Having started the game brightly and scoring some excellent individual tries, Quins went in to half-time with a 19-3 lead. However, the second half saw a dearth of possession and poor tactical decisions taken and instead of trying to move the heavy Exeter forwards around, Quins attempted to power around the fringes.

Although the likes of Mark Lambert and Cameron Dott made some telling incursions, possession was often turned over in the tackle or ensuing rucks. To make matters worse, some baffling refereeing decisions and missed kicking opportunities conspired to give Exeter the lead in the 48th minute of the second half.

Despite the disappointment of losing a game that should clearly have been won, the young Quins players learned a lot from the experience and can be especially pleased with efforts in the scrum where Tom Muggridge and Lambert held their own against experienced and physical opponents.

NEC Harlequins Under 21's: Muggridge, Dott (Warrington-Mattei, 60 mins), Lambert, Ayling, Parker (Gaylor, 70 mins), Lewis (Wood, 60 mins), Cracknell, Cread, James, Jarvis, Masson, Reay, Barratt, Brown, Williams