Exeter Chiefs v Bristol Bears - Premiership Cup

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Exeter Chiefs

15. Josh Hodge,
14. Ben Hammersley,
13. Henry Slade,
12. Joe Hawkins,
11. Tommy Wyatt,
10. Harvey Skinner,
9. Tom Cairns;
1. Scott Sio,
2. Jack Yeandle ©,
3. Ehren Painter,
4. Matt Postlethwaite,
5. Lewis Pearson,
6. Ethan Roots,
7. Jacques Vermeulen,
8. Greg Fisilau
Replacements

16. Dan Frost,
17. Billy Keast,
18. Patrick Schickerling,
19. Rusi Tuima,
20. Ross Vintcent,
21. Niall Armstrong,
22. Will Haydon-Wood,
23. Tom Hendrickson

Bristol Bears

15. Matthew Jones,
14. Isaac Campbell-Wu,
13. Harry Ascherl,
12. Dylan Power,
11. Aidan Boshoff,
10. Sam Worsley,
9. Sam Wolstenholme;
1. Andrew Turner,
2. Fred Davies (c),
3. Jonathan Benz-Salomon,
4. Josh Caulfield,
5. Joe Owen,
6. George Taylor,
7. Macenzzie Duncan,
8. Paddy Pearce.

System players:

16. Tomas Gwilliam,
17. Tom Sims,
18. Jimmy Halliwell,
19. Ed Harvey,
20. Kofi Cripps,
21. Oscar Lennon,
22. Toby Baker,
23. Sami Hamid.

Match Officials

Referee: Sara Cox

Assistant Referees: Anthony Woodthorpe and James Pidding

Weather Forecast as at 1200 Friday

Sunny with light winds from the Southeast
Temperature will feel like 30 degrees
Low Chance of Precipitation

TV Coverage

Not on TV

Good to see Josh Caulfield back at Sandy Park, albeit wearing the WRONG shirt!!

Starting Matt Postlethwaite with no lock on the bench is an interesting call.

Quote:

Not Manichean
Starting Matt Postlethwaite with no lock on the bench is an interesting call.

Tuima covers lock doesn't he?

Looking forward to seeing what that back-line can do.

Quote:

Waltham_Chief

Quote:

Not Manichean
Starting Matt Postlethwaite with no lock on the bench is an interesting call.

Tuima covers lock doesn't he?

Looking forward to seeing what that back-line can do.

Of course he can but it isn't (or hasn't been) his natural position.

Cautiously optimistic with those lineups. Bummed I can't get to Sandy Park for this weekend but typing this from a National Express coach travelling from Bristol to Cardiff and will be making the return journey when the match is on.

Quote:

ExTeddChief
Cautiously optimistic with those lineups. Bummed I can't get to Sandy Park for this weekend but typing this from a National Express coach travelling from Bristol to Cardiff and will be making the return journey when the match is on.

Cautiously optimistic? That's the youngest ever side put out by Bristol! There's under 18s in there. All EQP though. Which is good.

On paper we look the far stronger side, with Bristol prioritising the Ba Ba’s game last night over this one in terms of selection albeit they were thrashed last night.

I think we shall see a mixed up side for all of the prem cup games with many of the younger players getting an opportunity. So looking forward to seeing this centre partnership as I can see it being the best in the premiership next season. I think with the exception of Henry our back line is average around 21 years old. One to look out for Vintcent on the bench very highly thought of I hear Ex uni.

Quote:

Gr@y_Lensman

Quote:

ExTeddChief
Cautiously optimistic with those lineups. Bummed I can't get to Sandy Park for this weekend but typing this from a National Express coach travelling from Bristol to Cardiff and will be making the return journey when the match is on.

Cautiously optimistic? That's the youngest ever side put out by Bristol! There's under 18s in there. All EQP though. Which is good.

Yeap, Baxter really understanding the concept of the competition . . . or seeing the Cup as the only chance of silverware

Quote:

KingoftheHill
Yeap, Baxter really understanding the concept of the competition . . . or seeing the Cup as the only chance of silverware

Thanks for coming.

OK Ouch My first wild stab in the dark of the season. Perfect, if hot conditions, Chiefs 42 Bristol 17;

Seems a total mismatch. Chiefs 52 Bears 19

Looks like one of those lopsided selection scenarios you often get in this competition. Chiefs have gone strong so should win comfortably. Looking forward to the new look side playing in a more free spirited way.

