Exeter 32-12 Saracens: Chiefs secure play-offs to spoil Mark McCall's farewell

Saturday, 06 June 2026 at 21:27

byRugby Rucker

By Joe Wilkinson at Sandy Park

A stunning second half performance secured a play-off position for Exeter Chiefs and brought Mark McCall’s Saracens career to an underwhelming end at Sandy Park.

A scrappy opening 40 ended with a slim lead for Rob Baxter’s side, before a flying second period fired them into third to set up a date with Bath in the semifinals. On a day with massive repercussions for both teams, it was Saracens who got off to the better start in a scrappy affair. Chiefs looked out of sorts during the opening exchanges and Tobias Elliott capitalised in the seventh minute.

A promising move for Sarries was halted by Ethan Roots, but Elliott was picked out on the right wing in the following phase and dived over to the delight of the vocal travelling contingent.

Both teams struggled against strong winds in Devon on the day, but when Chiefs settled on the ball and won a penalty in an inviting position, Henry Slade made no mistake when he aimed for the posts. That made the score 3-5 to the visitors, and they thought they had extended their lead when Fergus Burke burst through the Exeter line and swung a looping pass out to winger Rotimi Segun.

He looked to evade Paul Brown-Bampoe on the cover and dove over the try line, but TMO had other ideas. On the replay, it was spotted that Segun had dropped the ball under pressure from the Chiefs number 14, and so a Chiefs scrum was awarded.

Saracens looked the more assured of the teams in the remainder of the first half, before Andrea Zambonin stole a line-out for the third time of the afternoon and allowed his side to break forwards. A maul in their opponents half gained ground for the hosts, when a moment of slick passing had Sarries scrambling. Slade’s pass was aimed for Roots but dropped behind his teammate.

Following a review, Charlie Bracken was shown knocking on deliberately, earning him 10 minutes in the sin bin. The resulting penalty was kicked to touch, and the ball found Max Norey in the corner who dove over from the line-out and took the roof off Sandy Park.

Slade’s conversion was wide, and Chiefs went in 8-5 up at half time. Baxter’s team started the second half with a point to prove, and within six minutes of the restart they had extended their lead. Len Ikitau found space in the Saracens half and handed off to Slade. He exchanged passes with Olly Woodburn and Campbell Ridl on the left flank before Slade dove over to finish the move. He converted to put Chiefs in control and make it 15-5.

A penalty just minutes later from the same man and the difference was increased to 13 points. After the hour mark, Chiefs swapped out their front row and Joseph Dweba had an instant impact from the bench. He won a penalty from a scrum within five metres of the Saracens line from which he charged at the visiting defence.

It would be Andrea Zambonin who would finally score from close range, the big Italian bagging a try for the second game running. Sarries would get one back when Nick Isiekwe charged over on the wing and Owen Farrell added the extras, but it would be purely a consolation when a mistake in the Saracens centre invited Stephen Varney to grubber through to himself. He charged down the ball and kicked again before diving over to earn his side a bonus point.

It was Slade once again to add the extras in the closing stages and wrap up third place for his team. The victory sets up a semi-final at The Rec against Bath Rugby for Rob Baxter’s team and, should they replicate this performance, they will prove a tough test for last year’s champions.

Chiefs coach Dave Walder praised the side’s performance after the final whistle:

“I thought the boys to a man were brilliant, first half I don’t think we were as clinical as we could have been, and then second half was a reflection of the balance of the game and we got more reward for our pressure.”

