Feyi-Waboso has year to remember for club and country

Having come into last season a relative unknown within the ranks at Exeter Chiefs, by the end of the campaign not only did defences across England knew of his potent threat, but so too did those across Europe and further afield.

The 21-year-old’s rise to fame has been nothing short of stupendous, a reward for an acutely dedicated player who is hell-bent on maximising his undoubted talents, both on and off the field.

Not content with terrorising rivals for both club and country, the Cardiff-born flyer – who rejected advances from Wales to play for England instead – has combined his playing commitments with that of studying to become a doctor at the nearby University of Exeter.

“Yeah, it’s been pretty crazy,” he said. “It’s gone really fast, but luckily I’ve had time over the summer to digest it all. When I look back, obviously my life’s changed quite a lot, but it’s been really fun.

‘I’ve had so many amazing memories. I probably say this like every year, but I do feel this has been the best year of my life so far, not just in terms of rugby, but I’m doing well education-wise and then outside of that, my social life is really good and I’ve got a great group of boys around me.”

Indeed, that’s very much the case for Feyi-Waboso, who was snapped up by the Chiefs, alongside Greg Fisilau and Alfie Bell, following the demise of former club Wasps back in October or 2022.

At the time, Chiefs’ Director of Rugby, Rob Baxter, waxed lyrical of the potential of the three youngsters. Fisilau was the first to show promise, soon breaking into the first team ranks, while a shoulder injury curtailed Bell’s early promise.

Feyi-Waboso, though, was happy to bide his time and having gleaned some much-needed senior rugby with Taunton in the National Leagues, he returned to the Chiefs keen to make his mark following the departures of a glut of former senior stars.

As has often been the case during Baxter’s tenure, age is nothing but a number – and Feyi-Waboso was among a glut of raw rookies who stepped into the spotlight at the start of last season.

His dazzling displays were clear to see and by the start of this year, he was already firmly on the radar of England head coach Steve Borthwick.

Although born and raised in the Welsh capital, Feyi-Waboso admitted back in March that his decision to pull on the Red Rose was not only based on family ties, but also about showing loyalty to a country which had provided him with the chance to properly pursue a rugby career.

“I think my first real pinch myself moment was when I had that first set of starts, I was kind of ‘Oh, I’ve established myself in this Exeter team,” he said. “The next one was definitely speaking to Steve on the phone and I was like ‘Wow, he’s actually speaking to me.

“Then it was like just getting called up to England camp, it was literally just all of these little benchmarks I hit this year.”

In the months that followed, Feyi-Waboso was crowned both the Premiership’s and the RPA’s Young Player of the Year, whilst his involvement in both the Six Nations and the summer tour to Japan and New Zealand saw him take his Test cap tally to that of six caps.

No longer the surprise package on the Chiefs wing, Feyi-Waboso is acutely aware that the challenges ahead are about to get a whole lot tougher for both him and his team-mates

“There are a lot of work-ons, definitely,” he says. “Do I want to share them? Not really. I know what they are.

“Here at the club, they just want to get everyone on the ball a little bit more and to express themselves. Obviously, I found a way to do that myself, but there are patterns to it all and over time teams end up learning that. Towards the back end of last season I felt teams were picking up on that, so it’s on me now to adjust and stuff like that.”

Already the Chiefs are already plotting how they will undoubtedly make the most of their prized asset who, it has to be said, is growing in stature and exposure by the week.

Not that he sees it that way himself, adding: “Obviously, I’m not that big of a deal. If you see Henry Slade out in Exeter, he’ll get stopped. If you see Jack Nowell out in Exeter, he’ll get stopped. For me, it’s not like that.

“It’s more things have changed on the pitch. I just feel a lot more comfortable, both in terms of speaking to coaches and speaking to boys on the pitch. It also feels like games have slowed down a bit, it’s a lot less frantic in my head.

“Off the pitch, I just feel like I have a bit more stability, so it means I can push on. That said, you know you can’t rest on your laurels too much as there is competition everywhere.”

And it’s those threats around him which will undoubtedly drive Feyi-Waboso to an even greater level in his rugby development.

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