Chiefs 45 Bears 12

Quote:

KingoftheHill

Quote:

Gr@y_Lensman

Quote:

ExTeddChief
Cautiously optimistic with those lineups. Bummed I can't get to Sandy Park for this weekend but typing this from a National Express coach travelling from Bristol to Cardiff and will be making the return journey when the match is on.

Cautiously optimistic? That's the youngest ever side put out by Bristol! There's under 18s in there. All EQP though. Which is good.

Yeap, Baxter really understanding the concept of the competition . . . or seeing the Cup as the only chance of silverware

Mountain out of a Molehill?

Because of the format, most premiership teams will use these initial cup fixtures as a warm up for the main league now. It's a shame, but it is dictated by the format.

With only one pre-season game (ironically against Bristol) Chiefs have to use the games against Premiership sides to give players game time and work out our best combinations. Seemingly Bristol chose to do this against the Barbarians last night and got their @#$%& kicked! Chiefs should win comfortably against a very inexperienced Bristol side.

Chiefs 47 Bristol 10

Its the Prem cup! Its meant to be a development competition and as its a new dawn for us thats exactly what this whole season will be!
If Bristol choose to field a young team then thats really what the comp is about.
I cant wait to see the lads run out tomorrow. Its been a long time and with even fewer games this year i suggest we cherish them all.

I'm guessing that we're not calling loanees back from their clubs for the PRC games this season either - I see that there are a few Chiefs in the Pirates side tonight - so that limits the number of youngsters available. We also lost 11 probable first choice starters (+ 5 or 6 others) from last season's squad so this is the first chance the coaches have to see how the new squad shapes up in a competitive game.

Anyway, with the very lopsided selections, I'll be very disappointed if we don't get a resounding victory - Chiefs 66 Bears 10

Chiefs 48 Bris 17.

That's what the tea leaves say anyway...

Chiefs 56 Bears 14

Chiefs 43 - 18 Bears

Exeter 52 - 14 Brizzle as I think we will miss a couple of kicks

Well in some ways this is a new side, many names nobody but Chiefs would have heard of. We will use these games as extra warm up, trying to find our best fifteen. Bristol had a stronger side out last Friday which our youngsters narrowly won but that’s the selection they chose to use.
To cry foul after what happened in previous cups selections is a bit rich from Bristol. It is the first outing by many of the older players, so they will be rusty.
Looking forward to just seeing the squad, and see how they play, a lovely day at SP is something to relish.

Chiefs 50 Bears 20. Hope no- one gets heat stroke out there

I’m going with the flow…
Chiefs 46; Bears 12

chiefs 55 Bristol 15

It's a shame the selections appear so mismatched. Traditionally, we always put out a second string side in this comp, even in the final, obviously with the structure of the season we're going strong as a pre season warm up. Hard to see anything but a big chiefs win. Chiefs 54 Bears 15

Chiefs 35 - Bristol 12

Chiefs 58 - 12 Bristol

Chiefs 55- Briz 15

Chiefs 62 Bristol 12

Chiefs 57 Bristol 23

With all the leavers last season, this may well be a development side. Truth is, do any if us really know what the first 15 is? It may well be one sided, but the coaches still have work to do to establish the first team - something that would be less obvious under normal circumstances - IE non-world cup season.
Chiefs 45; Briz 25

In Rob we trust.
By the way - cream on first. There's nothing to debate.

We’re definitely using the cup as warm ups and rotation of the squad. Should see a clean win in this round:

Chiefs 48 - 28 Bears

Quote:

Scottish Chief
We’re definitely using the cup as warm ups and rotation of the squad. Should see a clean win in this round:
Chiefs 48 - 28 Bears

Every Prem team will use this as pre season warm ups including Bristol.
They obviously had different priorities this week with their Ba Bas fixture but next weekend or the weekend after they will put out a strong side as a warm up for the first Premiership fixture.
Anyone seriously think that they will rest their first team squad between now and the first Premiership fixture,which is over a month away just to keep them fit for their first Premiership match while there are competitive fixtures every weekend to get them warmed up??
No.
The only reason they are not playing first team players is because of their match Thursday.
There has been a lot of sh#t spouted on this thread by people that haven't thought about what they are saying or are deliberately stirring but are actually making themselves look stupid.

