Leicester are hoping Michael Cheika will guide them back to the sunlit uplands and their luck is already beginning to change. With the clock in the red and the visitors down to 14 men after the dismissal of centre Solomone Kata it seemed Exeter had done enough to secure a hard-earned victory only for a last-gasp Tigers’ driving maul to steal a clinching score for the Wales flanker Tommy Reffell.
The former Wallaby head coach was delighted by the resilience his side showed in staying in a contest that had seemed over when Chiefs led 14-3 with 17 minutes left. The Tigers are not remotely the finished article but their lineout and maul kept them in the game and Exeter were made to pay a heavy price for not killing off their opponents when they had the chance.
