Slade focused on the task ahead
By Mark Stevens
10/4/21
At some stage, Henry Slade will get a chance to sit down and relax, before contemplating what a whirlwind 12 months it has been for him.
To say it’s been non-stop for the Exeter Chiefs and England star would be somewhat of an understatement, but as he readies himself for this weekend’s much-anticipated visit of Leinster to Sandy Park in the quarter-finals of the Heineken Champions Cup, the 28-year-old is not only relaxed, but fiercely focused on the task ahead.
Having returned to Sandy Park earlier this month after a ten-week stint in camp with England during the recent Guinness Six Nations Championship, Slade is happily back in familiar surroundings, ready to carry out his duties, both on and off the pitch.
The biggest of those duties start at home here in Exeter, where together with partner Megan, they are happily overseeing the raising of their young daughter, Olive, who was born last August.
Despite the odd restless night here and there, Slade readily admits he is ‘besotted’ with his first born, who he says has taken centre stage on everything.
“I’m enjoying it as much as ever, apart from two nights’ ago, which was just awful,” he said. “She kept us up all night, but other than that it has been class. Having her come along has certainly changed me as a person, everything you do, you think of her first – that took a little getting used to – but I wouldn’t change a thing.”
With Slade blossoming in his role as ‘Daddy Cool’ – it’s the day job which is also at the forefront of his mind as he and the Chiefs look to continue the defence of their European crown against the four-time Heineken Champions Cup winners.
In what is the stand-out tie of the quarter-finals, the gifted centre admits he and his team-mates are relishing the encounter against the highly-decorated Irish province.
“We’re really excited about the weekend,” said Slade. “We obviously had a massive game against Lyon last week and it’s the same this week with Leinster coming here. Obviously, they pose a massive threat to us. The history they have in this competition is enormous, so we have to give them respect, but not too much.
“Coming Saturday, we need to be the aggressors and take the game to them. As a team, we need to be confident in what we do and try to impose ourselves on them as best as possible.
“We’ve played them before in this competition, but we’re a much different side to those previous occasions. We were much further back in terms of our evolution the last time we played them, so it’s going to be a much different challenge to then.”
Restored to the Chiefs line-up at the first opportunity last week by Director of Rugby, Rob Baxter, Slade said getting back amongst the Exeter mix was good for him and the club’s fellow internationals, who have been missing for large chunks of the current campaign.
“We’d been away a long time, so it was important that we came straight back in,” he added. “Getting back amongst the boys, getting used to the calls – even though you don’t forget them – it’s just those split second things that you need to have in the back of your mind.
“I think for all of us coming back in, last week’s game was vitally important. Just being back amongst your mates, getting back playing with Exeter, it’s all important. You can train all you want, but it’s nothing like playing and being back amongst your mates.”
And it was that collective brotherhood that helped drive the Chiefs to domestic and European glory last season.
Slade was very much at the forefront of Exeter’s historic double triumph, an achievement which made the rugby world really sit up and take note. However, the man himself has confined all of that to the history books and is hell-bent on helping the Chiefs to even bigger and better things in the future.
“Last season was really special and something we will never forget,” said Slade. “To achieve what we did was unbelievable, but it was also a bit bittersweet, especially having no one there at the two finals. Even if we could have had friends and family there, it would have added to it all, but Covid meant we couldn’t!
“All of that is now in the past and we have to move on. Even when we were playing Lyon last week, it wasn’t like I was out there thinking ‘if we lose this, we’re not European champions anymore’. Instead, I was just focused on the game which, after the start we had, we had to really fight for.
“Going 14-0 down, all the messages and all the talk was just on moving onto the next thing and doing the next job. Thankfully, we got ourselves back into the game, we pushed on like we wanted, and we got the result. This week, it’s the same again, albeit hopefully with a better start.”
Certainly, having gone the distance last season, Slade and the Chiefs would dearly love to repeat the feat and etch their names further in the folklore of European Rugby.
He continued: “If you look at the group of players we have here, a lot of us are in a similar age bracket. A lot of us have been here a long time now and we’ve been through a lot together. We’ve had our fair share of highs and lows, but I think we’re all excited about what we can do next.
“Games like this weekend are what it’s all about. These are the challenges you crave as a player, now it’s up to us to go out and deliver.”