Sale Sharks earned their first win of the season in a storm affected match at Sandy Park.
After Starting the the game battling in their own 22’ for the opening twenty minutes Sale held firm in tough conditions to give themselves a foothold in the game.
Both teams felt the effect of Storm Eowyn as handling errors littered the first half and the forwards were called to scrimmage regularly in torrential rain.
The visitors made their first impact on the scoreline 33 minutes in with their first entry into Exeter territory, the forwards setting up a strong driving maul and powering through the hosts defence with Molly Wright diving over the whitewash to give Sale the 0-5 lead at the break.
The second half saw Sale come out firing, getting their crucial second try of the game five minutes into the second 40. Bea Rigoni carved through the heart of the Chiefs defence and dotted down under the posts with Vicky Irwin, now on kicking duties after Lizzie Duffy was forced off with injury, adding the extras.
A defiant Exeter looked to get themselves back into the game but struggled to penetrate a physical Sale side who were desperate to hold on for their first win of the season and with 13 minutes to go, Emily Robinson made the pressure pay from close range that brought the scores to 7-12.
Three minutes later however the game was forced off the pitch. The rain that plagued the first half had returned in force and this time brought thunder and lightning that the referee deemed dangerous for players. A half hour break followed before play was allowed to resume and a tense final 9 minutes followed.
Exeter managed to move the ball from their own 22’ to Sale’s but were repelled to close out the game and earn the visitors their first points of the season in a result that adds a new layer to the battle for top four.
For Sale Sharks a bye week will now be followed by back to back home games at Heywood Road, with tickets on sale now for the visit of both Trailfinders and Gloucester-Hartpury.
