Baxter looks forward to resurgent Chiefs' Saracens test

Rob Baxter is relishing taking on the most potent attack in the country when his Exeter Chiefs travel to face Saracens on Saturday.

No team has conceded fewer points than Baxter's resurgent Chiefs so far this season as they continue to put last season's horror show behind them.

Yet none have scored more than Maro Itoje's Sarries which suggests something has to give at the StoneX Stadium when the two big guns line up against each other.

'We are currently the best defensive team in the Premiership in terms of points conceded," Baxter told BBC Radio Devon. "We are getting some things right so we have to double up on the good things we are doing there.

"Teams score points these days but what you have to do is work out ways of staying in the game and not conceding soft points. That is the challenge for us."

Exeter, who were Premiership champions in 2019-20 and runners-up a year later, have slipped since with three seventh-placed finishes followed by last season's second from bottom.

But with Baxter's side sitting behind only Bath in the Prem table ahead of the Saturday's match-up with sixth-placed Sarries, the signs are promising for this season.

"Obviously things feel a lot more positive on the playing front [than 12 months ago], the results front and where we stand in the standings in all competitions," said Baxter.

"But at the same time, you are always looking for what comes next. Now we are in the scenario where dropping away from the top four would be disappointing.

"Whatever has happened in the past, reality is Saracens are always a marker of how competitive you are going to be. We are slightly above them at the moment but it is a big game for them and a big game for us."