Steenson spells out European aspirations
By Mark Stevens
10/12/17
Gareth Steenson insists there is real excitement in and amongst the Exeter Chiefs squad as they prepare to return to European Champions Cup action against Leinster at Sandy Park today (5:30pm).
Fresh from league victories over Harlequins, Saracens and Bath in recent weeks, Rob Baxter’s side will now be looking to add the prized scalp of the Irish province to their list as they look to build on what has been an encouraging start to their latest European escapades.
Like the Chiefs, Leinster have also began their Champions Cup campaign well, picking up bonus point victories over both Montpellier and Glasgow Warriors to head Pool 3 by two points going into this afternoon’s tussle.
And with today’s fixture quickly followed by the reverse meeting next Saturday at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Steenson is hoping he and the Chiefs can strike an early psychological blow and head across the Irish Sea top of the pile after three rounds.
“It’s a big couple of weeks for us, especially with the games coming back-to-back,” said Steenson. “Like ourselves, Leinster haven’t lost yet and they’ve got maximum points, so in two weeks’ time we will know where we stand in terms of the pool.
“For us, though, we’re only focused on this weekend and what should be a really exciting match. If we get a result on Sunday then it puts is in a good position to go across the water next week and hopefully put in another big performance.
“Certainly, we’ve trained well this week and all the fellas are really looking forward to it. Leinster, we know, will be a tough ask, but that’s what you expect when you come across any side at this level in Europe.”
Unlike previous years where the Chiefs have been notoriously slow starters when it comes to the Champions Cup, Steenson admits lessons have been learnt by the reigning English champions on how to gear up for the big occasions.
“The squad we have now has been put together and worked hard together for a number of years to get to the position we are now,” added Steenson. “All we have talked about this season is how we want to be seen in Europe by others. As English champions, we should be looking to get out of the group. Obviously, it takes a fair amount of effort to do that, especially given who is in the group with us, but we’re enjoying there challenge and right now we feel we are in a good place.
“Winning over in Montpellier was massive for us. It’s only the second time we’ve ever won in the Champions Cup in France. I remember playing many a game over there, against the likes of Clermont or Toulon, and being on the end of a battering from them. Each time, though, we learnt from the experience and now we feel we can go there - or anywhere for that matter - with a game plan and with guys I know can back it up.”
Steenson continued: “We talk a lot here at the club about being better and having to perform week in, week out, whatever the competition we play in. You only have to look at the Premiership and see that if you don’t perform that week, teams can get at you and can catch you up very quickly.
“As I said, we’ve had three fantastic results in the league over the last few weeks and it’s given us confidence to take into this week. However, we need to park that competition and focus fully on this next two weeks and trying to move forward with two big wins.
“Our success in the Premiership over the last two years has definitely helped us move forward, but it’s also given us that confidence that we can compete against the very best. It’s different in the respect that we now know what we are capable of, but also that as a group we want to be challenging ourselves and trying to play in as many finals as we can. The only way to do that, however, is to use games like the weekend as the stepping stones to get into the knockout stages.”