Exeter lifted the Premiership trophy seven years after winning promotion to the top flight and immediately turned their gaze to Europe. Gareth Steenson’s boot took the Chiefs to victory over Bristol in the 2010 Championship play-off final and the club’s long-serving outside-half, who lost his place in the side to Henry Slade at the start of the season, levelled Saturday’s final against Wasps with a penalty 30 seconds from the end and won it with three minutes remaining in extra-time.
“We had a seven-year plan when we came up to become Premiership champions, but with five minutes to go I did not think we were going to do it,” said the Exeter chairman, Tony Rowe. “This success confirms where we are, but my ambition now, and that of Rob Baxter [the head coach] is to become the best in Europe.”
Steenson said he felt no more pressure taking the kicks than he had seven years before in the play-off. “If we had not beaten Bristol, we would not have been in this final,” he said. “I said a prayer to my old man upstairs and he helped me with the last one.”
Exeter were unbeaten in their last 17 Premiership matches after winning two of their first seven. “We sat down and a few harsh words were spoken,” said Steenson. “We knew we had to get a grip and we did. We stood up and performed and we have got our reward.”
Exeter’s England wing Jack Nowell, who flies to New Zealand with the Lions on Monday, scored the first try. “We wanted this badly after losing the final last year,” he said. “We knew it would come down to our fitness because Wasps would make it tough for us and all our hard work paid off.”
Wasps finished first in the regular season and had won their previous 10 finals in all competitions. “We have had a really good campaign and I am proud of the players,” said the club’s director of rugby, Dai Young. “We have to take this defeat on the chin and make sure we learn from it.”
