(c) Martin Bennett / Gloucester Rugby
Gloucester Rugby suffered their second away loss of the Premiership season on Saturday as the Cherry and Whites lost 24-15 to Exeter Chiefs at a windy Sandy Park.
What happened?
Exeter seemed to play the conditions better and used their home advantage to beat the Cherry and Whites.
Tries from Freddie Clarke, Santiago Carreras and Charlie Chapman weren’t enough for Gloucester Rugby as Exeter got over for four through Jack Innard, Patrick Schickerling, Olly Woodburn and Tom O'Flaherty.
It was a tight first half and it was Freddie Clarke who opened the scoring. Ollie Thorley sparked the attack with a galloping break and the attack continued until Clarke was over in the corner.
Exeter hit back with Innard’s try and the score was level 5-5 at the break as the relenting wind put everyone’s kicks at goal in a different postcode.
In the second half, Schickerling, Woodburn and O'Flaherty tries gave Exeter a healthy lead and it was too much of a gap for Gloucester Rugby to come back from.
There was no faulting the effort or commitment and a comeback was launched.
Building the attack steadily, the Cherry and Whites spun the ball wide from the maul, and Thorley fed Carreras who then scampered over in the corner.
The try sparked Cherry and White hopes and a later score from Charlie Chapman, who scored an opportunistic try, reduced the deficit.
However, Exeter were too strong and managed to stamp out any further Cherry and White attack to finish the game with the victory.
Key moment – Defence
Each individual put their body on the line in defence. Exeter, well known for their grinding style of play, were camped 5m away from our line on multiple occasions and more often that not, we were able to hold them and stop them from scoring.
What’s next?
Gloucester Rugby have a bye week so will return to the Gallagher Premiership on Saturday 26 February away at Leicester Tigers.
Not our day at Sandy Park.
Chapman is awarded the score!
Beautiful play for the Cherry & Whites and Seabrook races for the corner. He's just short, but are we over through Chapman?
The visitors spin the ball wide from the maul, and Thorley feeds Carreras who scampers over in the corner!
Exeter's Dafydd Jenkins is yellow carded.
Exeter concede the penalty and Hastings kicks 5m out.
ON: Andrew Davidson, Tom Seabrook
OFF: Matias Alemanno, Billy Twelvetrees
Maunder breaks the line and feeds Tom O'Flaherty to score.
The hosts on the ball, carrying just inside the Cherry & White half.
Jordy Reid OFF
Jack Clement ON
Simmonds with a cross-field kick for Woodburn who gathers and scores.
Balmain & Ford-Robinson OFF.
Gotovtsev & Elrington ON.
Schickerling scores from short-range.
Billy Twelvetrees is shown a yellow card for drifting offside on the line.
Chiefs tap and go.
Exeter metres short after kicking a penalty into the corner.
Singleton & Meehan leave the field.
Socino and Chapman arrive in their place.
Back underway
We go into the break on level terms.
Exeter knock on and we will have the put-in on the stroke of halftime!
Two penalities conceded by Glos and the hosts are 5m out now.
Exeter defending the maul well now and win the turnover.
Chiefs scrum 5m out from their own line.
We have the lineout 10m. Let's get this maul rolling!
Armand strips the ball and Exeter are able to clear.
Exeter are penalised for rolling on the floor. Hastings goes to touch, about 10m short of the try line.
Simmonds conversion drifts wide.
Jack Innard gets over for the Chiefs from the rolling maul
Lloyd Evans in some discomfort here.
Adam Hastings comes on in his place.
Fingers crossed nothing too serious there for Lloyd.
The Chiefs back in attack now, up to the Glos 22.
Foley awards Exeter the penalty and Simmonds will have the chance to put the hosts 5m out.
We're over the line, and the TMO has a look but it's no try.
It was advantage Glos, but the following line-out is over thrown and Chiefs clear.
Exeter were offside after the wind sent the kick back over their heads! Lloyd Evans goes to touch. We have the lineout 5m out...
Exeter spill the ball so we have the scrum on halfway.
It's brilliant set in defence from the visitors (barring the penalties), but Exeter tap and go and are eventually held up.
The ball is held up and it's a goal-line drop out.
Cherry & Whites are caught offside, and Exeter have the penalty.
They tap and go...
The hosts now 2m short.
The initial break from Thorley sets up the play, he feeds Kveseladze who looks after the ball, and Freddie Clarke gallops down the touchline to score!
First chance for Exeter, as they break away through Whitten. It's a cross-field kick but Armand spills it.
Meehan clears well from the scrum.
Underway at Sandy Park!