Exeter coach Rob Baxter hailed an impressive debut season in the top flight after his side's 10th Aviva Premiership win.
Edwards reflects on a 'disappointing season'
Exeter coach Rob Baxter hailed an impressive debut season in the top flight after his side's 10th Aviva Premiership win saw them leapfrog Wasps and finish eighth.
It was a victory witnessed by Sandy Park's biggest crowd of the season - 10,522 - confirming that the Chiefs are now very much a part of the Premiership big-time.
"It was a nice way to round the season off," said the Baxter. "It was great reward for our fans that came to see this end-of-season game and a good reward for the players who have put in the hard work that they have put in with an eighth-place finish.
"We never set out with any targets at the start of the season but you have to take an eighth place finish with both hands in your first season in the Premiership but I am more pleased with the level of our performances.
"That will put us in good stead for next season because we are a side that can weather a bit of pressure.
"But we had a couple of guys who stood up, we had a couple of good turn-over tackles made at crucial times."
Baxter was particularly impressed with the Chiefs pack. "The scrum bailed us out with a bit of pressure and I think that we grew in strength during the game," he said. "We tend to be good at re-establishing ourselves after the break and know what we have to do.
"There were large parts of the second half where we were well in control but the final ten minutes was a little disappointing when we starting kicking the ball away and that cost us enjoying the end of the game as we had to defend."
The defeat left Wasps in ninth place - their worst finish since the formation of the Premiership in 1997/1998 season - and they have not won in the league away from Adams Park since late November.
Penalty-count
Head coach Shaun Edwards said: "I thought we played excellently in the first half creating line break after line break but unfortunately you don't get points for that and then we were on the wrong end of the penalty-count.
"It was a landslide really - 18 to six as regards us getting on the wrong side of the referee. Add to that our opponents only gave away six penalties and turned the ball over six times.
"You are looking at them playing a very high standard, low error rates all game and to beat that team we would have had to keep creating the sort of chances that we did in the first half.
"But in the second half we fell apart and they were definitely the dominant side after the break. I thought some of our younger players were our better players today, if I am totally honest."
He added: "It has been a very disappointing season, especially the second half. We have been all right at Adams Park but away from home you should at least get a bonus point."
