Chiefs U-18s side to face Bristol

By Mark Stevens
4/1/17

Exeter Chiefs Under-18s coach Rob Gibson says he and his team are looking forward to kicking off their new Premiership Under-18s League season at Bristol this Saturday (2:30pm).

With a number of the squad coming from the highly successful Exeter College side, who recently lifted the AASE League title for the first time, Gibson is excited by the talent and skill on offer within his squad.

“I think we’re all very excited about the start of the new season,” said the New Zealander. “This competition is definitely a step up from the AASE League and it will challenge all of the players in
different ways.

“We’ve trained well over the Christmas period and now we have to convert that work into a big performance at the weekend.

“It’s a strong group of players that we have selected as not only do they have a lot of experience in the AASE League, but there are some who have featured this season in the National Leagues, the Aviva A League and, in the case of Marcus Street, he’s even played for the Chiefs first team in the Anglo-Welsh Cup!

“As I said, our preparation has been good as most of the group have come through the clubs’ system, which in turn has meant it’s been an easy preparation in terms of gelling the team together and being able to have common terminology that everyone has been working from.”

Leading the side into action will be scrum-half Joe Snow, one of a handful of players to have been in and around the Exeter Braves side this season in the A League.

He is joined in the starting XV by the likes of Street, Richard Capstick, Joe Elderkin, AJ Cant and Ollie Gibbons, while on the bench Sam Maunder, brother of Chiefs scrum-half Jack Maunder, is also included.

CHIEFS UNDER-18s SIDE TO FACE BRISTOL RUGBY

15 Tani Naduva
14 Jake Penprase
13 Ollie Gibbons
12 Connor Gilbert
11 AJ Cant
10 Joe Elderkin
9 Joe Snow (capt)
1 Marcus Street
2 Ben Phillips
3 James Kenny
4 Joseph Parker Cooke
5 Lewis Pearson
6 Max Norey
7 Richard Capstick
8 Rusi Tuima

16 Will Ridout
17 Danny Southworth
18 Alfie Petch
19 Torin Clarke
20 Will Gibson
21 Sam Maunder
22 Gwyn Parks
23 Toby Williams