We could start at the end, with everyone on their feet at Sandy Park and cheering one of this season’s most stirring European moments. Rewatch the footage and even Tom Wyatt, Exeter’s elusive young full-back, could be seen gleefully thumping the turf three times with his right fist last Sunday, in celebration of the thrilling 56th-minute try that helped Exeter secure a home Champions Cup quarter-final against the Stormers this Saturday.
Or we can retrace our steps and reflect on the improbable Cinderella-style journey that has taken him from there to here. In the hills and narrow lanes of west Somerset they love their sporting pursuits but the road to national prominence can be more isolated and winding than it is in metropolitan areas. The 23‑year‑old Wyatt, a farmer’s son from just outside Wiveliscombe – or “Wivey” as it is known to the locals – has had to go the long way round even to come this far.
