Bath beat Exeter Chiefs 40-34 in a pulsating West Country derby to take them to the top of the Gallagher Prem table but they were made to fight all the way in an 11-try thriller.
Exeter trailed 26-10 at the interval, just as they had in June’s semi-final success at the Rec, but rallied to lead 33-31 midway through the second half before a yellow card for scrum-half Stephen Varney eventually proved decisive.
