Warriors 31 Chiefs 21
Worcester Warriors 31
Exeter Chiefs 21
Mark Stevens at Sixways
Exeter’s hopes of advancing in this season’s Anglo-Welsh Cup were dealt a potentially fatal blow as Worcester Warriors took the spoils in a high-scoring encounter at Sixways.
Ricky Pellow’s Chiefs outfit started the day top of the pile in Pool Two, but this five-try loss, coupled with Harlequins easily defeating Scarlets, means qualification hopes are now out of their hands.
A bonus point victory at home to Saracens is imperative next week, but even then that may not be enough as it would require Quins’ needing to slip up against Northampton Saints in their final pool fixture.
The youthful Chiefs, however, gave everything they could in this latest match-up. A strong first half display saw them lead 14-12 at the turn thanks to converted tries from Tom Lawday and Harry Strong, but thew Warriors countered with efforts of their own through Josh Adams and Dave Denton.
After the break the more experienced Warriors continued their revival as winger Tom Howe put them in front for the first time, but back roared the Chiefs with a third try from Shaun Malton.
The last quarter, though, belonged to the home side and with Adams adding a decisive fourth and replacement Luke Baldwin also finding his way over with just a minute remaining, it meant the Chiefs headed home without reward following a hard day’s toil.
Having collected earlier wins over Northampton Saints and the Scarlets, the Chiefs arrived in the Midlands looking to maintain their winning formula against a strong Worcester line-up, which included international stars including Denton, Francois Hougaard and skipper Donncha O’Callaghan.
The Chiefs, meanwhile, were well stocked up front with the likes of Moray Low, Elvis Taione, Julian Salvi and former Warriors favourite Kai Horstmann, while behind it was left to young guns Stu Townsend and Joe Simmonds to spearhead the visiting attack, which sounded it’s intent inside three minutes of the kick-off.
Forwards, Toby Salmon, Marcus Street and Ollie Atkins all made significant inroads into the home 22 with powerful carries, the fruits of which set the platform for No.8 Lawday to bulldoze his way over from close range for the game’s opening try, which Simmonds was able to convert with ease.
The Warriors looked to counter almost immediately at the other end, but sloppy hands from the hosts allowed the Chiefs to easily soak up the danger, before clearing their lines down field without too much issue.
With both sides looking to attack at every opportunity, it was providing a positive and bright outlook, even if the conditions overhead remained wet and gloomy.
On 19 minutes, though, the Chiefs were back on the offensive and with it came further reward as they added a second try. Working the ball infield off a line-out wide on the left, Simmonds was the lynchpin in a slick backs move that allowed Strong to bag his maiden try for the Devon club. Again, Simmonds converted to give his side a 14-0 lead.
The hosts were in desperate need of a response and as the minutes ticked by, so they started to click into gear. They threatened with numerous opportunities, but they were halted legally and illegally by the Chiefs forcing Welsh referee Adam Jones to issue a warning to Horstmann that the next infringement would be penalised.
As it proved, the Warriors did come again. Although the set-piece move off a line-out failed to materialise, the hosts playing with the advantage went crossfield through Shillcock, Hammond grabbed the high ball before feeding Adams to score in the left corner.
If that was not enough for the Chiefs, the Welsh official saw an infringement by Atkins in the lead-up to the try and he was banished to the sidelines for a ten-minute stint.
With the Exeter lock sidelined, the Warriors continued to push forward and with time all but up at the end of the first period, they struck for a second time when Scottish international Denton was able to power over from close range after the home side had come back inside after the Chiefs had held their initial thrust from a five-metre line-out. This time Shillcock converted to leave just two points between the two sides at the turn.
HALF TIME WORCESTER WARRIORS 12EXETER CHIEFS 14
Having hauled themselves back into contention just before the interval, the Warriors were the first to show on the resumption. Early pressure saw them set up camp deep inside the Chiefs half, but some resolute defending from the Devonians helped to keep them at bay during a strong attacking barrage.
The pressure, however, was mounting and when the industrious Denton again caused problem with a strong carry through the heart of the Exeter defensive line, the home side were able to move the ball at pace to the left flank, where winger Howe was able to gather and scoot over for their third try - converted by Shillcock - of the afternoon.
Down for the first time in the match, the youthful Chiefs looked to hit back quickly. Initially, their attacking phases failed to bring any reward, but when Salvi took a line-out and Lawday raided down the blindside, it got Pellow’s side the front foot ball they had craved. A series of drives followed before Wilhelm Van Der Sluys offered the scoring pass for replacement hooker Malton to collect. Still with a bit to do, the hooker cantered for the line, eventually dotting down for the try which was again converted by the boot of Simmonds.
It would be a lead the Chiefs would hold up until the 68th minute when, following a sustained spell of pressure from the hosts, the Warriors again worked the numbers game to create the perfect line for Adams, who was recently called into the Welsh squad for the first time, to collect on the burst and fly over for another converted score.
Behind once again, the Chiefs - who have reached the last three finals of this competition, winning it against Northampton back in 2014 - tried their best to fathom a rapid response. Although they did their best in terms of attacking, too often they could not turn possession into points and it was the Warriors who swallowed up their threat with ease.
Indeed, a crucial turnover allowed Worcester to turn defence into attack and when the Chiefs were again reduced to 14 men following the sin-binning of Van der Sluys for a high tackle, they did not take long to make the extra man pay dividends.
Another prolonged period of pressure saw the Warriors set up camp on the Exeter try-line, before replacement scrum-half Baldwin snuck over from close range for a fifth try. Although it went unconverted, it mattered not to the home faithful.
More importantly, Baldwin’s effort denied the Chiefs of a deserved bonus point and means they must now beat Saracens on home soil in week’s time with a bonus point victory of their own - and hope that Northampton can not only defeat rivals Harlequins, but deny them any kind of reward from their outing at Franklin’s Gardens.
Warriors: J Adams (B Howard 69); T Howe, J Willison, R Mills, D Hammond; J Shillcock (S Olver 79), F Hougaard (L Baldwin 72); E Waller (R Bower 47), J Singleton (K Haupt 79), G Milasinovich (S Kerrod 60); D O’Callaghan (capt, A Bresler h/t), D Barry; M Cox (A Duratalo 78), S Lewis, D Denton (A Duratalo 40-48).
Tries - Adams (2), Denton, Howe, Baldwin; Conversions - Shillcock (3)
Chiefs: H Skinner (S Morley 72); T O’Flaherty (S M’Boge 23-32), P Laverick, T Hendrickson (S M’Boge 56), H Strong; J Simmonds, S Townsend (J Maunder 56); M Low (J Kenny 50), E Taione (S Malton 48), M Street (J Owlett 50); O Atkins (W Van Der Sluys 53), T Salmon; K Horstmann (capt), J Salvi, T Lawday (S Lonsdale 63).
Tries - Lawday, Strong, Malton; Conversions - J Simmonds (3)
Yellow Cards: Atkins, Van Der Sluys
Referee: A Jones (WRU)
Attendance: 7,612