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Exeter Chiefs host Newcastle Falcons in a basement battle that could go a long way in deciding who finishes bottom of the table.
Exeter Chiefs host Newcastle Falcons in a basement battle that could go a long way in deciding who finishes bottom of the table.
Both sides continued their struggles last weekend as the Chiefs were beaten 52-38 by Gloucester, while the Falcons came unstuck 39-15 at Sale Sharks.
Seven points separate the bottom two, and 10th-place Newcastle will take heart from the fact that one of their two wins they've picked up came against Exeter back in October.
Chiefs attack is clicking into gear
Exeter have found their attacking mojo in recent weeks, scoring 11 tries in the last two rounds. Prior to this, the Chiefs had only secured one four-try bonus point all season.
Harvey Skinner beat a round-high eight defenders and made three clean breaks in round 12, despite playing just 35 minutes.
Newcastle's Cameron Neild made 24 successful tackles against Sale – the second-highest total across the previous round and Tom Gordon has made 162 successful tackles so far this season – the third-highest total in the league.
Each team's numbers across the statistics look ugly. As expected, both sides are in the bottom two for tries (Exeter 35 - Newcastle 21) and points (255 and 164).
Falcons possess composure off the tee
Newcastle rank second in goal kicking percentage with an 80.65% as Brett Connon has proven useful off the tee, while Exeter have struggled off the tee down in ninth on 71.43%.
The Chiefs have kicked for metres than anyone else (9626), illustrating their conservative style of play. While the stats remain tough viewing for Falcons fans, they're bottom of the pile in visits to opp 22 (93), metres (3325), clean breaks (52), defenders beaten (194), missed tackles (336) and lineout success (82.29%).