Exeter Chiefs Stage Remarkable Comeback to Reach Premiership Final

Exeter Chiefs director of rugby Rob Baxter has hailed his team's turnaround from their worst season to reaching the Premiership final as one of his greatest achievements.

The Chiefs fought back from a 26-10 deficit to win 27-26 at Bath, booking their first final appearance in five years. The victory came a year after the club's worst campaign, where they finished ninth in the Premiership and suffered a record 79-17 defeat at Gloucester just over a year ago.

A side that had reached six consecutive Premiership finals, winning two and also clinching the European Champions Cup in 2020, had slumped to just four wins all season, two of which came against under-strength opponents, raising alarm bells at Sandy Park.

However, after a transformative season both on and off the field, Baxter now prepares for a return to Twickenham to face league leaders Northampton Saints.

"To look at players on the field fighting to a standstill like they did today, and some of those lads are the same lads who were losing by 80 points at Gloucester at the end of last season," Baxter told BBC Sport. "It's the same players, but it's different men, and that makes me incredibly proud."