“They have got that hard to define quality that the likes of Toulon and Saracens at their best once had.”
Rugby commentator Martin Gillingham believes Exeter Chiefs will seal the first part of a domestic and European double with victory over Racing 92 in Bristol on Saturday.
Whatever happens at Ashton Gate, a new name will be on the famous trophy as Exeter are first-time finalists while Racing 92 have lost in their two previous final appearances.
But Gillingham, a regular on our TV screens, predicts it will be the Chiefs who’ll prevail.
“I personally would have to fancy Exeter; I do think the home country advantage will play a role,” he said.
“Right at the start of the competition, when they won comprehensively out in La Rochelle, we saw how Exeter have matured as a team.
“When it comes to big matches, they are now playing on a different level to the way they have done previously.
“They have got that hard to define quality that the likes of Toulon and Saracens at their best once had.”
‘Tartan’ Chiefs will be smiling
The Chiefs have lost more finals than they’ve won – only one out of three Premiership deciders have gone their way – but, as Gillingham attests, those defeats to Saracens have given them a steelier edge.
It’s very rare that Chiefs do not turn up as a team when they need to, and defensively they will need to be right on point against Racing’s dangerous backs.
Finn Russell can unpick the most organised defences with a moment of individual brilliance, as we saw against Saracens in the semi-finals.
But rest assured, Rob Baxter and his able lieutenants will have a plan to make sure the Scots smiling come the final whistle are Stuart Hogg, Jonny Gray and Sam Hidalgo-Clyne, and not Russell.
If any team can be relied upon to defend their line as if their lives depend on it, it’s the Chiefs which is why we think it’ll be a grind-it-out type of victory for the Devonians, perhaps by two tries to one with a scoreline of something like 23-12.
While Russell can pull defences apart through his ability to distribute killer passes, occasionally he doesn’t give them enough air and the likes of Jack Nowell (10/1 first try-scorer) will be ready to sniff out any intercept opportunities.
Exeter Chiefs: 15. Stuart Hogg, 14. Jack Nowell, 13. Henry Slade, 12. Ian Whitten, 11. Tom O’Flaherty, 10. Joe Simmonds (c), 9. Jack Maunder, 1. Alec Hepburn, 2. Luke Cowan-Dickie, 3. Harry Williams, 4. Jonny Gray, 5. Jonny Hill, 6. Dave Ewers, 7. Jacques Vermeulen, 8. Sam Simmonds.
Replacements: 16. Jack Yeandle, 17. Ben Moon, 18. Tom Francis, 19. Sam Skinner, 20. Jannes Kirsten, 21. Sam Hidalgo-Clyne, 22. Gareth Steenson, 23. Ollie Devoto.
Racing 92: 15. Simon Zebo, 14. Louis Dupichot, 13. Virimi Vakatawa, 12. Henry Chavancy (c), 11. Juan Imhoff, 10. Finn Russell, 9. Teddy Iribaren, 1. Eddy Ben Arous, 2. Camille Chat, 3. Georges Henri Colombe, 4. Bernard Le Roux, 5. Dominic Bird, 6. Wenceslas Lauret, 7. Fabien Sanconnie, 8. Antonie Claassen.
Replacements: 16. Teddy Baubigny, 17. Hassane Kolingar, 18. Ali Oz, 19. Donnacha Ryan, 20. Boris Palu, 21. Maxime Machenaud, 22. Olivier Klemenczak, 23. Kurtley Beale.
