Exeter v Saracens - Player Ratings
- 2318
Exeter Chiefs
- Alec Hepburn – 6/10
Solid at scrum time. Put in a shift at the breakdown and made some vital tackles in defence but wasn’t able to carry effectively.
- Luke Cowan-Dickie – 7/10
Made some wonderful chop tackles in defence and worked tirelessly at the breakdown but failed to have his usual impact on the attacking side of the game. Mostly accurate at the lineout.
- Tomas Francis – 6/10
Locked out the scrums well and made some big tackles in defence but was anonymous in attack.
- Mitch Lees – 6/10
Tackled well when required and offered a good option at the lineout but never managed to get his hands on the ball in space.
- Jonny Hill – 7/10
As usual, he did the dirty work very well. Made his tackles and disrupted Sarries ball on the floor with some quality work at the breakdown.
- David Ewers – 7/10
One of the better performers in the Exeter team. Made a whopping 18 tackles and 22 carries and was really unfortunate to be held up when diving over the try line from close range.
- Don Armand – 6/10
Some strong carries which put his side on the front foot at times but never really managed to hit top gear. Solid in defence.
- Sam Simmonds – 7/10
The stand out performer in an otherwise disappointing Exeter Chiefs performance. Carried dynamically throughout and completed some bone-crunching tackles.
- Nic White – 6/10
Struggled throughout under huge pressure from Saracens. Inaccurate box kicking cost his side.
- Joe Simmonds – 5/10
Failed to take a hold of the game and was hauled off after just 49 minutes.
- Olly Woodburn – 5/10
Tried to run the ball out from deep and put his side under a lot of pressure as a result. Caught short defensively at times.
- Sam Hill – 6/10
Impressive handling at times and made one decent break but really didn’t offer a whole lot in attack other than that. Solid in defence.
- Henry Slade – 6/10
Solid performance with some deft offloading and accurate passing but unfortunately never managed to hit his brilliant best in terms of attack.
- Jack Nowell – 6/10
Saved his teams bacon on a couple of occasions with some top quality defensive work. Unfortunately, he was unable to get his hands on the ball in space.
- Lachlan Turner – 7/10
Magnificent performance from the man at the back. Rock solid in defence and the livewire in attack.
Saracens
- Mako Vunipola – 9/10
Vunipola was absolutely immense today. He had 15 carries for an impressive return of 38m. His work rate was incredible and he was presented with the man of the match award.
- Jamie George – 7/10
George was impressive around the park and made a total of 11 tackles while only missing 1. The Saracens lineout didn't function as well as it usually does but luckily they had the class to see out the victory.
- Vincent Koch – 5/10
Koch had a disappointing game with a lot of handling errors. He also only had 2 carries for a return of 2m.
- Maro Itoje – 8/10
Itoje had his usual beast of a game. He worked hard around the park and made a whopping 19 tackles. On attack, he was a strong attacking option and totalled 15 carries.
- George Kruis – 7/10
He was a force to be reckoned with at the lineout as usual and was extremely up for the physical battle today as well, making 22 tackles. However, he did concede a couple of penalties and turned over the ball on one occasion, which takes his rating down a notch.
- Nick Isiekwe – 5/10
Touched the ball 1 time in the whole game, which isn’t enough for a back-rower. You’d hope that he’d make up for it with his defence but alas he missed 4 tackles and only made 10.
- Jackson Wray – 6/10
A couple of handling errors but had a solid day in defence, making 13 tackles.
- Billy Vunipola – 8/10
A fantastic reintroduction to professional rugby for the dynamic number 8. He got over for an early score with a typically barnstorming carry and went on to make another 17 beating 3 defenders. Great shift before being substituted early on.
- Richard Wigglesworth – 8/10
The scrum-half picked up his 5th Premiership medal today and that is no coincidence. He has been the heartbeat of this Sarries side. They attempted to play a quick game today, and he did not disappoint, clearing the ball from the ruck with pace and precision.
- Owen Farrell – 8/10
A bit of a shaky day from the boot but he ran the game superbly from the driving seat. His kicking game, out of hand, was superb, turning Exeter on their heels continuously. His chips over the top were pin-point accurate, as were his wide passes to the wing.
- Chris Wyles – 9/10
The American calls time on an impeccable club career by equalling Chris Ashton’s record of tries scored in the competition. He just popped up in the right place, at the right time today, before finishing the five pointers expertly to give Exeter the win.
- Brad Barritt – 8/10
Great hard running all day which penetrated the Exeter defence and got Sarries into the 22. This paved the way for a couple of Wyles scores. As always, he was a rock in defence.
- Alex Lozowski – 7/10
Had a bit of trouble in the defensive channel but was used as a great link-man out wide, leading to a number of tries on the wing. A great passing game and he may be used more effectively in the number 12 shirt, following the departure of skipper Brad Barritt. His kicking game was a help to Farrell and pinned the Chiefs in their half.
- Sean Maitland – 6/10
Had a bit of trouble dealing with Nic White’s kicks early on. Grew into the game and didn’t put a foot wrong in defence which is all that can be asked of him
- Alex Goode – 9/10
The fullback was a menace to the Chiefs today, ghosting his way through the defence time and time again. He was an eternal threat on the counter-attack, virtually nullifying the effect of Exeter’s kicking game. It was amazing how many times he got up to defuse bombs in the air. He paved the way for Vunipola’s 1st try when he volleyed Farrell’s chip ahead and then collected it in the 22.
