Exeter Chiefs’ 24-14 defeat to Wasps yesterday was a ‘great advert for the women’s game’, says Chiefs’ head coach Susie Appleby.

The match was a tough battle but Wasps won it in the second half after the two clubs were in a 14-14 deadlock at half-time.

Appleby said: "What a game. What a game of rugby. It was a really, really good advert for the women’s game and for the product of the Premier 15s. I’m just a bit sad people weren’t here to watch.

“We took our opportunities in the first half. We took them and we created them. The difference in the second half was we were creating things and then just lost our way.”

Appleby’s side will next face defending champions Saracens and she added her club will get ‘opportunities’ against them.

"We’ve got a few tweaks to make. It’s not like we are miles off. We’ve got some tweaks to make in the week. We’ve got some recovery to do which is paramount.

“We’ll look at Sarries. We’ve already looked at them a little bit but we will have a proper good look at them. We’ll work out where we can get some opportunities out of the game.”

Chiefs are sixth in the table with 11 points after winning two matches but Saracens and Harlequins remain the dominant clubs as they both have 30 points.