Monday 7 December 2015 16:52, UK
Exeter will be full of confidence as they head into the third round of Champions Cup action this weekend.
The Chiefs were superb in their 41-27 win against Wasps - and will have to be even better when they host Clermont on Saturday, live on Sky Sports 3 HD.
The performance of Rob Baxter's men certainly caught the eye but what else made Stuart Barnes' top 10 talking points this weekend?
1. The performance of the weekend has to be that of Exeter. They went to the home of Wasps, the Toulon slayers, and left Coventry with six tries and five points. The team that played it fast and loose when they arrived in the big time kept it mean and moody with a driving line-out that demolished the high-flying Wasps.
This is a team that can play it any way. The backs are more than useful when needs must but why risk them when a match can be won through complete forward dominance? The signings of Geoff Parling, Thomas Waldrom and Julian Salvi has brought a little bit of the East Midlands grunt to the West Country.
2. And still the theme remains Exeter. The game of the round in next week's European extravaganza is without doubt the match-up between the Chiefs and Clermont Auvergne. Second in the English league takes on top in the French; who will forget the majesty of Clermont's one and only performance in Devon?
Having lost to the Ospreys, victory is essential for Exeter. The club is ready to compete beyond the pool stages. To do so they have to win this match.
Clermont are far from unbeatable although victory next Saturday would rank among the greatest of Chief scalps. It is going to be quite an event. Don't expect Exeter to be as passive as they were when Ospreys beat them and turned this pool into a three-way fight.
3. As for Wales....this was an encouraging weekend. The Scarlets edged it in Italy to go top of the table. The Blues won only their second game of the season against league leaders Connacht, the Dragons comfortably outpointed a weakened Munster team while the Ospreys claimed a bonus-point win to keep their decent run of form/wins going.
Hopefully this will be the start of a Welsh revival as the tournament (not to mention the future of Welsh rugby) could do with some powerful Welsh representatives in the PRO12 and beyond.
4. At the same time as Exeter meet Clermont, the Ospreys simply have to beat European new boys Bordeaux-Begles.
The lads from the world's wine wonderland warmed up for the game in West Wales with an outstanding away victory in Paris against the Top 14 champions, Stade Francais, or was this a warm up? Given the French clubs' approach to Europe it takes a while for the European Cup to take on the same importance as the Top 14.
If Steve Tandy's team can tear out of the blocks they could claim not only a win but a bonus point which could yet be all the difference in this pool. They did well to sneak two out of the Auvergne; they probably require a full five this Saturday.
5. Two days earlier I shall be treated to a Thursday night of Challenge Cup rugby and a lovely warm derby game between Gloucester and Worcester.
Gloucester don't look good enough to make the play-offs but on their day are good enough to make a decent fist of their defence of this trophy. Worcester, well they are smarting after seeing a 17-0 lead slip away against Leicester.
Much is made of the amount of time they were short of players, for reasons either yellow or red against Leicester. Dean Ryan was actually pretty circumspect, questioning only the first yellow against Donncha O'Callaghan (which led to the eventual red).
There seems some confusion, as many observers are arguing the card was harsh because the veteran Irishman did not lead with the head - but I am pretty sure Wayne Barnes pinged him for coming in from the side. That looked a fair call and card in the latter case. There was no complaint from Ryan about the others.
People talk of ill-discipline but it wasn't ill-discipline that caused the cards, it was pressure on Worcester's goal line. A decision was made to stop a drive (or two) and the referee acted on the cynicism of the decision. Teams are forced into conceding cards under pressure as they are forced into conceding penalties.
And that is why we have cards and penalties and, of course, referees.
6. Eddie Jones didn't see much in the way of controversy in his first two live games as England manager. Harlequins dispatched London Irish with minimum fuss and the next day Saracens saw off Newcastle with ease.
Neither were games competitive enough to make much in the way of international selection, but it was quite an effort from the work-minded Australian, who only arrived in England on Saturday morning. I hope he treated himself to a glass of champagne coming back from the North East.
Welcome and good luck, Eddie. I wonder how the chat went Saturday night?
7. Some might have construed the Saracens game as boring but Mark McCall hailed the intelligence and decision-making of his team, many of whom were far from first-team players.
They understood when to kick and when to counter, when to play territory and when to open up, something that troubled the national team far too often under the last regime.
Jones said he would not ignore the pragmatic - I reckon a few Saracens are bang in contention to play leading parts in the run up to Tokyo.
8. While Saracens make smart calls, the team they beat in the final last season, Bath, are struggling. George Ford is low on confidence but Rhys Priestland is only getting time off the bench as an inside centre, a position he rarely plays.
These are still early days but even so, they are testing ones for a management team that has to rediscover the winning art to rugby. Wasps will be no easy place to start on Sunday after they were taught a lesson by the West Country's current top dog.
9. Since losing to Wasps, Toulon have upped the ante. They thrashed Clermont away and then put half a century on Agen at the weekend. They were scoring plenty before the Coventry collapse and were perhaps a little complacent.
Alas for Leinster, there is little likelihood of another slipshod European performance now they are walking something of a tightrope.
10. There was a thought that with a few injuries during the Dubai Sevens, the old Kiwi Sevens maestro, Gordon Tietjens, might turn to one Sonny Bill Williams for next week's Cape Town party. No chance.
"We've got plans for him and we'll stick to them." Good thinking, Gordon, don't rush it - mastering a new game takes time.
