Chiefs and England trio agree new deals

Exeter Chiefs have been boosted with the news that three of their highly-rated stars have all pledged their immediate futures to the club.

England internationals Luke Cowan-Dickie, Jack Nowell and Henry Slade have all put pen to paper on two-year deals that will keep them at Sandy Park until the end of the 2020/2021 season.

Having all come through the Devon club’s academy structure, the trio have since gone on to establish themselves as household names within the Chiefs ranks, each of them amassing over 100 first team appearances, as well as helping Baxter’s side to lift a first-ever Premiership title in 2017.

At international level too, the young Chiefs have also made their mark, featuring for England in World Cups and the Six Nations, whilst in Nowell’s case he also became Exeter’s first-ever British and Irish Lion when he toured to New Zealand two years ago.

“I know people have been waiting to hear the news on these three guys for quite a while,” said Baxter. “However, the truth is the talk on their extensions started pretty early and that they have gone quite simply.

“I know sometimes it must seem a little difficult when there is a lot of paper talk about players leaving or interest being shown in them, but all three guys said right from the beginning that their intentions were to stay at Exeter and that they wanted to stay with us long term.

“All it really came down to is just finding that right balance in that they feel appreciated here, and we feel that they are right value for us. To be fair, that was relatively simple, so we are delighted to keep them and we are hoping they can be a core element of what the team can go on to achieve over the next five or six years.”