On the field there are reasons to be optimistic for Exeter, back up to third in the Premiership table after a thrilling last-gasp victory sealed by a long-range penalty by Henry Slade. Off the pitch, though, not all is sweetness and light with the Chiefs confirming their squad were paid late last month and annual losses of around £4m for the previous tax year expected to be announced within the next 10 days.
Exeter officials remain adamant that a slight delay in paying their players’ wages was a “simple clerical error” and strenuously refute the idea the club are in danger of going out of business. The Guardian has been told that a staff member processing the wages unwittingly tried to pay them via the wrong bank account, leading to the players being paid 10 hours late on 31 October.
