The England winger, who was born in Cardiff, has spoken for the first time about the altercation
Immanuel Feyi-Waboso has admitted he was involved in an altercation with a Bath supporter at the Recreation Ground last week after a drink was allegedly thrown at him following Exeter Chiefs’ dramatic Premiership play-off victory.
The England wing says the incident took place as emotions spilled over at the end of Exeter’s 27-26 win on June 13, when he was sitting in the stands with injured and non-selected Chiefs players.
Feyi-Waboso, who was in the crowd rather than on the pitch as he recovered from a broken jaw, claims the confrontation began as celebrations unfolded in the away section.
“One of the fans when we were celebrating after, he was leaving at the time,” he said.
“He was absolutely fine during the match, but as soon as he was leaving he chucked a drink over me, pushed me and threw the cup in my face. What can you do apart from rip his shirt? What can you do? So that’s it.”
However, Bath fans who were present at the match have criticised the behaviour of Feyi-Waboso and Exeter supporters during the game, suggesting they contributed to an uncomfortable atmosphere.
According to those supporters, tensions had been building during the fiercely contested West Country derby, with verbal exchanges between rival fans continuing as people began to leave the stadium.
Feyi-Waboso returned to action for Saturday’s Prem final defeat to Northampton and emerged with a wound over his left eye that required stitches. He has been cleared to take part in England’s Tests against South Africa, Fiji and Argentina next month.
The 23-year-old had only recently returned from surgery after breaking his jaw against Leicester and admitted he took a significant gamble in pushing to return in time for the end-of-season run-in.
Discussions took place between Feyi-Waboso, Exeter and England medical staff over whether he could return safely, with the winger acknowledging the risk involved.
“They said take a direct blow to the jaw and it’s likely the repair is going to fail, but you can try,” he said.
“Going into the game I was like, ‘what if my jaw breaks?’ But it’s a final, you have to do it.”
Despite the personal relief of avoiding further injury, Feyi-Waboso admitted Exeter’s defeat in the final was a bitter disappointment after they surrendered a late lead against Northampton.
“Gutted, disappointed, a lot of overriding feelings,” he said. “I feel like we could have done a lot better, but it is what it is.”