It is not every day that two teams who finished second and third bottom of the Prem table only 12 months ago make it to a grand final. Regardless of this Saturday’s outcome Northampton and Exeter have shown every club in the league what is doable, with one big caveat. Squad depth and recruitment matter but not as much as the collective desire to stay positive no matter what.
Exeter needed every ounce of grit and resilience at Bath on Saturday as they held out for 41 phases to clinch a sensational 27-26 victory, having trailed 26-10 at half-time. Northampton, similarly, never lost the courage of their convictions against Leicester on Friday night, transcending the occasion to put seven tries past excellent opposition in another thrilling contest.
What a contrast to the fall of the deposed champions, Bath, who will rue their second-half decision-making at the Rec for a long time. A reliance on forward power is all well and good until circumstances demand a switch to other forms of smart energy. Without the injured Finn Russell to supply a crucial extra tactical dimension, Bath’s conservative pick-and-go game eventually blew up in their faces.
It further underscored the importance in the modern game of shifting the point of attack and having a fly-half prepared to take the initiative at key stages. While Santiago Carreras is a talented player he had started only three games at No 10 for Bath since arriving last summer. When the clutch moment arrived and either a close-range drop goal or a wide pass were head-clutchingly obvious, no one had the wit to make the call.
Compare that with the white-heat composure of Harvey Skinner, Exeter’s increasingly influential cog, and Fin Smith, the England fly-half at the heart of Northampton’s musketeering backline. Interestingly, Smith revealed that Saints are still referencing their Champions Cup semi-final defeat by Leinster at Croke Park in 2024, a game they felt they could have won had they maintained their usual attacking fluency. He believes tactical bravery will once again be essential in the final. “Just because it’s a final doesn’t mean you have to be all cagey,” says Smith. “You can still go and play a certain style of rugby if you’re brave enough. I think we’re hopefully going to do that. All the times where we’ve probably not done ourselves justice has been when we get a little bit tight.”
It helps, clearly, to have dazzling catalysts like Henry Pollock, who absolutely loves a big stage. As well as contributing with 26 carries, the young back-rower’s refusal to be intimidated physically by some big-hitting opponents impressed even those who run out alongside him week-in, week-out. “I thought he was unbelievable, absolutely unbelievable,” says Smith. “You could really see the quality of the athlete. When everyone else was tired Henry went and got his hands on the ball a ridiculous number of times, beat a silly amount of defenders and had some huge moments. He was out there like a proper, proper world class No 8.”
Denying Pollock and co this weekend is not going to be easy but Exeter have been cheerfully upending predictions for a while. Latterly they have seen off Bath twice plus a highly motivated Saracens and Leicester, en route to a first Prem final appearance since 2021.
Having finished ninth last year all concerned already deserve significant credit for such an impressive turnaround. According to Tom Hooper, Exeter’s Wallaby back-rower, the willingness to stand firm amid the “shrapnel” of Bath’s late bombardment was not remotely an accident. “That comes from the top down definitely. Rob [Baxter, director of rugby] came in at half-time and said he was weirdly confident based on how we looked, how we were moving and how we were communicating.
“When you’re 16 points down it’s pretty easy to turn on each other, go internal or start blaming other people for messing up their roles. But everyone was really just focused on doing their job in our system. We know we’ve come back from some tough games this year so we knew we could do it again if we stuck to our guns.”
Even though Northampton were the league’s top scorers this season, nobody’s defence has been meaner than Exeter’s. They conceded 169 fewer points than Northampton across the regular season and, remarkably, kept a previously dominant Bath scoreless after half-time. “If you’re not emotionally involved together that game becomes 30, 40 points in the second half,” says Baxter. “These lads aren’t like that. They are emotionally tied together. It’s the biggest credit I can give them.”
Northampton’s task will also be made tougher if one or both of Ethan Roots and Manny Feyi-Waboso are fit to bolster Exeter’s matchday squad, the latter having had a drink thrown over him as emotions bubbled over in the stands at Bath. Northampton will be favourites but if the final is even half as entertaining as the two breathless semis another unmissable occasion awaits.