HENRY Slade has become the enduring figure through Exeter Chiefs’ modern era – and now the England international is at the centre of their latest resurgence as they head back to Twickenham for a Premiership final.

While team-mates have come and gone through cycles of success and struggle, Slade has remained a constant at Sandy Park since his debut in 2012 against London Welsh. The 33-year-old centre has won two Premiership titles, a European Cup and an LV= Cup, while earning 74 England caps in the process.

This season has marked a defining response to last year’s ninth-place finish, the club’s lowest in the top flight. Alongside senior figures such as Jack Yeandle and Olly Woodburn, Slade has helped re-establish standards and rebuild belief within a squad that endured heavy defeats and uncertainty.

That leadership was evident in Saturday’s dramatic 27-26 semi-final win over defending champions Bath at The Rec, which sent the Chiefs into a final showdown against Northampton Saints.

Even a first-half sin-binning for a deliberate knock-on could not derail his influence, as he returned to help drive a comeback from 26-10 down.

Slade said he always believed they could turn the game around: “As the game went on, obviously they’re a very powerful side, but we felt if we could stay in it during those longer passages of play, we could come good,” he said.

“Our body language, our energy, it was just pipping theirs. I felt if we kept digging in, staying in the fight, sooner or later it was going to come good. Around 50 or 60 minutes we really took the fight to them and came out with the win.”

Head coach Rob Baxter believes Slade’s experience has been vital. “Our most experienced player did the stupidest thing on the field on the day, but he’s been great. He talks really well. When you’ve won finals, you understand you can do it. I think he’s helping the lads believe that.”