'We needed to bounce back' says Vermeulen

By Mike Smith
18/2/20

It was back to Gallagher Premiership action with a bang for the Exeter Chiefs on Friday night with a dominating 15-26 victory over Gloucester.

Heading to Kingsholm in Round 10, needing to bounce back after a disappointing loss to Sale Sharks last time out, Rob Baxter's side certainly came out flying with South African powerhouse Jacques Vermeulen touching down inside the opening ten minutes for his fifth try of the season.

His early score, coupled with four successful penalties from Gareth Steenson, helped to put the Chiefs firmly in control of proceedings, before full-back Stuart Hogg got in on the scoring act, claiming his first-ever Premiership try.

Although Gloucester countered with late tries from Jake Polledri and Louis Rees-Zammit, the hosts had left themselves with too much to do and it was the visitors who were able to stretch their lead at the summit of the table.

"We needed to bounce back," said Vermeulen afterwards. "The guys came out tonight and put in a real Exeter Chiefs performance. We were all pretty gutted after the Sale Sharks game, so we've worked hard since then, and that hard work paid off tonight."

Since arriving in Devon waters from Super Rugby side, the Sharks, the 25-year-old forward has definitely made an impact at Sandy Park, winning over the hearts of both fans and coaches alike.

Picking up his first try for the club against Leicester Tigers on his debut in the Premiership Rugby Cup, the Paarl-born back-rower has gone on to score in important victories over Glasgow Warriors and Saracens.

"I must say thank0you to the team, we always help each other to get over the line, and I’m really happy with it," he continued. "It was a good win for the boys, we're really happy about it. We worked hard the past few weeks after the break and right now everyone is happy, as are all of the coaching staff."

With both sides going into the clash in the top four, it was always going to be a tough game, especially in what is a testing month ahead for the Chiefs. The Gloucester fixture kicked things off, before subsequent clashes with Northampton Saints (home), Harlequins (away) and Bath (home).

"Gloucester had a few South Africans in their side and they bring a real physicality to the game," said Vermeulen. "It was a tough one for sure, but we put in a good performance, so we're really happy. I think that we did the hard yards in the first half and then it really paid off for us in the second half. Now, we're fully focused on the next game against Northampton."

The Chiefs return to Sandy Park this Sunday (1pm) to face a Saints side who will be hurting, after letting a 14-0 lead slip at home against fellow top-four hunters Bristol Bears. Pat Lam's side hit back impressively after the break to secure a 17-14 victory and condemn the Saints to a successive home defeat.

"They [Saints] will bring a tough challenge, there is no doubt about that," warned Vermeulen. "Right now, we'll go back and recover, coming in fresh next week, and then focus on putting in a good performance in training, so we can do it again next weekend."