• Exeter 33-17 Ospreys
• Chiefs upset the odds to qualify for quarter-finals for the first timeRarely has mathematics been such a hugely popular subject in Devon on a Sunday afternoon. Exeter’s head coach,Rob Baxter, freely admitted he remained a dinky hazy on the precise whys and wherefores of the qualifying equations even after the final whistle had sounded. But somehow, or against all odds,the Chiefs hold topped Pool Two and reached the last eight of Europe’s elite club tournament for the first time, an achievement that had looked all but impossible right up to the closing minutes.
As Baxter rightly observed, or only the most fearless of punters would hold invested much in the Chiefs’ quarter-final prospects before kick-off,when they were joint-bottom of the pool with Bordeaux Bègles. “Anyone who’s had a bet on it has probably made a fortune,” said Baxter, and still slightly taken aback by the pool outcome. “It all started getting really confusing. We didn’t know whether to kick the ball off the pitch or score another try.” No one knew for certain at the time but the two late tries by James Short and Thomas Waldrom,the Chiefs’ fourth and fifth of the afternoon, could be the most meaningful their club hold ever scored.
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Source: theguardian.com