EXETER CHIEFS: TRIES: 4 (Norey 40+3’, Slade 46’, Zambonin 64’, Varney 77’)

CONVERSIONS: 3 (Slade 47’, 64’, 78’)

PENALTIES: 2 (Slade 18’, 51’)

DROP GOALS: 0

YELLOW CARDS: 0

RED CARDS: 0

Starting XV: 15. Olly Woodburn 14. Paul Brown-Bampoe 13. Henry Slade 12. Len Ikitau 11. Campbell Ridl 10. Harvey Skinner 9. Stephen Varney 1. Scott Sio 2. Max Norey 3. Josh Iosefa-Scott 4. Dafydd Jenkins 5. Andrea Zambonin 6. Tom Hooper 7. Christ Tshiunza 8. Ethan Roots

Replacements: 16. Joseph Dweba 17. Ethan Burger 18. Bachuki Tchumbadze 19. Rusi Tuima 20. Kane James 21. Tom Cairns 22. Zack Wimbush 23. Ben Hammersley

SARACENS: TRIES: 2 (Elliott 7’, Isiekwe 71’)

CONVERSIONS: 1 (Farrell 72’)

PENALTIES: 0

DROP GOALS: 0

YELLOW CARDS: 1 (Bracken 42’)

RED CARDS: 0

Starting XV: 15. Max Malins 14. Tobias Elliott 13. Nick Tompkins 12. Olly Hartley 11. Rotimi Segun 10. Fergus Burke 9. Charlie Bracken 1. Eroni Mawi 2. Jamie George 3. Marcus Street 4. Maro Itoje 5. Hugh Tizard 6. Theo McFarland 7. Ben Earl 8. Tom Willis

Replacements: 16. Theo Dan 17. Rhys Carre 18. Marco Riccioni 19. Nick Isiekwe 20. Nathan Michelow 21. Ivan van Zyl 22. Owen Farrell 23. Noah Caluori

5 Talking Points

1. A fitting end for McCall?

Mark McCall was appointed as Saracens’ director of rugby 15 years ago, and it has been a spell of “highs and lows” for the Irishman, as he put it himself after the match.

A run of three Premiership titles in four years is a feat that very few will ever be able to repeat, however the salary cap scandal leaves an asterisk next to every one of those triumphs.

For his final game to come in a defeat at their biggest rivals of that time will be satisfying for Chiefs fans, who may feel some sort of justice has been served at Sandy Park this weekend.

2. Can Chiefs upset Bath next weekend?

Speaking after the game, Chiefs fullback Olly Woodburn said:

“we’ve got their number,”

in reference to his team’s 35-12 win over Bath on matchday 15.

He explained that the players “trust our system and know it inside out,” and so it will be fascinating to see the outcome of next week’s semi-final.

If Exeter can continue their momentum from the last few games, there is no reason why they can’t cause an upset against 2025’s champions.

3. Exeter’s confidence can only help their play-off chances

Chiefs looked like a different side after Max Norey scored at the end of the first half.

In a historic rivalry like this, it is rare to see a team look as comfortable as Baxter’s side did in the second period.

Woodburn said:

“Comfortable is not quite the word but just confident. When Max went over, I’ve never heard it that loud and at half time we just connected and grew throughout the game.”

That was on display to every fan in the ground during that second half and they drove their team to each try.

Going into a playoff campaign, the value of confidence and momentum cannot be understated, and Woodburn and his teammates seem to have that in abundance.

4. Saracens have a big summer ahead of them

Losing a director of rugby is never an easy thing for a club to go through, but when it’s a man with the pedigree of McCall, it makes that task a whole lot harder.

Whilst they lost today, they looked solid for large parts of the first half and the Irishman is leaving a talented and physical squad behind for his successor, Brendan Venter.

The transition won’t be easy, but there is a core of players who have the potential to mount another play-off challenge next season.

A powerful front row impressed at Sandy Park at times, and both wingers looked threatening.

There is certainly something to work with going into the 26/27 season.

5. Chiefs significant improvement on last season

A ninth-place finish with just 29 points in the 2024/25 season was Exeter Chiefs’ worst position since they were promoted from the RFU Championship in 2010, and an improvement on that wasn’t guaranteed this time around.

They have shaken off those demons from last term in style though, and a 35-point improvement is nothing to be sniffed at.

Smart recruitment and reliable long-time servants have pulled together to achieve a truly impressive season in Devon and, whatever happens in the play-offs, fans can be forgiven for getting excited for the future.