Exeter’s director of rugby, Rob Baxter, has hit back at accusations his side’s style of play is boring, urging critics to “open your eyes”. The Chiefs face Saracens in the Premiership final for the third time in four years on Saturday having scored the most tries this season, but their power game and a penchant for lineout drives has led to claims they are one-dimensional.
After Northampton were beaten by Exeter for the second week running last Saturday, the Saints director of rugby, Chris Boyd, questioned: “If they don’t get parity against sides, what does their game look like?” The New Zealander went on to state the importance of teams who play “with a little more optimism” closing the gap on Exeter and Saracens – a comment which has clearly riled Baxter.
“Chris Boyd made a comment about optimism finding a way,” he said. “Well, we didn’t take a drop goal on Saturday. Northampton did. There is nothing that shows less optimism than taking a drop goal.
“We don’t have one predetermined way. We have a number of ways. If we create pressure, get a penalty and kick to the corner, then that shows great optimism. All I ask is that when people make snap judgments on style of play, believe what you see with your own eyes. If all you want to focus on is the period of play when we are five metres from the line, do that, but there are another 95 metres on a rugby field. What about how we got there and the decisions we made to get there? So, open your eyes and look outside that five metres.”
Joe Marler, meanwhile, has revealed he would answer an emergency England call for the World Cup but would do so reluctantly, claiming it would be “disrespectful” to his loosehead rivals. Marler has enjoyed a fine season for Harlequins since bringing an end to his international career in September and Mako Vunipola’s hamstring injury – which will keep him out for the next three months – has underlined the lack of depth Eddie Jones has in that position.
Marler is still in regular contact with Jones and before turning out for the Barbarians against a youthful England XV on Sunday, he said: “If it was an SOS scenario it would definitely be something I’d consider but they’re not in an SOS scenario. If they were desperate I would give them a hand, but they’re not. I would have the conversation with my wife and think about it and say, ‘Yeah, all right, I’ll come and help you out.’
“But it’s a tough one. I wouldn’t be able to just walk up and just immerse myself in it all again. Boys have been grafting for years. Not only has Mako been brilliant, but the boys who came in stepped up and proved their worth there. For the whole 12-18 months they have been doing that, if someone turned around and went, ‘All right, I’ll come along even though I have done no work, done nothing’, that is disrespectful.”