Matchday Live

Sale Sharks drew against a resurgent London Irish in their first away fixture of the 2020-21 Gallagher Premiership.

The first half saw the Sharks backline operating at full tilt, Manu Tuilagi dominating the central channels and setting up AJ MacGinty for a try within the opening two minutes.

Marland Yarde flashed excellent footwork to cross the whitewash himself, before an exquisite mid-contact grubber from MacGinty saw Sam James score as well.

Despite dominating in attack however, Sharks defence was not impermeable, and Irish’s direct forwards scored two tries of their own.

A sniping try from Will Cliff on the cusp of half-time would mark Sharks last points of the game.

As the second half unravelled, Sharks’ penalty count shot up and so too did Irish territory. Fullback Tom Parton soon punished the Sharks with an excellent finish in the corner.

What followed was a scrappy 20-minutes, neither side able to convert pressure into points, but Irish undeniably dominant with regards to the former.

As the changes were rung and former Lion Sean O’Brien entered the fray, Sharks 12-point lead looked less than stable. Captain Jono Ross was shown yellow for a late hit, and the balance was tipped.

Parton crossed again for Irish narrowing the gap to just 7 points. The angle was tight though and Paddy Jackson could not convert.

Irish tails were now well and truly up, and Jackson was given a shot at redemption 10-minutes later as Curtis Rona scored in the corner. The angle was as tight if not tighter. Jackson did not miss.

With the clock in the red and the scores tied, Irish were awarded a penalty on their own 10-metre line.

Jackson stepped up to take the kick, and it was only the Brentford Community Stadium woodwork that rescued the two points for the Sharks.

Another disappointing second-half for the Sharks, but plenty of positives to take from what can fairly be described as a dominant offensive performance in the first.

Sale Sharks next fixture is against Exeter Chief at the AJ Bell Stadium on Sunday 3 October.

Man of the Match: Sean O’Brien

TEAMS:

Sale Sharks: 15. Simon Hammersley; 14. Byron McGuigan; 13. Sam James; 12. Manu Tuilagi; 11. Marland Yarde; 10. AJ MacGinty; 9. Will Cliff; 1. Bevan Rodd; 2. Tommy Taylor; 3. Nick Schonert; 4. Cobus Wiese; 5. JP Du Preez; 6. Ben Curry; 7. Sam Dugdale; 8. Jonno Ross (C)

Replacements: 16. Curtis Langdon; 17. Ross Harrison; 18. Coenie Oosthuizen; 19. Rouban Birch; 20. Ewan Ashman; 21. Gus Warr; 22. Kieran Wilkinson; 23. Denny Solomona

London Irish: 15. Tom Parton; 14. Kyle Rowe; 13. Curtis Rona; 12. Terrence Hepetema; 11. Ollie Hassell-Collins; 10. Paddy Jackson; 9. Ben White; 1. Will Goodrick-Clarke; 2. Agustin Creevy; 3. Marcel van der Merwe; 4. Rob Simmons; 5. Adam Coleman; 6. Matt Rogerson (C); 7. Ben Donnell; 8. Albert Tuisue

Replacements: 16. Mike Willemse; 17. Allan Dell; 18. Ollie Hoskins; 19. George Nott; 20. Steve Mafi; 21. Sean O’Brien; 22. Hugh O’Sullivan; 23. Benhard van Rensburg

OFFICIALS:

Referee: Wayne Barnes

Assistant Referees: Andrew Jackson and Jamie Leahy

TMO: Tom Foley

Citing Officer: Buster White

SCORERS:

Sale Sharks

Tries:  MacGinty 2; Yarde 14; James 20; Cliff 36

Conversions:  MacGinty 2; 14; 22; 37

Penalties: MacGinty 29

London Irish

Tries:  White 16; Creevy 32; Parton 46; Parton 66; Rona 76

Conversions: Jackson 17; 33; 77

Penalties: n/a