If you want to rack up a score go and play Sale Sharks. This is what other teams thought about the Manchester-based club, who have conceded the most points in the Aviva Premiership in three of the past four seasons.
Not any more. Sale’s defence is the sixth-best and although they are eighth in the table, director of rugby Steve Diamond’s ethos of rebuilding the squad around players who, as he put it, ‘play for the shirt rather than the name on its back’ seems to be rubbing off.
MM look back at Sale’s season so far.
Pre-season
Sale came into the season looking to eradicate any lingering memories they had from the disastrous 2012/13 campaign that left them embroiled in a relegation battle.
Having let go a number of high profile players, including Scottish international Richie Gray, Diamond set about rebuilding with Mike Forshaw to help solve Sale’s defensive woes.
September
Having taken seven games to register their first win of the 2012/13 season,Salegot off to the best possible start winning their first fixture of the new season away at Gloucester 22-16. Mark Cueto extended his lead as the top try scorer in the premiership with summer signing Andy Forsyth going over before a Joe Ford drop goal sealed the 22-16 win.
Salefailed to build on their good start in the first game at the newly branded AJ Bell stadium losing 15-14 to Newcastle. It was a chastening defeat for the Sharks with four penalties from Phil Godman and one Rory Clegg enough to take the narrow victory in a game the Sharks could and probably should have won.
Danny Cipriani made his first appearance of the season replacing the injured MacLeod and inspired Sale to victory over his former club London Wasps 22-26. Cipriani scored 16 points on the night as Cueto scored his second try of the season to help Sale eek out a win over Wasps.
To cap off a rollercoaster month, Sale suffered a heavy defeat to a polished Northampton Saints side. The Sharks were overpowered at Franklin’s Gardens conceding five tries as they went down 33-14.
October
A spirited performance from the Saleforward pack helped the side to a 19-13 home win over Bathat the AJ Bell as David Seymour made his 100th appearance for the Sharks.
Fourteen points from Cipriani and an Andy Forsyth try gave Sale a well-deserved against a side that were tipped to do well before the start of the season.
Sale got their European campaign underway in style defeating French side Biarritz33-10 at home with Russian lock Andrei Ostrikov scoring one of three tries after an audacious dummy enabled him to rumble over from 25 metres out.
A bonus point 15-29 win from the game at Worcesterbrought to end the opening round of European matches with the Sharks on top of Pool 1.
Dwayne Peel, Rob Miller and Mark Easter all went over with a penalty try awarded to Sale after the Warriors brought down two successive driving mauls near the line.
A sole penalty from the boot of Cipriani was all the Sharks could manage in their return to league competition away to Harlequins going down 24-3 ending a three match unbeaten run.
November
A disappointing 16-18 home defeat toExeterincluded three yellow cards handed out to Sale in a 19 minute period by referee Wayne Barnes.
Vadim Cobilas, Tommy Taylor and Kirill Kulemin all had enforced breaks with six penalties from visiting ten, Gareth Steenson, inflicting a frustrating loss on Steve Diamond’s men.
England lock Dave Attwood broke Sale fans’ hearts in LV Cup action at the AJ Bell with a try after time had expired to steal the victory 20-27 for Bath after a late Mike Hayley try looked to have secured a draw.
New signing Viliami Fihaki made his debut in the LV away to Harlequins but played only two minutes from the bench before being sent to the sin bin as Sale came away with 26-31 win from an end-to-end game.
Buoyed by the result at The Stoop,Sale took their first bonus point win 26-10 in the premiership against strugglers Worcester as Cueto further extended his led as the league’s all time top try scorer.
The Sharks almost produced a huge upset at Saracens forcing them to come from behind in the latter stages of the match to win 24-19 as Cipriani put in a standout performance at Allianz Park.
December
Back-to-back matches against Oyonnax started in France in freezing conditions as the home side put in a strong performance to win 16-10 as the Sharks came away with just a losing bonus point from the encounter.
Back at the AJ Bell Sale thumped the French side 53-14 with Cipriani again stealing the headlines contributing 28 points in the seven-try rout.
Image courtesy of ESPN Scrum via YouTube, with thanks.
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