England forward Tom Johnson extends Exeter Chiefs contract

England flanker Tom Johnson has signed a new one-year contract at Exeter.

The 30-year-old, who has been at the Sandy Park club since 2007, was out of contract this summer and is currently sidelined with a knee ligament injury.

"This is my sixth season here and you can see the club is going in the right place," Johnson said.

"Not only have the club got some big plans for off the pitch, but on the pitch it's equally exciting for all of us as players."

Johnson has won five caps for England since making his debut on the tour of South Africa last summer.

He played all three Tests against the Springboks and also appeared against and Australia last autumn, scoring his first England try against the Pacific islanders.

Johnson says a settled home life in Devon played a big part in his decision to extend his stay with the Chiefs.

"A lot of it is to do with the area, which I'm very fond of, and the boys here at the club," he added.

"Both those things were important to me, as was staying within the current England set-up.

"Exeter has helped to get me to that position, so I didn't really want to go to another club and almost start from fresh again."

Johnson moved to the Chiefs in the summer of 2007 from Coventry when Exeter were still in the second tier of English rugby.

He was one of the key figures as Exeter won promotion to the top flight for the first time in 2010 and has played 153 times for the club, scoring 30 tries.

Exeter boss Rob Baxter said: "As a club we're delighted that TJ [Tom Johnson] has extended his contract with us for another year, this despite a lot of talk in newspapers and gossip columns linking him with a move elsewhere.

"As a club there has never been any issues with regards to him moving on. What has taken the time has been more discussing personal terms and making sure things are right for both ourselves and TJ.

"TJ's played a key part in our move out of the Championship and then establishing ourselves in the Premiership.

"Not only have we seen him grow as a player, but off the field he is a great ambassador for the club as well."