Bath edged Exeter Chiefs 40-34 in a Premiership clash defined by relentless attacking rugby and 11 tries. The hosts claimed a bonus-point win in a match that echoed their dramatic semi-final encounter three months earlier, reversing last season’s defeat with a high-scoring thriller at their home ground.
Bath raced into a 26-10 lead by halftime, propelled by four tries from Cameron Redpath, Bernard van der Linde, Dan du Preez, and Finn Russell. Their early dominance put them in control, with Russell converting all four tries. Redpath’s interception from inside his own half set the tone, while van der Linde’s intelligent dummy and sprint near the 22 opened the scoring. Du Preez capitalised on a near-try by van der Linde, and Russell’s pace and footwork sealed the bonus point before the break.
Exeter’s first-half tries came from Stephen Varney and Jack Yeandle, who scored off a line-out maul. Despite their efforts, Exeter trailed by 16 points going into the break.
The second half saw Exeter mount a fierce comeback. Within 15 minutes, the Chiefs flipped the deficit into a 34-31 lead, largely thanks to England winger Immanuel Feyi-Waboso’s two tries and a pick-and-go from prop Josh Iosefa-Scott. Feyi-Waboso’s first came after a line-breaking run that drew defenders, creating space for Varney earlier and then finishing himself after a floated pass from fly-half Harvey Skinner. His second try followed a break by ex-Bath centre Will Butt, who carved open Bath’s midfield.
Bath responded as their bench players brought fresh energy. Redpath spilled the ball close to the line but Bath’s pressure forced a penalty try after Varney was sin-binned for a deliberate knock-on. Replacement flanker Ted Hill powered over to restore Bath’s lead, with Russell converting both scores.
Exeter remained in the contest, with Skinner kicking a late penalty from 40 metres to secure two bonus points despite the loss. Chiefs director of rugby Rob Baxter said on BBC Radio Devon, “The important emotion is I’m walking away going ‘we’ve got a team here and we’ve got something to work with’.” He added that the team’s resilience was clear after a patchy performance the week before against Gloucester, and said, “That’s what Exeter Chiefs are about. Do you want to be perfect or do you want to be in a fight every single week? Well we’ll be in a fight every single week. I’m quite happy with that.”
Bath’s starting lineup included Donoghue; Cokanasiga, Lawrence, Redpath, and de Glanville; Russell and van der Linde; Obano, Dunn, Stuart, Roux, Ewels (captain), Richards, Pepper, and du Preez. Their replacements who featured included Frost, Kirk, Griffin, Hill, Reid, Carr-Smith, Ojomoh, and Coetzee.
Exeter fielded Woodburn; Feyi-Waboso, Slade, Butt, and Wyatt; Skinner and Varney; Burger, Yeandle, Iosefa-Scott, Wilson, Jenkins (captain), Roots, James, and Fisilau. Their bench included Gulley, Goodrick-Clarke, Tchumbadze, Beckerleg, Worley Brady, Wolstenholme, Haydon-Wood, and Wimbush.
The match was controlled by referee Luke Pearce, with Varney spending ten minutes in the sin-bin.
Bath now hold maximum points after two opening wins, while Exeter have collected two bonus points from their consecutive defeats. The match confirmed the ongoing intensity of the Premiership’s attacking style, with both sides exchanging tries at a high tempo.
According to Yahoo Sports.
