Exeter back on top in Premiership with bonus-point defeat of Newcastle

The champions are back at the top of the table. Exeter know that counts for little at this stage, but to leapfrog one of the early pace-setters with this bonus-point win means their defence remains coherent, notwithstanding two defeats already. They were far from perfect, failing to capitalise on 20 second-half minutes when they had a man advantage and shipping four tries, but a win like this against a fellow top-four side is enough to be getting on with.

“I don’t think we’ve been too far off track,” said Rob Hunter, the Chiefs’ forwards coach, dismissing last Saturday’s defeat at Welford Road as an occupational hazard. “We’ve had a difficult opening six matches, as most sides have, but we’ve got a bonus point in each. We’re in pretty good shape.”

Not that it was all good news. England’s injury woes – English rugby’s epidemic – continued with the loss of Jack Nowell midway through the first half. This one initially looked cosmetic, blood pouring from his face after an accidental collision, but it was serious enough that he never returned from the blood bin. He was later taken to hospital, which will raise concerns of structural damage just below his left eye.

Eddie Jones’s headache, though, may yet be alleviated by the form of Exeter’s young No8, Sam Simmonds. He is now becoming a live contender for the England squad and furthered his case with his fifth try of the season, a mere six games in, this quite possibly the best yet, only the number on his back distinguishing him from a centre of pace and confidence.

But this was far from the Exeter show. In another high-scoring affair, Newcastle maintained their developing reputation for dynamic rugby by registering a bonus point of their own. They never quite threatened to win, but they handled the Premiership’s longest conventional away trip(albeit not as long as that for their recent home game in America) better than they have been known to in the not-too-distant past. All that while compromised by those two yellow cards in the second half. They also welcomed Toby Flood back to the fold in the second half after a nine-year absence from the club that made him. He promptly responded by setting up try No3, drawing the visitors to within 10 points at the end of the third quarter.

Exeter had established that a 10-point lead by the end of the first quarter. One of Nic White’s darts round the fringes, after a break by Olly Woodburn, yielded him the first try in the 10th minute, converted by Gareth Steenson, who slotted a penalty a few minutes later. A minute after Nowell’s departure, White was breaking again, this time clean through an attacking lineout, and Lachie Turner was set clear from his off-load for try number two.

The 17-0 lead was a touch harsh on Newcastle. Juan Pablo Socino was never less than threatening, spilling the ball over the line at one point (although he insisted it was worth a look by TMO, which it was), but it was from another close-quarter rumble that Will Welch put the visitors on the board on the half-hour.

Exeter replied with the try of the match from Simmonds. Smooth handling released him down the left, whence he cut inside two defenders to the posts. There was time for another Newcastle try two minutes before the break, Socino finishing successfully this time after well-timed passes from Alex Tait and Niki Goneva, but two minutes after half-time Socino was the first to see yellow, for raising an elbow in the tackle of Ian Whitten.

Steenson stretched the Chiefs’ lead with the penalty but otherwise they were unable to capitalise. On came Flood and his footballing skills forced a five-metre scrum, from which his handling sent Tait over.

A 10-point deficit with an hour left piqued the interest of the neutral, as did the Falcons’ waxing energy levels, but the insurrection was put down promptly. A driven lineout coaxed DTH van der Merwe into a try-preventing offence, for which he received Newcastle’s second yellow, and Exeter’s 17-point lead was restored. That was the game, but Newcastle kept playing, with Goneva worked into the corner directly from a scrum for their bonus-point fourth.

Newcastle have suffered some hideous thrashings here, indeed they have never won, but Dean Richards, their director of rugby, was by no means satisfied. He felt the Falcons could have won and their away record this season bears him out. If nothing else, that new dynamic, or a competitive Newcastle on the road, should mean top spot after six games means little come the final reckoning. As we break for Europe the Premiership is poised nicely, as are the champions.