‘He was the ultimate coach’ – Josh Hodge on what he learned from mentor Stuart Hogg at Exeter

Exeter's opening weekend hat-trick hero Josh Hodge has praised the former owner of the Chiefs' No. 15 shirt Stuart Hogg for helping his development.

Hodge, 23, moved to Exeter from Newcastle in 2020 and some at the club spoke of the young full-back as the long-term heir to the legendary Hogg, who that year would playing a starring role in the historic double-winning side.

Over the summer of 2023 Hogg announced his retirement to become a lead analyst for TNT Sports and Hodge was thrust into the limelight.

The opening game could not have gone better with Hodge scoring a hat-trick as Exeter demolished defending Gallagher Premiership Rugby champions Saracens 65-10.

Speaking to premiershiprugby.com, Hodge admitted that Hogg had a huge impact on his development.

“I came here as a young player just wanting to throw the ball around,” said Hodge.

“I probably didn’t have as much experience as everyone else but then Stuart took me under his wing.

“He wouldn't always speak to me every minute of every day, but he would always help in the instances where he thought I could work on an area or aspect of my game.

“He was always accommodating. If I ever wanted to talk to him about anything, he would always be open-minded and give me his point of view which was really beneficial, because it helped me see the game in different ways.

"He was the ultimate coach really, it was brilliant.

“Everyone knows what he’s done in his career, and that he deserves everything he’s achieved.

“But to go into that 15 jersey for the start of the season is what I’ve been working for.”

He went on to say that he and the team felt a result like the one against Saracens was coming and that there is a buzz around the team as they try to rebuild and get back to the heights of 2020.

“We all knew something was coming after those four months of pre-season,” Hodge said.

“We had a good Premiership Rugby Cup block, we had one not-so-great result against Bath, but those little bumps in the road happen and we've put into training our little learnings, and at some point we were going to put a good performance together.

“That happened and the boys didn't really think about it too much. We were all just in the zone and when we're in that zone, we’re all building off each other’s energy and playing together as a team.

“There are smiles on faces, the ball was going all over the place, everyone's playing at 100% and picking the right decisions, and so it all fell into place to enable us to put 60 points on Saracens.

“I know there's a lot of youth in our side, but when you have youth you've got ambition, you've got energy and that's what we put out on the pitch.

“We’ve bonded really well over the past four months and it's paying off.”

Hodge’s performance has led to some calls for him to be looked at for England after the World Cup and whilst he admitted that is a dream he’s just focusing on the next game for Exeter.

“That would be the aim,” he said when asked about playing for England. “As a young boy, I always wanted to represent England.

“I’m always pushing to try and put myself in the selectors' heads. I was called up to the 2020 Six Nations as an apprentice player, and when I stepped into that camp, I knew that was where I wanted to be and what I wanted to work for.

“There’s been a lot of drive trying to get there but at the same time, you can't be worrying too much about that.

“I feel like over the past three years I've changed a lot as a player. I've learned from a lot of international players, and I feel that I'm putting those things into my game now.

“I'm really looking forward to the challenge because that's where I want to be at the end of my career.”

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