MARK Foster hopes the critics will be made to eat their words after tipping Exeter Chiefs for relegation this season.

Pretty much every pundit nationally has the Sandy Park outfit for the drop at the end of the season in their predictions.

And every bookmaker also has the Chiefs down as favourites to go back where they came from at the end of the term.

Foster, 27 today, says everyone wrote Exeter off last season and expected Bristol to win promotion from the Championship.

The former Gloucester winger, who is set to face his former employers on Saturday, hopes the players can make a mockery of everyone's predictions once again.

"It has been a dream for so long," Foster said about Exeter getting in the Premiership.

"We sat down at the beginning of last year and we had this as our target and we've set more targets this year.

"We've set ourselves challenges that give us the best possibility to be successful in this league in the long term, we never want to be a yo-yo side.

"We are good enough to be here because we beat the side that everyone tipped last year — everyone had Bristol from day one, just like everyone has tipped us for relegation this year.

"I think this will be another year when people will have to eat their words at the end of the season and say 'maybe we got it wrong, maybe there is something special going on down here'."

Foster is looking forward to locking horns with his former teammates on Saturday after spending six seasons at Kingsholm.

The former England sevens player left Gloucester last summer and headed straight to Sandy Park, scoring 12 tries as the Chiefs won promotion to the top flight for the first time.

He denies he has a point to prove this weekend, but admits he wants to see how he compares against some established Premiership stars.

"I wouldn't say it was more special, I don't have a point to prove," he said.

"I came to Exeter to change — I wanted to play a different type of rugby in a different environment and live in a different part of the country.

"I've thoroughly enjoyed every minute I've had here, I have absolutely no regrets about leaving Gloucester.

"It was a large part of my life, I still have a lot of friends there and a lot of friends will be playing against me on Saturday.

"I'll enjoy that, I'm not there to prove anything it will just be nice to play against guys I have played with and see where I'm at.

"I've had a year in the Championship and I think I'm a better player now. I'm the fastest and strongest I've ever been, so to be able to pit that against the likes of James Simpson-Daniel will be nice.

"You've got guys with a lot of international caps and it will be nice to see how you fare against them and how the one-on-one battle goes.

"That's something I'm really looking forward to, but that would be the same if it was against Leicester or Wasps. It's just a chance to go out and play in the premier league in the country and showcase your skills in the biggest environment in the country."