Whitten looking to build on win
By Mark Stevens
28/11/17
Ian Whitten praised the character of his Exeter Chiefs team-mates after they struck a decisive blow at the top of the Aviva Premiership by downing rivals Saracens on their own turf.
Rob Baxter’s side became the first team in 21 months to beat the reigning champions on their own turf, winning a hard-fought encounter at Allianz Park 20-18 on Sunday.
Irishman Whitten claimed one of Exeter’s two tries on the day, the other went to replacement prop Moray Low, while compatriot Gareth Steenson weighed in with the remainder of the points as the Chiefs clocked up win number seven in the league this season to move them five points clear of the Londoners at the top of the standings.
Now, the hard-running centre is busy gearing up for this weekend’s impending Westcountry derby at a sold-out Sandy Park against near neighbours Bath.
In what should be another epic top flight encounter, Whitten says it’s imperative the Chiefs look to build on their success over Saracens with another big performance this Saturday (2pm).
“We’re very happy with the win [at Saracens],” he said. “We showed a lot of character, especially as we didn’t get off to the best of starts. However, we fought hard to get into the game and in the end we’ve come away with a very important result.”
Undone initially in the opening quarter by Mark McCall’s side, the Chiefs had to battle back from conceding tries to Alex Goode and Schalk Brits, before they ignited their own attacking charge.
Down 15-6 at the break, it was Whitten who helped to instigate Exeter’s fight back in North London, claiming their opening try. Although Marcelo Bosch landed a penalty for the home side to edge them further in front, the Chiefs refused to lie down and in a powerful conclusion to the game, it was Scottish international Low who rumbled over from close range for what proved the match-winning try.
“At half time Rob [Baxter] said he felt we had ridden into the game,” added Whitten. “We know we have a game plan to get at Saracens, but we kind of just expected it to happen, rather than us make it happen. We reset ourselves towards the end of the first half and that’s when we started to come strong, especially in the second half.
“Moving forward, it’s a good lesson for us in that we know we have to be on our game from the outset, rather than having to do the hard work to fight back.”
To claim the scalp of Saracens, though, is a fine achievement and the former Ulster star says the victory has offered a big boost to the Chiefs, not only in terms of their seasonal objectives, but ahead of this weekend’s clash against an in-form Bath outfit.
“There is real confidence within the team,” said Whitten. “That has come through playing in big games and winning big games. We’ve achieved a lot together over the last few years and hopefully we’ll achieve even more in the future. The key to it all, I guess, is that we don’t tend to panic so much these days when we go behind. We’ve got 15 or 23 lads who will fight to the end, whatever the game.”
Now, the Chiefs will be hoping for more of the same against Bath who, ironically, were the last side to win at Sandy Park in the Premiership way back in October 2016.
“It’s one of the big games of the year,” continued Whitten. “The crowd at the weekend will be amazing and everybody will be looking forward to the game. Bath, we know, will bring high energy and physicality to the game, they always do. They also tend to play very well against us, so we can’t expect them to give us anything.
“As I said, hopefully we can use the last few weeks as the perfect boost to take into the weekend.”