Preparation is key insists Jess

Matt Jess says Exeter Chiefs must wipe the slate clean following their European Challenge Cup disappointment and focus on Sunday’s trip to Wasps.

The Chiefs crashed out of Europe’s second-tier competition with a 30-19 defeat against Gloucester at Kingsholm on Saturday.

However, they have precious little time to dwell on that setback, with a journey to Coventry beckoning with a play-off place still very much in the offing.

Most teams find a trip to the Ricoh Arena tough – Wasps have only lost there once in the Premiership since arriving in December – and Jess believes preparing properly this week after their cup exertions will be crucial.

“It is onwards and upwards and we will move on to the next game,” said the 31-year-old winger. “Wasps will be huge. In every competition - whether it is the LV= Cup, Europe or the Premiership – we have been fighting on all fronts and we are proud of those efforts.

“It has been a huge squad effort from one to 50-odd, so what we will do now is just reset, assess, take our rest and hopefully then we can go up to Wasps and make that a good spectacle.”

Looking back on the semi-final defeat, Jess insisted the team could be proud of their efforts.

In a highly-charged atmosphere, Gloucester dominated for large spells, testing Exeter’s defence to the limit. But the Chiefs did well to keep the scores so close for much of the contest, and it required a last-minute converted try from Jonny May to finally kill the tie off.

“It was like two rams going at it and they came out on top, but that is something we have got to take in,” continued Jess. “But I can’t fault the boys’ effort on the pitch. We stuck at it for pretty much the whole game and at the end of the day it was two good teams going at it.

“Sometimes it is small margins and at the end of the day, they got that little bit of an edge on us, but we can’t hang our heads too low, we have to be proud of our efforts and we will move onto the next game and crack on from there.”