Rob Baxter says Exeter wanted to play Saracens in final

By PA Sport

Image: Exeter celebrate Dave Ewers' try

Rob Baxter says he will relish his Exeter team taking on kings of Europe Saracens in next Saturday's Aviva Premiership final at Twickenham.

Exeter continued their remarkable rise towards the summit of English rugby by beating play-off opponents Wasps 34-23 at Sandy Park.

Despite only securing Premiership status in 2010, they are now 80 minutes away from possibly being crowned league champions as two penalty tries and touchdowns by centre Ian Whitten and flanker Dave Ewers saw them home.

"If someone said to me was there one team you would want to play in the final, you would have to say Saracens this season," Chiefs head coach Baxter said.

"They've been the stand-out the side, they finished top of the Premiership, they are the best team in Europe.

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"If you are going to win the Premiership, let's go against a good side. Let's go against Saracens."

Image: Exeter celebrate as Wasps are beaten

Exeter fly-half Gareth Steenson kicked four conversions and two penalties, while his opposite number Jimmy Gopperth booted 13 points, including conversions of tries from hooker Carlo Festuccia and scrum-half Dan Robson.

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And it means that Exeter now stand between Saracens and them achieving the first domestic and European double by an English club since Wasps 12 years ago.

Saracens will start as red-hot favourites in defence of their Premiership crown - they beat Exeter 36-18 at Allianz Park eight weeks ago - yet the Chiefs are unlikely to show much respect for reputations.

Baxter added: "It feels very good. It was a hell of a game.

Image: Julian Salvi of Exeter Chiefs celebrates reaching the Aviva Premiership Final

"Neither team really got away from each other for most of the game, but I think we showed enough qualities over the course of the 80 minutes to deserve the win.

"We have been challenging the players the last four or five weeks to say to them this is the time of the season where they have got to take hold of it, especially the senior players.

"The lads who played today have made a name for themselves. They are a little bit further up the ladder than they were before, and the club is a little bit further up the ladder.

"What we need to remember about this club is what gives us the backbone and the foundations we've got is that we had to spend a lot of time being tough and dealing with being second and not winning everything, and saying that one day we wanted to be a very successful rugby club.

"Today is not a flash in the pan. Today is a culmination of a lot of people's hard work over a long time, day by day."

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