Bristol 40-33 Exeter: Chiefs set to miss out on play-offs after defeat

As Bristol’s players celebrated victory and said goodbye to their soon-to-be departing colleagues in front of a raucous home crowd, Rob Baxter cut an understandably more dejected figure.

The Exeter director of rugby has had a season to forget and he rightly admitted his team’s play-off hopes are now dead and buried after this 40-point defeat.

Baxter’s Chiefs can still mathematically make the top four after taking two losing bonus points home from Ashton Gate, but in reality such hopes are forlorn. Baxter acknowledged as much.

Bristol Bears: Piutau; Morahan, O’Conor (Bates 46), Leiua, Fricker; Sheedy (Lloyd 55), Randall (Uren 69); Woolmore (Benz-Salomon 75), Thacker (Byrne 49), Afoa (Armstrong 68), Attwood (Harding 53), Joyce, Vui, Jeffries, Luatua (capt) (Thomas 61)

Tries: Sheedy 22, Piutau 33, 47, Leiua 52, Fricker 65, Morahan 75

Cons: Sheedy 23, 33, 49, 53, Lloyd 66

Exeter Chiefs: Hogg; Woodburn, Slade, Whitten, Hodge (Hendrickson 43); Simmonds, Maunder (Townsend 53); Hepburn (Kenny 53), Yeandle (capt) (Innard 53), Williams (Schickerling 53), Gray, S Skinner, Ewers, Kirsten (Grondona 25), Vermeulen (Jenkins 57)

Replacement not used: H Skinner

Tries: Grondona 27, Hodge 36, Kenny 58, Woodburn 61

Cons: Simmonds 28, 37, 59, 62

Referee: Luke Pearce (RFU)

Attendance: 19,118

Star man: Charles Piutau (Bristol)

His team shipped six tries here and it will now be between Gloucester and Northampton for fourth place with Saints favourites. Exeter have been Gallagher Premiership finalists for each of the last six seasons. It has been some record, but all good things come to an end. They will be back.

‘I think we are done,’ Baxter said. ‘It is disappointing. I think today has highlighted we have got to move on. We have become a