Exeter Chiefs
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| Full name | Exeter Rugby Club |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1871 |
| Location | Exeter, Devon, England |
| Ground(s) | Sandy Park (Capacity: 12,600) |
| Chairman | Tony Rowe OBE |
| Coach(es) | Rob Baxter |
| Captain(s) | Jack Yeandle |
| League(s) | English Premiership |
| 2015–16 | 2nd |
| Official website | |
| www |
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Exeter Chiefs (officially Exeter Rugby Club or Exeter Rugby) are an English rugby union club based in Exeter, Devon that currently play in the English Premiership, the top level of domestic rugby union in England. They also compete in the Anglo-Welsh Cup and European Rugby Cup competitions.
Exeter Rugby Club was founded in 1871. The club played its first match in 1873 against St. Luke's College. In 1890, they won the Devon Cup. In 1905, Exeter Rugby Club hosted the first match played by the New Zealand national rugby union team on English soil and in the Northern Hemisphere at the County Ground between New Zealand and the Devon County XV. It was from that game, that New Zealand became known as the "All Blacks".
When league rugby started, Exeter were initially placed in the Devon leagues.
In the 1990s, Exeter Rugby Club turned semi-professional and changed their name from Exeter Rugby Club to Exeter Chiefs in 1999 after previously being referred to as the Chiefs in the 1930s. In 2016, the club's fans were called upon to change their behavior over concerns that it could be considered an offensive appropriation of Native American culture. News outlets later reported that the club had been urged to change its name. Often their teams at the time were composed of members and former members of the British Army.
In 1993 and 1995, Exeter reached the quarter finals of the Pilkington Cup before being knocked out by English Premiership opponents Leicester Tigers and London Wasps respectively.
In 1997, Exeter were promoted into the Premiership Two for the first time from National League 1. They regularly finished in the top half of the table. In 2005, Exeter finished second in the league, missing out on promotion by four points behind Bristol Rugby. The next season, they moved from the County Ground to Sandy Park due to a need for modern facilities that included corporate hospitality. In 2008 they again finished in second place and again missed out on promotion by finishing behind Northampton Saints. The same situation happened the next season when Exeter finished behind Leeds Carnegie.
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