STEPHEN Varney says the chance to sign for Exeter Chiefs felt like the ‘perfect fit’ after it was confirmed he would be returning to the Gallagher Premiership next season.

The Italian international is the latest addition announced by the Devon club to next season’s squad, which will also include fellow new recruits Tom Hooper and Joseph Dweba.

Well known to English rugby supporters from his time with Gloucester, where he made 42 appearances in the top-flight, the 23-year-old scrum-half joins from French Top 14 outfit Vannes, whom he joined in October 2024.

“I’m absolutely thrilled to be joining the Chiefs and getting back into the Premiership,” said Varney, who has 27 Test caps to his name. “The club has a fantastic history and an incredible fanbase. As soon as the opportunity came up, it just felt like the perfect fit. I can’t wait to get started and give my all for the team.”

A product of the Gloucester Academy, he made his debut for the club during the 2019/20 season, the same season that he featured for Italy Under-20s in the Six Nations Championship.

The following season he would make his full Test debut - against Scotland - in the Autumn Nations Cup, before featuring in four of their five Six Nations fixtures in early 2021.

Increased game time at Gloucester saw him feature in the Premiership, Champions Cup and Challenge Cup, before he eventually opted to move across the English Channel to team up with Vannes.

“We’re really pleased to have Stephen next season,” said Chiefs’ Director of Rugby, Rob Baxter. “He’s a young player who at 23 has already played a lot of rugby. He’s still developing as a player and moving towards what will be his prime years - both physically and mentally - as he keeps playing the level of rugby he is currently playing at.

“He’s got a very good set of basic, core skills around quality of kicking and passing, as well as the tempo he can bring into the game. We’ve spent some time and effort looking at investing in the spine of the team and making sure we have high quality players in those positions to help us move forward in the coming seasons.

“We’ve been very impressed with him in the meetings we’ve had. He’s a guy who is very much on the upward curve in terms of his own performance and he will help us achieve what we want to achieve going forward.”

Varney’s arrival comes hours after the Chiefs confirmed that Ali Hepher has stepped down as head coach with immediate effect and will be replaced by Rob Hunter, who steps up from his role as the club’s forwards coach.

Hepher will continue to oversee the attacks and backs coaching until the end of the season, after which he will then assume a new role as a transition coach with responsibilities for coaching and managing the club’s senior academy players.

Baxter said it was the ‘right time’ to start the process of heading in a different direction with elements of their game, including bringing in a new attack and backs coach.

Among the names already being linked with the role is Dave Walder, the former Wasps, Newcastle Falcons and Bristol Bears coach.

Walder’s last senior role in the game was with the Bears, whom he left in July 2024. He was replaced in Pat Lam’s coaching staff by former Chiefs player, Sean Marsden.