Not by yourself S Chief but visitors.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2023:09:08:22:58:41 by Zyder head.

Chiefs 63. Bears 21

Exe 52 - 20 Brizz

Chiefs 39 Briz 10

Quote:

Ljs399
Chiefs 63. Bears 21

Not even sure we'll (Bris) score that many.
I'm hoping for a return to a proper 'A' league but that's pinning hopes on the RFU making sensible decisions, oh dear

Quote:

BS7

Quote:

Ljs399
Chiefs 63. Bears 21

Not even sure we'll (Bris) score that many.
I'm hoping for a return to a proper 'A' league but that's pinning hopes on the RFU making sensible decisions, oh dear

I hope you score more and it’s a closer match. The A league is sorely missed.

Have not got a clue at the moment so 42- 12 to the chiefs and a crowd of 6500

Ye gods, not sure what that achieved, for both sides?
Men against school boys doesn't provide much of a 'pre-season' or a battering as a learning curve for us?

Quote:

BS7
Ye gods, not sure what that achieved, for both sides?
Men against school boys doesn't provide much of a 'pre-season' or a battering as a learning curve for us?

100%

The fixtures are at the wrong time in the season.

Quote:

BS7
I'm hoping for a return to a proper 'A' league but that's pinning hopes on the RFU making sensible decisions, oh dear

You and me too, BS7. Can't see it happening anytime soon unfortunately.

In Rob we trust.
By the way - cream on first. There's nothing to debate.

I personally would love an A league return but can't see it happening.
There are a few teams that prioritise quality within the cap over quantity and struggle to put a side in A league matches which has let the league down previously. Bears are not one of those sides.
Maybe the loan system to the likes of Pirates works better at the moment for the sake of continuity for the players?
Shame it was a mismatch today but scheduling it this time in the season was still a sensible idea imo. They are pre season matches but they are meaningful in the sense there is something at stake. I am sure we will mix and match the team in the next 5 weeks.

PREDICTIONS

A strange game with such mismatched teams. Chiefs played some good rugby but I'm not sure how much we learned.

Unsurprisingly, no-one really came close in their predictions although everyone managed to get the outcome right - we all (24 have joined in so far) get 2 points to start the competition.

Good luck next week



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2023:09:09:21:59:44 by ouch!_that_hurts.

Thanks OTH… can you remind us how the point scoring works? Thanks 😊

A correct outcome (W,L,D) gets you 2 points (as happened to everyone today)

If you predict either team's score exactly you get another 2 points.

If you get within 1 point of either team's score you get 1 point.

If you get all 3 elements right you get a bonus point. A maximum of 7 points are available for each game

If you had predicted an 75 - 0 Exeter win today you'd have got 2 points for the correct outcome, 2 points for the correct Exeter score, 2 points for the correct Bristol score and 1 bonus point.

If, for example, you predicted a 74 - 15 win for Exeter, you'd get 2 for the correct outcome and 1 for the Exeter score being within a point of the actual score.

That's me @#$%& then...🤣

Quote:

ouch!_that_hurts
PREDICTIONS
A strange game with such mismatched teams. Chiefs played some good rugby but I'm not sure how much we learned.

Unsurprisingly, no-one really came close in their predictions although everyone managed to get the outcome right - we all (24 have joined in so far) get 2 points to start the competition.

Good luck next week

I’m joint top? Oh yes! 👍😀

Thanks for clarifying OTH…. I’m joint top with you Cully… an joint bottom 🤣😂

Listening on the ref link, I enjoyed the couple of times players were unsure what to substitute for the traditional “Sir” when speaking to Sara Cox and said “Yes Miss” as if they were back in primary school.

By some fluke, I did get a 7-pointer last season.

I was sat in the East Stand praying that no-one would score in the last 10 minutes. Chiefs won (and I think, got the TBP); I doubt anyone realised why I was cheering so wildly

Sad really

Quote:

Alain le Chief
Thanks for clarifying OTH…. I’m joint top with you Cully… an joint bottom 🤣😂

Same for me, but Im accustomed to being near the bottom of the league and very excited to be sharing the lead🤣

I'm typically a big Baxter fan but on this occasions he's played a full on ar$€hole card with the selection KNOWING its a development cup programme.
Let's hope someone has a word with him. I'd be surprised, and disappointed if any of that Chiefs team would find the encounter anything other than a total embarrassment.

