs. On the filed there have been three straight wins against Bristol at home and London Welsh and Orrell away with Nottingham to visit the County Ground for the first time on the last Saturday.

With Penzance/Newlyn also beating Bristol, the Chiefs rocketed to the top of the table and are there for the first time having played the same number of games as the other contender – Bristol and Plymouth.

Off the field, this has prompted a lot of speculation concerning promotion to the Zurich Premiership and whether playing facilities are available to Exeter Rugby Club that are acceptable under Premiership regulations. The County Ground is out of the question so talks have started with Exeter City FC about ground sharing for a season until the new stadium at Sandy Park opens for the 2006/7 season.

This does not mean that the Chiefs are counting their chickens etc. Success has come to Exeter precisely because they have always kept their feet firmly on the ground and dealt with realities and not dreams. Having sadi that, the club will seize on any opportunity to further its ambitions so it would be remiss not to make contingency plans for playing in the Premiership before it is too late to do so.

Some player milestones were hit during the month. Adam Staniforth represented English Universities while Haydn Thomas, George Davies and Simon Gibbons were selected for England Students. Both teams played French counterparts and for once we can report that both were successful.

Tony Yapp passed the 1000 point mark for the Chiefs, a truly remarkable record as he is only midway through his third season while Richard Baxter’s two tries at Orrell pushed him up to second in the Division’s overall try scoring table.

There is a tough month ahead with home and away fixtures with Otley and the big crunch game against Bristol Shoguns at their place.

http://www.exeterchiefs.com