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Exeter bench Lions pick Stuart Hogg for semi-final rematch versus Sale

(Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)

Rob Baxter has dropped Lions pick Stuart Hogg to the bench for Saturday’s Gallagher Premiership semi-final, the full-back’s demotion one of three changes to the Exeter XV that will take on Sale who have made four changes to their XV following last weekend’s dramatic contest between the teams.

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Despite losing Sam Skinner to a red card, Exeter were able to turn a 3-19 losing margin into a 20-19 win to secure home advantage for the semi-finals. However, having since lost Skinner and his fellow forward Dave Ewers to four-game games, Baxter has reshuffled his line-up and the changes surprisingly extend to full-back.

Scotland skipper Hogg has been touted as the starting Lions No15 for next month’s Test series versus the Springboks but he has to settle for a place on the Exeter bench this weekend after Baxter opted to start with fit-again England winger Jack Nowell at full-back.

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Unless Hogg is privately nursing some sort of niggle it is an eye-catching selection decision five weeks out from the Lions’ first Test in South Africa. Elsewhere, Baxter has chosen Jonny Gray and Richard Capstick to take over from suspended forwards Skinner and Ewers.

For Sale, Curtin Langdon, Ben Curry and Rob du Preez are chosen for Akker van der Merwe, Cameron Nield and AJ MacGinty, who all left the Sandy Park field injured last weekend. The fourth starting XV switch is Marland Yarde for Arron Reed on the wing.

EXETER: 15. Jack Nowell; 14. Alex Cuthbert, 13. Henry Slade, 12. Ollie Devoto, 11. Tom O’Flaherty; 10. Joe Simmonds (capt), 9. Jack Maunder; 1. Alec Hepburn, 2. Luke Cowan-Dickie, 3. Harry Williams, 4. Jonny Gray, 5. Jonny Hill, 6. Jannes Kirsten, 7. Richard Capstick, 8. Sam Simmonds. Reps: 16. Jack Yeandle, 17. Ben Moon, 18. Marcus Street, 19. Sean Lonsdale, 20. Don Armand, 21. Stu Townsend, 22. Harvey Skinner, 23. Stuart Hogg.

SALE: 15. Simon Hammersley; 14. Byron McGuigan, 13. Sam James, 12. Manu Tuilagi, 11. Marland Yarde; 10. Rob du Preez, 9. Faf de Klerk; 1. Ross Harrison, 2. Curtis Langdon, 3. Coenie Oosthuizen, 4. Cobus Wiese, 5. Jean-Luc du Preez, 6. Tom Curry (capt), 7. Ben Curry 8. Daniel du Preez. Reps: 16. Ewan Ashman, 17. Valery Morozov, 18. Will-Griff John, 19. James Phillips, 20. Jono Ross, 21. Raffi Quirke, 22. Kieran Wilkinson, 23. Rohan Janse van Rensburg.

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J
JW 9 minutes ago
How the four-team format will help the Wallabies defeat the Lions

Have to imagine it was a one off sorta thing were they were there (saying playing against the best private schools) because that is the level they could play at. I think I got carried away and misintrepted what you were saying, or maybe it was just that I thought it was something that should be brought in.


Of course now school is seen as so much more important, and sports as much more important to schooling, that those rural/public gets get these scholarships/free entry to play at private schools.


This might only be relevant in the tradition private rugby schools, so not worth implementing, but the same drain has been seen in NZ to the point where the public schools are not just impacted by the lost of their best talent to private schools, there is a whole flow on effect of losing players to other sports their school can' still compete at the highest levels in, and staff quality etc. So now and of that traditional sort of rivalry is near lost as I understand it.


The idea to force the top level competition into having equal public school participation would be someway to 'force' that neglect into reverse. The problem with such a simple idea is of course that if good rugby talent decides to stay put in order to get easier exposure, they suffer academically on principle. I wonder if a kid who say got selected for a school rep 1st/2nd team before being scouted by a private school, or even just say had two or three years there, could choose to rep their old school for some of their rugby still?


Like say a new Cup style comp throughout the season, kid's playing for the private school in their own local/private school grade comp or whatever, but when its Cup games they switch back? Better represent, areas, get more 2nd players switching back for top level 1st comp at their old school etc? Just even in order to have cool stories where Ella or Barrett brothers all switch back to show their old school is actually the best of the best?

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