Bears U18s 22 Chiefs U18s 24

Bristol Bears Under-18s 22

Exeter Chiefs Under-18s 24

Mark Stevens

Exeter Chiefs Under-18s made it two wins from two in this season's Premiership Rugby Under-18s league as they overcame rivals Bristol Bears last Friday night.

Iwan Jenkins' last-minute penalty proved decisive for the visitors as they edged a thrilling contest at Shaftesbury Park 24-22.

Although looking to pick up from where they left off against Worcester Warriors in their opening fixture, it was the home side who started brightest, breaking the deadlock when Jac Lloyd stole over for a try, which he was also able to convert.

Exeter's response, however, was immediate as Zack Wimbrush soared highest to reclaim the restart, allowing the visitors to quickly get on the front foot in attack. Having won a penalty at the breakdown, quick-thinking from Will Becconsall proved decisive as it laid the foundations for lock Alex Sheridan to hit a great line and burst over for the try, converted by the trusty boot of Welshman Jenkins.

With parity restored, it was the Chiefs who were next to strike. Having looked to drive off a close-range line-out, which was halted illegally, the visitors used a tap penalty close to the line to send hooker Will Cornish over for the converted score.

Behind at the break, the Bears came out firing at the start of the second half and it wasn't long before they got back on terms, Tom Simms crossing for a converted score.

Now with a renewed confidence, the Bears continued to press in attack and they scored a superb try through Gabbe Lacey. Claiming the bobbling ball from the restart, the home pack took the ball before a couple of offloads allowed the flying winger to race in from the halfway line.

Behind once again, the Chiefs needed to find a response as the minutes ticked by. To their credit, they did just this as they used another penalty to the corner to set up camp inside the home 22. Once again their driving maul was stopped illegally, but with play allowed to continue, the visitors worked the ball out wide to Ben Parsons, who stood up the defender and scored in the corner. Jenkins converted from the touchline to give the Chiefs the lead once more at 21-19.

The nip-and-tuck nature of the match continued into the closing stages as Bristol reclaimed their lead through a Sam Worsley penalty, only for the Chiefs to strike late with a magical effort from Jenkins.

"It was another great win for the boys," said Chiefs' Academy coach, Keith Brooking. "This game was a complete contrast to that of the Worcester match, but the fighting spirit we showed was simply fantastic.

"We are seeing not only some fantastic individual performances, but as a collective it's great to see how the guys are coming together and putting into place the game plan we are asking of them as coaches.

"To have two wins from two games is obviously a fantastic start to our season, but we know we have to keep working hard for the upcoming games at home to Bath and Gloucester."