Local Sport

Chiefs cheers up union fans

In a day which saw mixed emotions for sports fans, England football, cricket and rugby teams all triumphed against competitive opposition. But after a pretty dismal display by the national team in their opening Rugby World Cup match, Exeter Chiefs fans can take solace in a superb derby victory at Plymouth Albion.

In order to produce the most up-to-date, in-depth, finger-on-the-pulse reporting, the sports dept. bravely embarked on a tough day scouring the pubs of Exeter, gathering data, generating debate and analysing insightful comment. The majority of this data was stored in the hard drive of my mind, yet the next day download yielded limited response. However, the general consensus amongst the majority of England rugby fans after the below-par win over the yanks was that we have as much chance of retaining the Webb-Ellis trophy as Rick Waller winning Olympic gold in the 100 metres next year (although he’d be a clear favourite if the race was to be held vertically).

Interestingly, the feeling amongst some South Africans was that England were playing badly on purpose to lure them into a false sense of security before the crunch game between the two sides... Very polite people – the South Africans.

So despite a fine performance by the cricketers and a comfortable win for the footballers, the biggest cheer of the day came was reserved for the Chiefs whose hard fought 28-19 triumph over their local rivals gave ample reason for the raising of the wrist.