Quote:

The Blues view...
Blues were creamed in Devon
BY SIMON HUTCHINSON, Beds on Sunday
Exeter Chiefs 40 Bedford Blues 21

Points machine Gareth Steenson made the difference at Sandy Park as Bedford were outmuscled by an impressive Exeter outfit.

The game had been in doubt throughout the week due to icy conditions but the ground staff worked hard to ensure that the match got the go ahead and the Devon outfit will certainly have been happiest that it did.

Despite a brace of tries from Billy Twelvetrees and a touchdown for Rory McKay - the game had been out of reach for some time after the hosts fired home three early second half scores.

At one point a re-run of the disappointing Doncaster result looked on the cards but the Blues showed great character to stop Exeter running riot and, in truth, they probably had more scoring opportunities over the course of the 80 minutes.

"When we did, we played well but we just didn't finish off the chances that we had," said Blues number eight McKay after the game.

"We have to start getting a 22 mentality that when we get into an attacking position in the oppositions 22 we come away with some points.

"I don't think that they were 19 points better than us over all but we will go back and analyse that performance before putting it out of our heads and looking ahead to next weekend.

"Most of us haven't been to Tynedale before and they have a great home record that we have to overcome.

"After so many league games it will be a completely different challenge and one that we are looking forward to."

Bedford's afternoon didn't get off to the happiest of starts and they found themselves trailing 10-0 by the eighth minute.

Steenson was the man who scored the early points firstly from the boot with a sweetly taken penalty after the Blues were caught offside and then he scored a try after it looked as though danger had been averted.

Mike Howard had superbly stolen an Exeter lineout but the Chiefs were awarded a scrum and, as they made their way towards the Bedford line, a ruck formed and scrum-half Clive Stuart-Smith popped the ball to Steenson to breeze over the line before converting his effort.

Things got no better for Bedford as Twelvetrees missed two penalty attempts in quick succession and as they began to regroup and put a few phases of play together.

Exeter proved to be too good in defence and thwarted Ryan Owen and Sam Walsh as they tried to find a break through.

Steenson added to the Exeter lead with another well taken penalty in the 20th minute but then the Blues went on a good period of attack.

Nick Walshe was orchestrating things from the back of several rucks with McKay and Howard being the preferred ball carriers.

But just as it looked as though Bedford were going to breach the Chiefs line things suddenly went horribly wrong.

The ball was spilled in a ruck and quickly recycled by the hosts out to their powerful winger Josh Drauniniu who rampaged his way from one 22 to the other.

And as Liam Roberts and Will Harries combined to finally slow him down he passed the ball inside to Sean Marsden to cross the line before Steenson again converted.

Credit to the Blues their heads didn't drop and just four minutes after the setback they got their first score of the game. Brendan Burke had been on an impressive run but as he tried to offload the ball it went straight into Matt Jess's hands and he punted the ball clear.

A good lineout was taken by McKay and a Bedford drive came close to the line before Dan Richmond got the ball out to Walshe and the former England scrum-half weighted the pass perfectly for Twelvetrees to latch onto and run under the posts before converting his own effort.

Exeter gave themselves a bit more breathing space with a penalty from Steenson six minutes before the break and Bedford had to put in a good defensive display at the end of the half to make sure that the lead wasn't extended further as Tom Johnson ploughed his way forward before knocking-on.

The second half didn't get any easier and the Blues found themselves being knocked off the ball on too many occasions. The Chiefs extended their lead three minutes in when Bryan Rennie spotted a gap in the Bedford backline and scored under the posts giving Steenson an easy two points.

The bonus point was secured by Exeter in the 53rd minute and it came courtesy of a powerful scrum.

Captain Richie Baxter collected the ball at the back of the scrum and ran down the blindside and as Gillanders brought him down he offloaded to Jess who went through Will Harries and over the line. Steenson missed the conversion but it made little difference by that point.

A series of replacements followed, including Steenson coming off, but Exeter continued to surge on and it was Drauniniu who scored the fifth after Tom Bedford went on a fantastic run along the left wing before playing in Fijian winger. The score was unconverted.

At 40-7 down and with more than 20 minutes to play Bedford looked buried but they didn't roll over at all. Karl Dickson was introduced to the game and he had an immediate impact as the Blues strung several good passages of play together.

Gillanders reacted first when the ball fired out of the back of an Exeter scrum but as he collected the ball and passed to Twelvetrees it was knocked on and pressure was relieved.

Bedford continued to work hard and they were rightly rewarded moments later when Mouritz Botha took in a lineout ball and supplied it to Dickson who passed to Twelvetrees, and this time the youngster held on and darted between two defenders to score and then convert.

The Blues weren't done there and after Dan Tuohy was sin-binned for an infringement at a ruck Bedford managed a third try and again it followed a good lineout.

This time it was Paul Tupai who collected and as the forward juggernaut drove towards the line it appeared that McKay got the final touch as the ball was slid over the whitewash.

Twelvetrees converted superbly but unfortunately there just weren't enough minutes on the clock to go for a bonus point.

Scorers.
Exeter: Tries; Steenson, Marsden, Rennie, Jess, Drauniniu, - Con; Steenson (3) - Pen; Steenson (3).
Bedford: Try; Twelvetrees (2), McKay - Con; Twelvetrees (3).

Teams. Exeter: Marsden, Jess, Rennie, Bedford, Drauniniu (Cornwell 62), Steenson (Gray 55), Stuart-Smith (Barrett 72), Sturgess, Blythe (Nelson 61), Andress (Budgen 61), Stevenson, Hayes (Tuohy 61), Johnson (Cracknell 55), Pugh, Baxter.

Bedford: Harries, Owen, Burke (Dodge 62), Roberts, Davey, Twelvetrees, Walshe (Dickson 62), Cecere (Boulton 57), Richmond (Sammons 57), Walsh, Howard (Cannon 57), Botha, Gillanders, Harding (Tupai 66), McKay. Not used: Pritchard.

Attendance: 4092