Maunder Ready for Long-Awaited Chiefs Return

Sam Maunder is eagerly anticipating his return to the field this weekend after a grisly knee injury suffered at the Recreation Ground in March 2023 tore his future away from the rugby field and landed him in the rehab room.

It will be a cathartic experience as the scrum half trots onto the Sandy Park turf on Saturday afternoon. Chiefs’ friendly against London Scottish will mark the first time in nearly 18 months that Maunder has been able to pull on a matchday shirt.

“I genuinely can’t really put into words what it feels like to know that this time tomorrow, I’ll be back on the field,” the 24-year-old said. “I’ve missed the game a lot. And although it is an amazing club, it’s a different feeling when you’re not in the thick of it with the lads, playing day-in-day-out with them and sharing experiences on the pitch.”

The Chiefs medical team sprang into action on a spring day last year when Maunder clutched his knee after an awkward collision with Bath Rugby’s hooker Tom Dunn left him prone on the ground.

Following intricate surgery, the long journey back to fitness began in the rehab room at Sandy Park with a group of physios and an action plan as to how the Exeter-born player was going to plot his return.

“I can’t thank the medical team at Chiefs enough for what they’ve done for me,” Maunder explains. “My rehab was headed up by Steve Haw, who was just amazing with me. The members of that team are the ones that keep you sane during this type of injury.

“If they’re level-headed, and they’re confident, then it gives you confidence as well that you’re going to be ok. I feel blessed to be in a position that I had all those people around me to help me get back on the pitch.”

Maunder – who is continuing his family’s legacy with the club – has come back to fitness with a physique which Director of Rugby Rob Baxter noted will allow him to bring a greater edge of physicality to his playing style than he was prior to his injury.

“I’ve learned loads of lessons about myself throughout the rehab process,” Maunder said when explaining the changes he has experienced during his time spent away from the field. “Especially at the beginning, it was pretty dark at times. When you’re trying to get into some ranges that are very painful, then you learn a lot about yourself.

“Towards the end of it, you start getting into more of the building physique side of things. I think all the hard work that the strength and conditioning team have done with me in the gym has meant I’ve come back in a lot better shape than I was in before my injury.”

It is a unique position to be in to be a rugby player who is excited by the prospect of taking part in a gruelling pre-season. However, Maunder has said that is exactly what he felt, even when confronting sessions like the Commando Training at Lympstone or the AST test in the heat on Sandy Park’s top pitch.

“I genuinely have enjoyed all aspects of pre-season, which is kind of mental! I think having a long-term injury definitely puts everything into perspective. You don’t realise how much you would miss something until you have it taken away from you. It’s amazing that I get to call rugby my job, so I think this whole process re-confirmed that for me a little bit.

“I think, when you’re injured you realise you were worrying about a lot of stuff that you didn’t need to be beforehand. So, the process has given me the outlook that I just want to go out there and enjoy playing rugby, enjoy being there with the lads and enjoy getting the important results.”

While his return is eagerly anticipated by supporters, family and teammates alike, Maunder acknowledges that it will not be a case of strolling back into Baxter’s starting line-up.

In his absence, responsibility and experience has come the way of the likes of Tom Cairns and Niall Armstrong alongside the more experienced Stu Townsend and Will Becconsall who will all want to continue with more game-time this season.

Rather than seeing this as another set-back, Maunder views the competition as healthy and something which will, in the long run, only serve to help him in his return.

“I think competition is vital in professional sport. We all push each other, and I think having those guys playing so well last year, it definitely adds a little fuel to the fire and hopefully we can help drive one another on and we all become better players off the back of it.”