Exeter manager Rob Baxter believes handing Harlequins six days between their European Champions Cup semi-final loss to Toulouse and their away encounter against his team was “absolute madness.”
Exeter defeated Quins 58-26 at Sandy Park on Saturday, with Baxter’s team dominating in the second half after the score was poised 21-21 at halftime.
Quins lost 38-26 to Toulouse the previous Sunday, and the loss at Sandy Park left the race for a play-off spot wide open.
Exeter experienced a same six-day turnaround from their quarter-final loss at Toulouse last month, losing 26-14 at home to Bath in their next match.
“I spoke with a couple of their coaches afterwards and said ‘no-one appreciates more than I do how hard it is to come back from a Sunday in Toulouse to play on Saturday’, and the Premiership calendar doesn’t help English teams in Europe,” Baxter told BBC Radio Devon.
“If we had advanced to the semi-finals, we would still have had to play Gloucester on Sunday before facing Toulouse.
“What we do is complete craziness.
“We suffered against Bath and we’ve taken advantage of it today.”
The win lifted Exeter into fifth place in the Premiership league, level on points with sixth-placed Quins.
The Chiefs travel to Leicester on the last day of the season, while the Harlequins visit seventh-place Bristol.
If Sale loses to Saracens or Bath fails to grab a bonus point at home against Northampton, who have already clinched a home semi-final, Exeter, Harlequins, or Bristol may join the top four.
For Exeter’s new-look side, it marks the conclusion of a thrilling season full of highs and lows.
“This is all I could ask for,” Baxter stated.
“Even two or three weeks ago, I was at home telling my wife that if we could only get into the last few games with something worth fighting for, it would be fantastic.
“So coming into the last week with something to fight for is going to be incredible.
“It makes the whole season worthwhile for us, and I just hope we get plenty of support up there and I hope we can get our feet on the ground quickly enough to make sure we get up there and at least do ourselves proud.”
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