This is the story of Sale Sharks
Your Sharks date back to 1861 when the club was formed originally as Sale FC. But it wasn’t until 1999, five years after the club’s promotion to English rugby’s top division, that the Sharks were born.
This is the story of 25 years of Sharks from 1999-2024.
The club now known as Sale Sharks was originally founded as Sale FC in 1861 by a group of sportsmen, The date of formation, proudly displayed on Sharks’ playing kit, makes Sale one of the oldest-established clubs in England.
Sale FC were initially based at Sale Cricket Club on Dane Road but the club would find it’s permanent home at Heywood Road. Now named the CorpAcq Stadium, the amateur side’s first team still play their home games there to this day, alongside the Sale Sharks Women.
After 133 years, the club won promotion to English rugby’s top division in 1994 and after rugby union turned professional in 1997, the club took the Sharks name in 1999.
Sale Sharks kicked off the 1999/2000 Premiership season on 11th September with its brand-new name and marked the occasion with a 16-8 win against Wasps at Heywood Road.
The Sale team on that day featured current Sharks CEO Paul Smith and Director of Rugby Alex Sanderson, as well as first-team coach Pete Anglesea and former DoR Steve Diamond
Through the 2000s the club continued to build, bringing in international stars like Billy Whizz himself. In total Jason Robinson played more than 150 times for the club, with his memorable final appearance capped with a last-minute try.
There were also changes on the coaching side, as former players Steve Diamond and Jim Mallinder took charge, and the club moved from Heywood Road to groundshare with Stockport County at Edgeley Park. Frenchman Philippe Saint-Andre would take over in 2004.
The 2000s also saw Sharks pick up their first two pieces of European silverware with Challenge Cup wins in both 2002 (against Pontypridd) and 2005 (against Pau).
The 2005/06 season saw Sharks climb to the summit of the English game as the club won 16 out of 22 games to finish top of the table. They wrapped up the Premiership title with a 45-20 win against Leicester Tigers at Twickenham.
Head coach Saint-Andre left the club for Toulon in 2009 and after a short coaching merry-go-round, Steve Diamond re-joined his former club as Director of Sport in 2011, following service as Russia’s Director of Rugby. Diamond had recorded 351 appearances in a Sale shirt during his playing career as a hooker.
The club moved to its current home – the Salford Stadium – in 2012, and four years later the stadium adopted the name it would hold onto for ten years – the AJ Bell Stadium. That year also saw a change in ownership, as Ged Mason and Simon and Michelle Orange bought the club from Brian Kennedy.
Sharks had to wait another three years before more silverware. This time – during the Covid pandemic – the club picked up the Premiership Rugby Cup, beating Quins 27-19 in the final in Salford.
Steve Diamond left the club again in 2020 and in the same year the club launched its women’s team, bringing in legends of the game such as Katy Daley-Mclean and, a year later, Rachel Taylor.
In January 2021 former Sharks captain Alex Sanderson returned to his boyhood club to take over as Director of Rugby. His first season saw the club reach the play-off semi-final although the following year, they fell short of a top-four place.
In 2022/23 the club invested in new signings including England fly-half George Ford, and the club was rewarded with a return to the season-ending Premiership final for the first time in almost 20 years. This time, however, they fell just short, losing out to Saracens in the final.
The 2023/24 season saw another Premiership semi-final appearance, as five consecutive wins saw the club propelled into the top four. This time they lost out to Bath, who went on to lose out to Northampton Saints at Twickenham.