Keast and Hogg lead Exeter to win over Bath to boost top-four hopes
Rob Baxter said Exeter were ‘getting towards last chance saloon’ in the run-up to this pulsating victory against an ever-improving Bath. Although the hosts eventually ground out a bonus-point success on a cold, bright day in Devon, the ultimate outcome of their bid for the playoffs remains out of their hands. Second-half tries by Billy Keast, Stuart Hogg and Santiago Grondona decisively put an end to Bath’s resistance, while their top-four rivals Gloucester were defeated at home by Wasps. Welcome news for the Exeter fans, although Gloucester’s two matches in hand may yet prove decisive. For Exeter, a club that have finished in the Premiership’s top two for each of the past six seasons, including a hat-trick of first-place finishes from 2018-2020, it is unwelcome territory.