Exeter's Richard Capstick faces long lay-off in shoulder blow
Exeter Chiefs forward Richard Capstick could miss much of the season after an old shoulder injury flared up again.
The 26-year-old has not played since February. He had surgery on the shoulder earlier this year after making eight appearances last season, but Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter said that operation has failed, BBC Sport reported on 7 October 2026.
It is the latest stop-start chapter for a player Exeter rate highly. Capstick missed the start of last season with a knee problem, then returned for that short run of eight games before the shoulder forced him back under the knife.
Baxter told the BBC the previous repair did not hold. That means another operation, and another long spell of rest and rehabilitation before Capstick can think about contact again.
The shoulder has troubled him before. He also damaged it in late 2022 and then missed almost all of the following season.
Capstick can play in the back row — the mobile forwards at the back of the scrum who carry and tackle across the pitch — and in the second row, the taller forwards who drive the scrum and jump in the lineout. A former England Under-20 international, he made his Exeter debut in a Prem Rugby Cup tie in late 2018 and has since made 97 appearances and scored nine tries.
He started for the Chiefs when they lost the 2021 Premiership final, England’s top-flight title decider, to Harlequins at Twickenham. His form earned him a call-up to the England ‘A’ squad — the step below the senior Test team — during the 2024-25 season.
Exeter have been given injury dispensation to cover for him. That is the Premiership’s permission to add a player outside the salary-cap rules when someone faces a long lay-off. The club has used it to sign Welsh forward Carwyn Tuipulotu, with Exeter Chiefs announcing on 6 October 2026 that the former Wales Under-20s player had joined the men’s squad.
For supporters, this means waiting a little longer to see a homegrown forward hit his prime. At 26, with nearly 100 games behind him, Capstick looked ready to push on. Now Exeter must plan without him again.
