Premiership: Exeter Chiefs 26-13 Leicester Tigers - Rob Baxter's side win on return

Scotland captain Stuart Hogg scores Exeter's second try

Exeter eased to victory against a new-look Leicester Tigers in their first Premiership game in 161 days because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Stuart Hogg helped put Exeter 12-6 up at the break, with Dave Ewers grabbing the hosts' first try after two George Ford kicks gave Tigers an early lead.

Luke Cowan-Dickie added a third try for the leaders after the break.

Both sides then had a man sin-binned and conceded a penalty try in the behind-closed-doors return to action.

For Tigers it was a defeat to mark Steve Borthwick's first game as head coach, although the former England forwards coach had his Leicester side - only off the bottom of the table because of the points penalty applied to Saracens for salary breaches - competing for long periods against the competition's benchmark side.

Exeter and Leicester players mark support for the Black Lives Matter movement in different ways

Before the league leaders could resume their campaign against the much-changed Tigers, there was intense interest about how the clubs would show their support for the Black Lives Matter movement.

In unison, Tigers players took a knee before kick-off and adopted the cause's signature show of solidarity.

Exeter players stood in formation to face a message of Rugby Against Racism on the big screen, but not all players chose to take a knee.

Both teams, however, shared in the minute's silence in recognition of those who have worked on the front line of the National Health Service and those who have lost their lives during the pandemic - with a number of names poignantly listed as a memorial on screens in the stadium.

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How the sides lined up at a near deserted Sandy Park on an overcast day in Devon also revealed the impact the pandemic had on two of English rugby's biggest clubs.

Borthwick's long-awaited first game as Tigers coach, having been given the job in January, was a daunting task at the home of the competition pacesetters with an overhauled Leicester side that included just six players that started the last game before the season's hiatus in March.

Gone are full-back Telusa Veainu, ex-England centre Kyle Eastmond, prop Greg Bateman and Tonga forward Sione Kalamafoni, while England pair Manu Tuilagi and Jonny May - who did not feature against Saracens on 7 March - are undoubtedly the biggest departures in a summer of upheaval for a club trying to reinvent itself in the midst of a pandemic that has brought about huge financial pressures for the game.

Meanwhile, Fiji winger Nemani Nadolo must wait for his Leicester debut after his arrival in the country was delayed by visa issues caused by coronavirus.

Speaking after the match, Borthwick said he is "still a couple of weeks away" from being fit enough to play.

Exeter were not without changes of their own, but nowhere near as drastic as Tigers' transformation.

While scrum-half Nic White has returned to Australia, Baxter could name his replacement Sam Hidalgo-Clyne on the bench while fellow Scot Jonny Gray, Chiefs' biggest summer arrival, bolstered an already impressive pack from the start.

Leicester Tigers head coach Steve Borthwick (left) and assistant coach Rob Taylor before kick-off

In a high-tempo start, Leicester looked slick and ambitious, flooding forward while committed and stubborn in defence.

But all they had to show for their efforts was a Ford penalty and well-taken drop-goal from the fly-half, who along with England team-mates Ben Youngs, Ellis Genge and Dan Cole headline those to remain with the Tigers.

With Chiefs' first incursion inside Tigers' 22, the hosts came up with the game's first try in the 26th minute, Ewers eventually powering over from close range after Tigers momentarily held the pack up near the tryline.

With the last play of the first half, the Chiefs showcased their devastating ability to slice their way through defence, the ball travelling though Ollie Devoto, Joe Simmonds and Olly Woodburn before finding Hogg out wide.

A chaotic start to the second half, which saw a Youngs kick charged down and two penalties conceded, allowed Exeter to exert early second-half pressure which led to Cowan-Dickie going over.

Infringements at the breakdown saw both sides concede a penalty try and lose a man to the sin-bin before the hour mark, Jordan Taufua being the first to be yellow carded before Exeter's Jonny Hill followed him off for 10 minutes.

While the game finished with a flurry of chances for both sides, neither were able to add any points in an intriguing contest.

Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter:

"It was what we were expecting - a difficult first half where everyone was trying to find their feet again and not much quality from one phase to the next.

"Leicester posed us a lot of problems and it was a good workout for us. In many ways it was the perfect return in that we got the win, but there is plenty to work on.

"It will take a few weeks to be absolutely flying. But the important thing is we have the ability to keep winning in a number of ways."

Leicester boss Steve Borthwick:

"What I've asked for right from the very start is the effort from the players. That was unquestionable.

"We made mistakes and there are things to learn, but the effort and the attitude of the players was outstanding.

"We've got a lot of work to do because the team isn't in the position it is in the league for no reason."

Exeter Chiefs: Hogg; O'Flaherty, Slade, Devoto, Woodburn; J Simmonds (capt), Maunder; Hepburn, Cowan-Dickie, Williams; Gray, Hill, Ewers, Kirsten, S Simmonds.

Replacements: Yeandle, Moon, Francis, Skinner, Armand, Hidalgo-Clyne, Steenson, Whitten.

Leicester Tigers: Worth; Williams, Taute, Scott, Olowofela; Ford, B Youngs; Genge, T Youngs (capt), Cole; Lavanini, Green, Wells, Reffell, Taufua.

Replacements: Kerr, Leatigaga, Heyes, Liebenberg, Wallace, Smith, White, Henry.

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