Campbell Ridl boosts Exeter’s playoff push with victory over Prem champions Bath

The road to the Prem playoffs continues to be full of compelling twists and turns. For a while it seemed Exeter might be about to be reeled in by a Bath side renowned for their finishing strength, only for second-half tries from Paul Brown-Bampoe, Len Ikitau and Campbell Ridl and a resilient defensive effort to steer the Chiefs to one of their more pleasing league wins of the season.

With Leicester and Saracens finishing strongly and only three regular season fixtures remaining this was a game the home side could ill afford to lose and that extra edge played a part against a Bath side still feeling the effects of their disappointing Champions Cup semi-final loss in Bordeaux. As the game wore on it was the Chiefs who grew in confidence and this result puts them in fourth place, five points clear of Bristol in fifth.

With a stiff north-easterly blowing down the ground Exeter had an eight point first-half cushion to work with but will be most pleased with the way they subsequently dug deep in a game once again notable for a number of head collision reviews. Bath’s second row forward Quinn Roux was shown a 20-minute red early in the game and the visitors never quite regained their equilibrium.

Exeter’s director of rugby Rob Baxter had instructed his team to go out and play rather than tighten up and allow self-doubt to creep into play. They duly followed his advice, making the most of the conditions to build a handy 13-0 lead inside the opening quarter through two Henry Slade penalties and a close-range rumble from Josh Iosefa-Scott, converted by Harvey Skinner.

The early departure of Roux was another significant moment, the referee Karl Dickson firmly of the opinion that the South African had a clear line of sight when he charged through and clashed heads with Slade when a lower body position would have avoided that possibility. After all the fuss about the unpenalised head contacts in Bordeaux, an early 20-minute red card against Bath was more than a touch ironic.

Len Ikitau crosses the line for a try during Exeter’s home win. Photograph: Matt Impey/Shutterstock

Bath did eventually get on the board through a strong maul score finished by the former Chief Dan Frost but Finn Russell’s conversion attempt bounced away off a post and Bath spent the majority of rest of the half penned in their own territory. The only upside was that Exeter were not quite clicking in attack and the visitors would have settled for the 13-5 interval scoreline with the wind now at their backs.