Quote:

Bod
I'm typically a big Baxter fan but on this occasions he's played a full on ar$€hole card with the selection KNOWING its a development cup programme.
Let's hope someone has a word with him. I'd be surprised, and disappointed if any of that Chiefs team would find the encounter anything other than a total embarrassment.

Why should the onus be on Exeter to alter their plans pre Premiership simply because a team chooses to put out a weak team? If anyone was at fault it would be Bristol who chose the Barbarians game to put out a much stronger team. I expect Baxter was seething not having better opposition to play against.
Exeters squad is relatively untried together and to that extent it was a work in progress team put out, and as Rob has said he is still formulating his selection.
Fed up with reading peoples comments about what we should have done. We as a club are not here to please others.

What was Rob meant to do ? Put out a Uni team simply because Bristol took the Kings shilling!?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2023:09:12:01:40:04 by Isca Chief.

Totally agree Isca, to many people having a go at us when they know they have been guilty in the past of exactly the same thing, even when they didn’t have a money making extra show game a couple days before.
Rob hasn’t hidden the fact that he considers these warm up games for the league, we have a huge amount of new youngsters who need to step up to the plate this season, and blend with the few older heads we have left.

Hear, hear! Well said, both Isca Chief and Clalan. As has also been said elsewhere on this board (apologies for not crediting the OP) the tournament is a good one, but given it's also the season's opening games, and the amount of new faces we have, it's hardly surprising we're running out a near full first team.

In Rob we trust.
By the way - cream on first. There's nothing to debate.

Quote:

Isca Chief

Quote:

Bod
I'm typically a big Baxter fan but on this occasions he's played a full on ar$€hole card with the selection KNOWING its a development cup programme.
Let's hope someone has a word with him. I'd be surprised, and disappointed if any of that Chiefs team would find the encounter anything other than a total embarrassment.

Why should the onus be on Exeter to alter their plans pre Premiership simply because a team chooses to put out a weak team? If anyone was at fault it would be Bristol who chose the Barbarians game to put out a much stronger team. I expect Baxter was seething not having better opposition to play against.

Exeters squad is relatively untried together and to that extent it was a work in progress team put out, and as Rob has said he is still formulating his selection.


Fed up with reading peoples comments about what we should have done. We as a club are not here to please others.

What was Rob meant to do ? Put out a Uni team simply because Bristol took the Kings shilling!?

Well said that man👏🏻👏🏻

Quote:

clalan
Rob hasn’t hidden the fact that he considers these warm up games for the league, we have a huge amount of new youngsters who need to step up to the plate this season, and blend with the few older heads we have left.

The slight issue is he has been very vocal, as he always is, about needing the return of a competition that allows the less experienced players and indeed wider squad to play.
Given exactly the sort of competition he asked for at the tail of last season he's using it to bed in the senior (even if they are junior!) team instead.
There's nothing stopping him doing it but it isn't a stretch to see why some supporters and clubs think he is being somewhat inconsistent.

Tbf though we've seen everything from clubs fourths with guest players through to almost full XV/23s (minus RWC players) so who is to say that those playing the first aren't also not really taking part in the spirit of the competition?
The reality is with no hard and fast rules about the team you field every club will do what is best for them. Bristol send the odds and sods because they needed more of the main team to fulfil a Babas fixture. Chiefs have (n)one? real Premiership warm-ups so are seemingly using these games as a warm-up instead.

I'd prefer any secondary competition has specific criteria for the teams competing.
A limit on the number of senior players (by caps) maybe an age or cap limit? (which would be less of an issue for a club like Chiefs with a great young squad regardless) but something that gives it a specific purpose as a proving ground for the players who might be on the fringe of the clubs main squads or just coming through their Academies.
I'd add in something that stops the usual suspects flooding the team with first choice players when the competition gets to the Finals stages. It's both massively disrespectful to the players that got the club there and again undoes the point of the competition.

As a side note I think the team that Sarries sent to Cov is an almost perfect example of the type of team clubs should be sending ... and Sarries lost!! so maybe the Chiefs way to go is right after all

Once again i find myself agreeing with your main observation OM. Each team will have its discrete objectives for this competition at this point in the season. Generally, a rough set of criteria might be useful in the future. X first team appearances max per player unless returning from long-term injury ( to be defined)?

