Under-18s off to flying start

By Mark Stevens
3/5/21

Gareth Steenson praised his Exeter Chiefs Under-18s side after they kicked off their new Premiership Rugby Under-18s League campaign with a resounding 55-20 victory over Worcester Warriors at Sixways.

With only limited preparation ahead of their opening fixture, the Chiefs squad – made up of players from Exeter and Truro Colleges – combined impressively to run in eight tries on the day.

Playing with the same adaptive rules as the current Allianz Premier 15s, it was a nervous start for both sets of players as they reacquainted themselves with playing for the first time in 12 months.

However, once the game was properly up and running it was the visitors who ruled the roost for much of the contest.

Archie Fleming claimed their opening try, before Matt Pritchard and Ben Hammersley also found their way over as the Chiefs led 21-10 at the break.

Hooker Pritchard grabbed his second of the game shortly after the restart, before Alex Sheridan Kian Gentry (2) and Charlie McCaig wrapped things.

Skipper Iwan Jenkins landed four conversions with Harvey Beckerleg adding another two points to complete the scoring.

Post-game, Steenson said: “It was a fantastic performance from the team, particularly given the limited preparation time and the fact that for a lot of the boys, it was there first meaningful game in over a year.

“The victory has given us as strong foundation from which we can now build our campaign. Worcester provided us with a good test, but I thought our guys really rose to the occasion and showed what quality we have within our ranks this season.”