Exeter Chiefs' Head Coach Rob Baxter Expresses Disappointment Over Loss at Bristol
Exeter Chiefs' Head Coach Rob Baxter expressed frustration after his team's narrow loss to Bristol Bears in the Premiership. Despite playing with a numerical advantage for 30 minutes due to a Bears player being sent off, Exeter fell short by a score of 18-14.
This defeat marked the first loss of the season for Exeter, who saw a potential match-winning try disallowed in the final moments, resulting in a drop to sixth place in the league table.
Baxter acknowledged the team's performance, stating, 'We were up there talking as coaches, realizing we had let this one slip.' He emphasized the team's ongoing journey towards greatness, saying, 'We've still got a lot of hard work to become a great side, but all we've got to do is keep doing that day by day and week by week.'
Despite the setback, Exeter has shown significant improvement compared to last season, when they finished second-from-bottom of the top flight. This season, they have secured a bonus point from every game and have already accumulated nearly a third of the points they managed in the entire previous season after just three matches.
Baxter remained optimistic, stating, 'I think there's a lot for us to get excited about as a team.' He assured the players that he won't be overly critical, saying, 'We've turned up, and we were way closer to winning today than we were this time last year, or indeed most games away from home.'
The coach encouraged a positive outlook, noting, 'Today, most people are going to go 'how did Exeter not win that?' - that wasn't being said very often last season away from home.' He concluded by urging the team to focus on the future, stating, 'So let's keep looking ahead and not keep trying to look down.'
