- Bristol 12-20 Exeter
- Simmonds and Slade shine with Warren Gatland watching
Sam Simmonds and Henry Slade were among several Exeter players to enhance their British & Irish Lions tour prospects in front of a watching Warren Gatland as the Chiefs struck a big psychological blow in the Premiership title race. The league leaders Bristol finished a clear second on the night and the gap between the top two sides has now been cut to eight points with five rounds to play.
This will rank among Exeter’s most satisfying displays of the season to date and, along with the classy Simmonds and Slade, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Jonny Hill and the returning Jack Nowell also took the opportunity to show Gatland what they can do. The defending champions were consistently sharp and energetic and, having built a 10-point first-half lead, never appeared in danger of being reeled in.
