Sale Match Report

Alex Lewington will, I'm sure, make the headlines and take the plaudits after crossing for 2 of Irish's 3 tries.  The young wing sits third in the Premiership's top try scorer table with 8.  An impressive stat which I'm sure he'll build on before the end of the season.

 

Another stand out performer from the Sale clash, for me, was Tom Guest.  He carried hard and kept the scrum going forward as well as mauls.  He has really turned his season around after a slow start, and now looks comfortable in his new surroundings.  I'm sure his expertise will come in very handy in the run in to this season and for aspirations next year.

 

Irish are now 11 points clear of Newcastle, they remain 36 points ahead of relegated Welsh and lie 1 point off of Gloucester.  The penultimate fixture of this season is against Gloucester at Kingsholm so that game will really carry some weight.  If Irish can overcome the former London Irish Academy... sorry Bath, beat the Cherry and Whites, and the Wasps then 8th is well within their sights.

 

I'm sure I make beating those sides sound easier than they are.  I'm sure that Glenn Delaney would give me a slap on the wrist for that blaze comment but it is possible.  We need to get behind the boys and push them.  7th seems to be Sale's and unless something really goes wrong I can't see Sale losing the play-off Champions Cup place.  Climbing the table is a real possibility.  If we can reach 8th or even 9th then considering our fortunes at Christmas time I think Glenn and Richard and the squad deserve a massive pat on the back.  We should be greatful for Glenn and Richard for their hard work and contribution to the club in past couple of seasons, if it's not been easy for us supporters imagine what it has been like for them!

 

So onto the game!  It wasn't the best possible start.  Irish survived some early pressure before mounting a break away from inside their own 5 metre.  Noakes in the tackle offloaded however it appeared that him and Mulchrone (?) weren't on the same hymn sheet.  The ball bounced towards the Irish line but the big man himself, Mr Blair Cowan, pounced on the ball.  Sale, using their best tactic: lying to the ref, claimed that Cowan hadn't put pressure down on the ball and tried to play on.  Griffin received a warning from the ref about tackling the player without the ball.  Then Mr Macdonald decided to go to the TMO to check Blair's grounding and to see if Sale should be awarded a try.  All this inside 24 seconds! 

 

However phases later Sale crossed for their first score.  After battering the Irish defence with the forwards, they moved the ball out wide and after a dubious final ball Tom Arscott crossed in the corner.  By dubious I mean forward.  However, the ref Macdonald decided not to go upstairs or to even consult his linesman on the matter.  So Sale took a 5 point lead.

 

Noakes converted two penalties to give Irish a 6-5 lead over the visitors from Manchester.  Tom Court was sent to the bin after apparently illegally stopping the Sale maul from crashing over the line.  Sale converted their advantage straight away from the line out they moved the ball, again, quickly out wide for Mike Healy to grab a try.  Cipriani again missed the conversion, but Sale had a 10-6 lead over Irish. 

 

Irish grabbed a late penalty as half time arrived.  Allinson wanted to tap and go however Macdonald who has having a blinder, quite literally in some respects, said no.  When they wanted to kick to touch he appeared to argue that there was no time left, a penalty is was then.  And what a penalty it was!  Noakes strode up and kicked.  It had neither the legs nor the direction.  Cipriani in clear disrespect of Irish caught the ball and didn't put the ball out.  Instead he passed.  The 15 (?) who was clearly not expecting the pass dropped it, knocking it forward.  A scramble ensued where Andrew Fenby charged onto the scene, picked up the ball and dived over the line.  Probably the maddest try we'll see this season.  However, it stemmed from Cipriani's arrogance.

 

Irish went in at half time with a 13-10 lead after Noakes kicked the conversion.

 

Within 4 minutes of the second forty, Blair Cowan was sent to the sin bin for hands in the ruck.  Unluckily for Irish the penalty was within Cipriani's range and he converted the extras to get Sale equal with Irish.  

 

Sale won a line out on the West side of the MadStad, won the ball from the lineout and set up a maul, the maul ploughed forward and Irish brought it down on the 5 metre line.  They moved the ball from the ruck to the right, in the hands of the backs before Arscott crossed in the right hand corner.  Again, the final ball to Arscott seemed as though it was forward however,  Macdonald did not (again) refer the decision upstairs and the try stood.  Cipriani had found his kicking boots at half time and cooly slotted the conversion home.  

 

Irish attacked from the off.  Won a penalty from the quick restart, Noakes put the ball into the corner.  Irish won the resulting lineout and mauled the ball over the line.  Macdonald, for a change, went upstairs to the TMO, Stuart Terheege.  The try was disallowed and Sale number 9 Chris Cusiter was sent to the bin.  A logical contradiction, if somebody is sin binned and a try not awarded surely a penalty try must be awarded? 

 

Noakes kicked the resulting penalty from the disallowed try to the corner.  From the lineout the ball was moved wide to Lewington who crossed the whitewash.  Noakes missed the penalty.  The next incident of the game was Topsy's sin bin.  Topsy was sin binned for pushing a Sale player into a jumping Sale player and upending him.   

 

Alex Lewington grabbed another try before the game was out.  Lewington got the ball from Noakes and side stepped the Sale winger, and he stepped another before running around the posts.  It was a simple conversion for Noakes and Irish took a 25-20 lead.  Cipriani got a penalty and converted it, to give Irish a slender lead.  Irish hung on and kept Sale inside their own half, when 80 struck Irish kicked the ball into touch.  

 

Irish put in a solid performance.  They out played Sale in areas of the pitch, especially scrum time.  Richard Palframan making his first Premiership start had a blinder and the more experienced Sale prop, Ross Harrison struggled.  It seems that Palframan will truly be a great player for Irish and maybe even sooner than many imagined.  Based on that performance he could be a regular is the closing weeks of this season.  Palframan could make our scrum a real force is this end of season run in.  

This Friday we travel to the Rec and it would be a surprise to see any changes to the starting 15. Even though there were some injuries last week the players who played really stepped up and delivered us an important win.  It would be a shame if those players lost their well earned places.