Hunter praises hard-fought victory
By Mark Stevens
14/3/21
Exeter Chiefs forward coach Rob Hunter hailed the performance of flanker Dave Ewers as his side left it late to overcome visiting Harlequins at Sandy Park.
Ewers’ crucial try, five minutes from time, proved the match-winning score as the Chiefs came from behind for a second successive week to maintain their top two placing with a 21-20 success.
That vital touchdown, combined with a crucial turnover in the last minute, were just two of the highlights of a man-of-the-match display from the long-serving Chiefs forward.
Hunter, who has worked closely with Ewers since arriving at the club in 2013, has seen first-hand the ever-improving performances of the 30-year-old.
“I’ve been really fortunate to see how Dave has grown,” said Hunter. “Today, he’s got to 150 games [in the Premiership and Champions Cup] which is a fantastic achievement in itself. That said. I think his last 25/30 games have probably been his best. He’s just getting better and better and is super consistent at the moment.
“We’ve seen over these last two or three years how he’s grown, both on and off the field. He’s taken on more responsibility and he’s having a real influence on guys around him. Today, he was really tough out there, but there are not many weeks when he isn’t like that. It’s very rare he has a bad game.
“Because he’s a little bit older and been around a while now, sometimes it gets overlooked the potential international qualities that he possesses. There are lots of great back-rowers around the place, but he is definitely up there with the best in the league. He’s a fantastic Premiership player.
“I often say, if you watch any of our highlights reels and you see Simmo going over for a try, who is the guy holding him over the line. More often than not, it’s big Dave. He’s a great asset to us and we’re really pleased with the way he is performing currently.”
In what was a match-up between the second-placed Chiefs and third-placed Harlequins, it was not just Ewers who had to stand up and be counted in a full-blooded encounter that went to the wire.
Having fallen behind to a converted Danny Care try, the home side responded shortly after when Stu Townsend countered with a try of his own, converted by skipper Joe Simmonds.
As half-time approached, however, Harlequins edged back in front when Marcus Smith slotted a routine penalty - and they extended their lead further when Scott Baldwin claimed another converted score early in the second half, before Smith slotted a second penalty.
Cut adrift by 13 points, the Chiefs needed to summon a rapid response and this they did as England international Harry Williams rumbled over for a close-range score, again converted by the trusty boot of Simmonds.
Now with the bit between their teeth, the Devonians pressed hard in attack and with some fresh muscle off the bench offering real impetus, they finally struck gold with five minutes remaining when Ewers drove low and hard for the try-line. Simmonds bagged the conversion and for the first time in the game, the Chiefs were in front.
Although there were a few scary moments to endure in the final minutes, the Chiefs were able to hold firm, much to the delight of Hunter and his fellow coaches.
“I don’t want us to get into a habit of going behind in games,” admitted Hunter, whose Chiefs also had to come from behind at Bath the previous week. “However, I’ll take it if we come back and win. Today, I thought we showed some real character to come through that. It was a tough test for us, we worked hard and really battled to come back from two scores down.
“Fair play to Quins, they put a fair bit of heat on us at times. They are a side who are very dangerous on turnover ball, whether it’s yours or theres, and they compete hard at the breakdown. Yes, there was a little frustration we couldn’t convert a few more of our earlier chances, but we hung in there and that’s the most important thing.”
Hunter also acknowledged the importance of the victory against one of their top four rivals, adding: “It was a big game and there’s not getting away from that. That was a tough game and one which could have launched them into second had they beaten us today. That’s important in a lot of ways for us because once you are out of the top two, you are then relying on other results.
“Right now, Bristol keep winning and winning and have a gap on the rest of us, so it’s important we build a gap ourselves and that was a big four points for us.”
Next up for the Chiefs is Saturday’s visit of Leicester Tigers to Sandy Park.