Exeter 'will dwell' on record-breaking Gloucester loss

Exeter's 79-17 loss at Kingsholm was their biggest in living memory

Exeter head coach Rob Hunter says his side "need to dwell" on their heaviest ever Premiership defeat.

The Chiefs conceded 13 tries as they were thrashed 79-17 at Gloucester to mark the nadir of what has been their worst season in the top flight.

The margin of defeat was 19 points worse than their previous biggest loss - a 55-12 thrashing by Sale 11 years ago - and their 43-7 half-time deficit was 10 points greater than their previous worst first-half performance.

Chiefs have a week off before facing reigning Premiership champions and European Champions Cup semi-finalists Northampton at Sandy Park on 11 May.

It is a period of reflection that Hunter - who described the loss as his "lowest point as a coach" - says his side require.

"It will be good for us because I think we need to dwell on this one for a bit," he told BBC Radio Devon.

"I think sometimes when you've got that game coming up it gives you the excuse to move on quickly. We don't have to do that, we're going to dwell on this all week."

The game was Exeter's fourth since Hunter took over as head coach after the demotion of Ali Hepher.

The coaching change came as Exeter sought to try and improve on what has been their worst Premiership season by quite a large margin.

They have won just two Premiership matches and sit second-from-bottom of the table.

Exeter were beaten in all of their Champions Cup pool games including a new club-record European defeat when they lost 69-17 to Bordeaux.

The Chiefs had appeared to have improved over Hunter's first three matches - they narrowly lost at leaders Bath last week, having beaten bottom side Newcastle at the end of March.

But Hunter says the loss at Kingsholm has been a "baptism of fire" for the long-serving Chiefs coach.

"The important bit that I've got to look at is what I said pre-match, not at half-time," he said.

"We can't be in a situation where we need a rescue mission at half-time, it's very difficult to do and there's only so many times you'll be able to press that button.

"What we've got to look at is how we start, not how we do the middle."

He added: "Overall I think we've got the right plan, but vibe is just not enough, being emotionally in the right place is just not enough.

"You've got to be technically right on it or you'll run into a side like we did today."