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Lyn Jones and London Welsh has had a frustrating start to the season.

Exeter is the true test of London Welsh's prospects for season ahead


When Lyn Jones surprisingly stepped out of elite-level coaching in Wales to take up a low-key position at a school in Abu Dhabi in 2009, he said it was because he wanted to recharge his batteries.

The former Welsh international loose forward had become jaded by six years of coaching at the top of the domestic game in his homeland. He wanted a break and a chance to revive.

After two weeks of the new season in his role as the director of rugby at London Welsh in the English Premiership, those batteries may already be flagging again.

Having suffered two heavy defeats in consecutive weekends of the new campaign, he might be forgiven for wishing that he had never handed in his notice at the British School Al Khubairat last year.

Given that he was once ordered off the field for encroaching at half time in a schools match at Zayed Sports City, it is not hard to imagine the losses to Leicester and Harlequins will have driven him spare.

However, it is this weekend which could provide a truer indicator of whether his new charges have the staying power in the months ahead to survive in England's top division.

Exeter Chiefs - the side who have provided the benchmark for what to do after promotion - at home should be a winnable game if the Exiles have serious aspirations of staying up.

Lose, and Jones might look in to booking that return flight to Abu Dhabi.

twitter Follow us @SprtNationalUAE & Paul Radley @PaulRadley

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