England center Henry Slade has signed a new contract with Exeter Chiefs, extending his stay at the club to at least 13 seasons.
Slade made his debut in 2012, playing for Plymouth Albion the previous season, and won his first premiership the following year, winning the U20s Six Nations with England in both years and the U20s World Cup in the latter.
The 31-year-old has since gone on to make 230 appearances for his club and has played in two World Cups for England since making his debut in 2015, winning 62 caps and two Six Nations titles.
Slade tops the Premiership scoring charts and his off the tee and attacking ability have played a key role in Exeter’s young side moving to the brink of returning to the Premiership play-offs for the first time since 2021.
“There were many factors that went into my decision to stay at Exeter Chiefs,” he said.
“I joined the academy when I was 18. So this club is all I know as a professional rugby player. I feel very fortunate to be able to say that I have represented the club over 200 times.
“I call Exeter home. I started my young family here. My eldest daughter starts school in September. So it felt like a perfect fit to stay here.
“The club has been my whole adult life so I didn’t think it was time to go yet.
“There is a very strong group coming up now, and I am delighted to be one of a group that has so much potential to do great things.
“It was a bit of a distraction because it was a new challenge to see what I could achieve in a new group.
“I’ve had the same faces here for 12 years, but this year it felt like a very different club. “It’s been a really interesting challenge going into pre-season.”
There were expectations that Slade would follow Jack Nowell, Harry Williams, Luke Cowan-Dickie and the Symonds brothers Sam and Joe. They all left the club in 2023 following Chiefs’ early Premiership years.
However, following a shocking omission from the 2023 World Cup squad, Slade has returned to England and has not only become a key player for his country once again, but has also taken on a key role for the club.
His performance is probably the best of his career and the positive working relationship between Slade and director of rugby Rob Baxter is set to continue as Exeter’s young and much-changed squad has exceeded expectations in an excellent season.
“I think we have a team that will really grow in the coming season, but in fact Henry is probably key to that process,” Baxter said on the club website.
“He has been an important player for us for many years. He has been fantastic this season in working very hard and setting high standards for himself.
“He has been a great leader for us and has led a strong, young team to good performances both in Europe and in the Premier League.
“From the way he has trained and played, I can see that he is still a real force for some time yet, both internationally and at club level.”
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