Quote:

OldMarovian
The slight issue is he has been very vocal, as he always is, about needing the return of a competition that allows the less experienced players and indeed wider squad to play.
Given exactly the sort of competition he asked for at the tail of last season he's using it to bed in the senior (even if they are junior!) team instead.
There's nothing stopping him doing it but it isn't a stretch to see why some supporters and clubs think he is being somewhat inconsistent.

He was vocal about wanting an A-League. The Prem Cup may well be an opportunity to blood young players, but nowhere does it say you have to put out 23 of them. Besides which if you look back over the history of the cup Exeter have blooded nearly all of their big names from the academy in it. The fact that they've been pragmatic for this particular game seems to have set off a monumental whinge...

I can understand the points made by bod and OM, but we played at least 6 newcomers on Saturday. It was Bristols choice to send the team they did, not ours. Also as a paying spectator I’d have been pretty annoyed if we too played a full team of academy players, most of whom you could watch for free when playing for Exeter Uni. It was also pretty disrespectful of Bristol to send such a weak team.

If that team had been picked to play the Barbarians, would the spectators at Ashton gate have been happy about it?

Most of this just sounds like sour grapes to me, or in some cases a holier than thou opportunity to have a dig at Ex.The mix of new and old in the chiefs team that played against Bris is barely different from the premiership cup sides put out by most clubs last season.

I agree that it is a flaw in the constitution of the tournament that there are no mandatory limits on who can play. But most clubs including Bris have fielded mismatches in the past.

Also worth noting that dual-registers Arthur Relton, Fin Richardson, Iwan Jenkins and Ben Grubb were all playing for Pirates and Oli Burrows is down there too, so may well be used in future.

To add to that W_C, some of the youngsters listed in the squad on our website played for the Uni on Saturday.

Mr Baxter is nothing if not a pragmatic character.
He knew exactly what he was doing, and, consistently with the best intentions towards his employer.
Regardless, his attitude diminishes somewhat the respect I have for him and your club.
In the mix of everything, who gives a to$$.

Quote:

Bod
Mr Baxter is nothing if not a pragmatic character.
He knew exactly what he was doing, and, consistently with the best intentions towards his employer.
Regardless, his attitude diminishes somewhat the respect I have for him and your club.
In the mix of everything, who gives a to$$.

Well, i for one and i expect most on this board dont really care what you think of our club.
I suggest you jog on back under the bridge.

Quote:

Bod
Mr Baxter is nothing if not a pragmatic character.
He knew exactly what he was doing, and, consistently with the best intentions towards his employer.
Regardless, his attitude diminishes somewhat the respect I have for him and your club.
In the mix of everything, who gives a to$$.

I’m sure he will be concerned by your thoughts as I’m sure will the posters on here 🙄

Quote:

Bod
Mr Baxter is nothing if not a pragmatic character.
He knew exactly what he was doing, and, consistently with the best intentions towards his employer.
Regardless, his attitude diminishes somewhat the respect I have for him and your club.
In the mix of everything, who gives a to$$.

I'm pretty sure sure that most independent posters find that your comments diminish the the respect that you have for your posts

This seems such a weird hill to die on. Nowhere is it written that the Prem Cup is only for development players. It is that because nobody can field their senior players for this and the Premiership and this is the less important competition. Therefore it's a good place to blood new players.

Quote:

Bod
Mr Baxter is nothing if not a pragmatic character.
He knew exactly what he was doing, and, consistently with the best intentions towards his employer.
Regardless, his attitude diminishes somewhat the respect I have for him and your club.
In the mix of everything, who gives a to$$.

To repeat what I have said elsewhere.
Each team have 5 rounds of the Premiership cup one after the other before the Premiership season starts on 13th October I believe.
Do you really think that none of the Premiership teams are going to play their first team squad in at least one of the Premiership cup games to get a hit out for that first Premiership match or do you think that all the Premiership teams apart from Exeter will rest their first team squad and go in to that first match not having had any meaningful match action?
I know what I would prefer the team I support to do.......
I think you are deliberately being obtuse.

If as Rob has stated in latest chat this cup is kept in this format (as it should) and held later in the season as no WC. You will see more youngsters being played as the so called seniors in our case will have had real game time so no need to play.
I hope as Rob does that we can get the old rivalry feel with pirates despite our relative positions as they still have a hunger to join us in the prem who would be all the better for it.