CLUB captain Jack Yeandle heads up a list of four Exeter Chiefs players who have penned new deals with the Aviva Premiership champions.

The 28-year-old hooker, together with fellow front-row forwards Greg Holmes, Elvis Taione and Harry Williams, have become the latest squad members to commit their futures to the Chiefs.

Former Crediton player Yeandle has signed a new three-year deal keeping him at Sandy Park until 2021, while international trio Holmes, Taione and Williams have all agreed two-year deals.

The confirmation of the quartet signings came in the same week as club-mates Gareth Steenson, Ian Whitten and Mitch Lees also announced they too were extending their own Chiefs’ careers.

Naturally, director of rugby Rob Baxter is delighted all four players are hanging around for the foreseeable future.

He said: “If anybody has seen how we have built over a number of years, where we have pushed, and what has helped us be more successful in the Premiership has been having a great foundation around that forward platform and what they can deliver.

“Rob Hunter has done a fantastic job over the last few years. Our forward play has improved year-upon-year, not just around scrum and set-piece which I know a lot of people talk about, but also the attributes these guys show around the field.

“It’s all very well having big guys who can scrummage and maul, but actually they have all shown they have great ability all around the field when they are playing multi-phase and they are all great defenders as well.

“What we like to think is that they have all worked really hard on the little details of their game that in turn help make our overall game stick together.

“Primarily they have a huge role to play in our set-piece, but they have a huge role in our attack and defence systems. They all perform them very well and we’re delighted they are all hanging around the place for the next few years at least.”

Aside from Aussie international Holmes, who joined from the Queensland Reds in the summer of 2016, Baxter has in recent years raided the Championship to acquire the services of the Taione, Williams and Yeandle, all of whom have made the step up to English rugby’s top tier look easy.

Yeandle has amassed more than 100 Premiership appearances for the Chiefs, whilst Williams has underlined his emergence in the past 12 months by not only establishing himself as a key cog in the Exeter front-row, but also on the international stage where he has featured in the last five Test matches for England.

He added: “Jack’s a local guy who has come back to the area having been away at university first and then with his first senior club in Doncaster. Again, I think he has been a key guy in helping drive the culture we have here. He works hard, he doesn’t let anyone rest on their laurels and he makes sure we push through the key attributes of what the squad is all about.

“As I said, I am delighted all four of them are here again because they are cornerstones of what we want to achieve as a forward pack.”

Alan Quick