EXETER VS LOUGHBOROUGH

Yesterday saw Exeter face their mighty rivals, Loughborough, on home soil at Topsham. The game got off to a flying start with both sides eager to get their hands on the ball. Both sides were swiftly penalised for discipline errors, but it was Exeter who had the upper hand as the clash commenced. Charlie McCaig made an excellent break and delivered the ball to Benjy Joseland, and with an offload to Orson James, it was a try for Exeter. Luca Mignot bagged the two extra points and the score stood at 7-0 only a few minutes in.

Off the restart, the African violet side creeped closer to the try line, but a knock on from the visitors saw Exeter regain possession. It wasn’t long before Exeter was making metres down the field and were awarded with a line out on the 5m line. Exeter’s setplays excelled yesterday and with the renowned maul, it was try time for Exeter, this time scored by Seb Driscoll. Luca Mignot struck the ball with precision, and Exeter were leading with two converted tries under their belt.

As play resumed, neither side had the time to take a breather, as Loughborough were given the penalty for an inaccurate throw in from Exeter. Loughborough were edging closer to the opposition’s ‘22, thankfully a powerful tackle from Benjy Joseland put the ball into touch, and Exeter used this chance to clear the ball down the pitch. It wasn’t long and tensions were growing as work in the breakdown from the visitors turned over possession. After working through their phases, it was a try for Loughborough. With the conversion successful, the visitors were back in the game, with the score stood at 14-7.

With the action resuming, it was all to play for, for both teams. A no arms tackle from Exeter gave the boys in green a yellow card, taking the players down to 14 on the pitch. Nevertheless, this didn’t faze Exeter, with the ball in the hands of Orson James who kicked the ball down the field, and followed it up with a try, for his second try of the match. The conversion was missed for Exeter, which led the score to stand at 19-7 at half time.

HALF TIME SCORE: EXETER UNIVERSITY 19-7 LOUGHBOROUGH UNIVERSITY

As the second half began, Exeter still had only 14 men on the field. Loughborough started on the right foot, as pressure from the side forced a knock on for Exeter, which gave them the scrum on the halfway line. Exeter’s discipline was penalised by the referee which led to another yellow card for the side. Alfie Bell returned to the field restoring Exeter to 14 men in play. The visitors took advantage of the extra player as they rallied through Exeter’s defence and were awarded the first try of the second half. Loughborough bagged the conversion and the score gap tightened to 19-14.

Exeter’s determination proved strong, and the ball was promptly back in the home side’s possession. A quick inside pass from Charlie Mccaig to Benjy Joseland led to a try for Exeter, centre Charlie Mccaig took the kick, and 7 points were added to Exeter’s score (26-14). As the game continued, Exeter’s determination and might didn’t falter with further tries from Zack Wimbush, Jake Murray and Joe Vajner. Loughborough responded with a try after a charged down kick in Exeter’s ’22. After Exeter’s dominance in their attack the score presented as 43-19 with 10 minutes left of the clash.

With the time ticking on, Loughborough were looking to put some more points on the board. The visitors identified a gap in Exeter’s defence down the left wing, awarding them with the try. The fly-half struck the ball over the posts, which took the score 43-26. It wasn’t enough for Loughborough yesterday as Exeter still had fire in their belly, as further tries followed from Jake Murray and Benjy Joseland both of which were converted by Luca Mignot.

FULL TIME SCORE: EXETER UNIVERSITY 57-26 LOUGHBOROUGH UNIVERSITY

A cracking display of rugby yesterday from the boys, and remain unbeaten so far, in the BUCS Super Rugby League. Next week we look ahead to the trip to Swansea, for round 4 of the league.