Despite Saints arriving with Tom James playing his first ever professional game at fly half with all other squad tens absent, the visitors challenged Sale with their usual attacking ambition. Nonetheless, Sale’s pragmatism, via a George Ford penalty, proved the difference.
A fast start to the match also proved important for Sale, with early tries for Tom Roebuck and Tom O’Flaherty forcing Saints to chase the game. Chase it they did and the scores were level early in the second half courtesy of a memorable solo try from Henry Pollock, but a Bevan Rodd maul try and subsequent Ford penalty ensured Sale could continue their assault on a top four berth.
O’Flaherty claimed the first of those early efforts, pirouetting to claim and cross from close range, before creating the second with a dink cross field that was claimed seamlessly on the bounce by Tom Curry, who offloaded to Roebuck who stepped and scored.
In the build-up to the first try Saints had their fly half crisis compounded by a Tom James yellow card, and shortly before the second Tommy Freeman had been binned for a deliberate knock on. It therefore represented a period of real frustration for the hosts that Roebuck’s second was the only score against a 13-man Saints.
More frustratingly, with James back on Saints were the next to score when Pollock broke through from a quick tap before a sequence of offloads sent Emmanuel Iyogun over.
Roebuck was able to respond with Sale’s third, Ford again finding gaps to send Joe Carpenter clean through, with the fullback linking up with Roebuck to finish as has so often been the case at the Salford Community Stadium in recent years.
Having worked hard to wrestle back a two try advantage, Freeman’s subsequent score epitomised Sale’s uncharacteristic home profligacy, the winger busting through Rob du Preez and Will Addison to score all-too-easily off first phase.
That momentum, compounded by a George Ford yellow card, carried into the second half when Pollock broke from Sale’s first exit and chipped and chased for a sensational solo score.
With the scores level, Sale looked to their maul as they so often do in troubled times and a well-preserved drive allowed Rodd to score on his 100th club appearance, before Ford knocked over a simple penalty.
To their credit, Saints were once again able to pull Sale into a fist-fight in absence of a playmaker and as a result of sustained pressure in the 22, Fraser Dingwall wriggled over to take it within three.
That set up the grandstand finish and Saints looked to be on the front foot deep in the Sale half, but a crucial turnover by the standout Carpenter spared Sale for a 27-24 win.
