Sale Find Top Gear to Down Irish

Jones Wonder Try
By Jonathan Noad
October 6 2002

Sale finally found top gear, but not until the second half, to put London Irish to the sword 36-14 at Heywood Road. Irish had much of the possession in the first half but Sale defended well and came out for the second half all guns blazing – this team seems to like coming from behind in matches.

The game started in front of a live TV audience quite slowly with no score until the thirteenth minute when Irish’s Everitt stuck a penalty between the posts following the sin binning of Sale flyer Steve Hanley. During this period Irish exploited the gap on the Sale wing with a try from Paul Sackey, but Everitt missed the conversion. Shortly afterwards Sale entered the score-sheet with a Hodgson penalty which took the scores to 3-8 after 25 minutes. No sooner had one Sale wing (Hanley) returned to the pitch then another (Cueto) was sin binned. This yet again gave Irish some room however they only managed a drop goal from Everitt which was matched by a further penalty from Charlie Hodgson to take Sale trailing into the dressing room at half time 6-11 down.

For a while it seemed as though the normally pacy back line of Sale were, again, not clicking. The second half, however, was totally different with trys in quick succession for Mel Deane and Chris Jones. Mel Deane took a typical try by charging over from short range whilst Jones again scored a great individual try from an intercepted pass racing 50 metres to the line. The try was very reminiscent of the one against Leicester a few weeks ago – not bad for a second row. Following the game Sale coach Jim Mallinder heaped praise on the youngster.

This took Sale into an 18-11 lead following one successful conversion and one miss hitting the upright for the dependable Hodgson. Hodgson and Irish replacement Mapletoft exchanged penalties before another Sale surge took Steve Hanley over for a try to make amends for his earlier sin binning. Another Sale player was then sin binned with back row Alex Sanderson being sent to the touchline – this didn’t harm Sale, in fact it gave the team more impetus especially when Irish’s James Cockle saw red for stamping. Hodgson sent over yet another drop goal, a piece of his armour he seems to have developed this year, before Mark Cueto like his opposite wing Hanley made amends by racing over for a try which Hodgson duly converted. The game finished at 36-14 with Sale earning the bonus point that has so far eluded them this season.

This was Sale back to their very best and at about the right time too as they face Bourgoin at Heywood Road in their first ever Heineken Cup game on Friday. This team is starting to get hungry again and provided they can play like this for a whole eighty minutes will have many teams worried.

SALE SHARKS

Robinson; Cueto, Baxendell, Deane, Hanley; Hodgson, Redpath; Thorp, Titterrell, Stewart; Jones, Schofield; A. Sanderson, Anglesea, Pinkerton.

Replacements: Marais, Yates, Lines, Perelini, Harris, Going, Walshe.

Scorers : Hodgson (3C, 2P, 1DG), Deane (T) Jones (T) Hanley (T) Cueto (T)

LONDON IRISH

Horak; Sackey, Bishop, Appleford, Rossouw; Everitt, Edwards; Worsley, Drotske, Hardwick; Strudwick, Casey; Danaher, Gustard, Dawson.

Replacements: Barrett, Mapletoft, Cockle, Flavin, Burke, Hatley, Durant.

Scorers : Everitt (1C, 1DG) Mapletoft (1P) Sackey (T)