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À la lutte en haut du classement du championnat
Exeter flanker Tom Johnson has urged his team-mates to quickly pick themselves up and get their European Rugby Champions Cup campaign back on track against Bordeaux-Begles.
The Chiefs had made an impressive start to the Aviva Premiership season and had led their Pool 2 opener against the Ospreys in Swansea.
However, the boot of Dan Biggar eventually ensured Rob Baxter’s side fell to a 25-13 defeat and were not able to pick up a losing bonus point.
Exeter now return to Sandy Park to face Bordeaux, and England international Johnson reckons there is no need for “doom and gloom” in the Chiefs camp.
“We know we can play much better than we did at the weekend,” he said. “We have got a big week to prepare for this game, so we will dust ourselves off, go through a few things and look to put in a big performance at Sandy Park.
“If you look at how we played in the build-up to the Ospreys game, we had done really well and it is important to draw on the positives.
“We know last week wasn’t a great performance from us, but it’s a different competition, a different environment for the boys and we came up against a team full of experience.
“Unfortunately we got into a bit of an arm wrestle with them, which we said we didn’t want to do, and in the end we paid the price.
“Whereas in the Premiership you may make a mistake and get the chance to redeem yourselves, at this level everything is seized upon and that is something we need to learn from moving forward.”
If Exeter are to record a victory they will need to beat French opposition for the first time in the Champions Cup, having lost all four fixtures against Top 14 opposition.
For Bordeaux, who came through the play-off tournament to secure their place in the draw by beating Challenge Cup winners Gloucester, this will be the first time they have faced English opposition in the top-tier competition.
Match Facts
- This will be the first meeting between the sides in European competition.
- Exeter Chiefs are still yet to record a win against a French team in the Champions Cup (L4).
- Exeter Chiefs have won two of their six home matches in the Champions Cup, however they have scored just 19 points in their last two matches on home soil.
- This will be Bordeaux-Begles first match in the Champions Cup against English opposition; their previous opponents have all been from either Wales, Ireland or France.
Quelques erreurs de jeunesse n'ont pas permis à l'Union Bordeaux-Bègles de pouvoir rivaliser avec Exeter (34-19) malgré trois essais inscrits. Retour manqué pour les Girondins
Olly Woodburn got a belated 24th birthday present out of Exeter Chiefs’ 34-19 home win over Bordeaux-Begles as his two tries earned him the Heineken Man of the Match award.
The former Bath wing notched his first European tries for his new club to ensure the Chiefs kept their Champions Cup campaign alive after their opening round defeat at the Ospreys.
Having failed to pick up any points at the Liberty Stadium Rob Baxter’s men knew they need to get a full house in the first of three successive games against Top 14 opposition in Pool 2 and they did just with two tries in each half
And it was a length of the 22 sprint in each half from Woodburn, who celebrated his 24th birthday three days earlier, that set them on their way. His first try made it 8-0 to the home side, but the first of Bordeaux’s three scores on the night – Nans Ducuing, Julien Rey and Yann Lesgourgues all crossed the home line – showed they had to be treated with respect.
The home lead gradually grew to 21-7 by the break with Scottish prop Moray Low crossing for the second try after popping out of a maul close to the visitors’ line with the ball. Three minutes into the second half Ian Whitten rounded off a good handling move before Woodburn raced clear again for the all important bonus point score just before the hour mark.
Bordeaux-Begles hit back with two tries of their own in the second half to show they couldn’t be taken lightly, but it was a tough return to the top table of European club rugby for Raphael Ibanez’ side after a 17 year gap.
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