Anglo-Welsh Cup: Exeter Chiefs 20-17 Newcastle Falcons

Rob Baxter's Exeter are seven points clear at the top of the Premiership

A late Joe Simmonds penalty earned Exeter Chiefs a spot in the Anglo-Welsh Cup final against Bath on 18 March at the expense of Newcastle Falcons.

Chiefs trailed 17-7 at half-time, Falcons responding to Stu Townsend's second-minute try with converted scores from Kyle Cooper and Simon Hammersley.

But Simmonds converted his own try and then, in the final 15 minutes, slotted over two penalties at Sandy Park.

Joel Hodgson's penalty attempt to level in the closing seconds fell just short.

The final will be played at Gloucester's Kingsholm ground and Rob Baxter's side will come up against a Bath team bidding to win their first trophy since 2008.

Premiership champions Exeter will appear in a fourth consecutive Anglo-Welsh Cup final - they beat Northampton in 2014 before losing to Saracens and Leicester in 2015 and 2017 respectively.

There was no competition during the 2015-16 season because of the delayed start to the domestic campaign brought about by the World Cup.

Exeter: Cordero; O'Flaherty, Whitten, Devoto, Short; Simmonds, Townsend; Low, Innard, Holmes, Lees, van der Sluys, Dennis, Salvi, Kvesic.

Replacements: Davis, Kenny, Owlett, Salmon, Horstmann, Chudley, Morley, Hendrickson.

Newcastle: Hammersley; Goneva, Mermoz, Matavesi, Sinoti; Flood, Takulua; Lockwood, Cooper, Welsh, Witty, Robinson, Hogg, Welch, Latu.

Replacements: Socino, Vickers, Wilson, Green, Burrows, Young, Hodgson, Harris.