By Emma Brooker
November 20 2010

The Saints did just enough to beat a determined Sale side on a cold Friday evening at Edgeley Park, with little/a lot/no help at all from a referee who will be well prepared for panto season judging by the amount of booing he received.   Firstly, I quite like going to Stockport and Edgeley Park, mainly because the pie, mash peas and gravy meal in the Printerland Stand represents one of the best value rugby ground meals at just £4.50, especially on a cold night (the pie was Wrights, from Crewe, a popular pie in Stoke-on-Trent).  My other half had the hotpot, which he said was the best thing he’d eaten at a rugby match, ever.  Sorry Saul’s!  

Aviva Premiership Round 8

Sale Sharks v Northampton Saints

Edgeley Park Friday 19th November 2010 

KO 19:45

Sale Sharkes 10 Northampton Saints 19

Anyway, on to the main event, the game.  Sadly the crowd around us seemed to be suffering from an attack of the Harlequins, coming and going throughout (well, mostly going after half time) and chatting about everything but the game.  This meant I the first I knew of the game starting was when the touch judges appeared in front of us for Stephen Myler’s first kick at goal, from a penalty which must have been awarded immediately from the kickoff.  The kick was unsuccessful, and Sale restarted the game with a dropout.

The Saints attacked after a Sale kick failed to make touch through Tonks and Downey, but the Sale defence held firm in the middle of the pitch.  Dowson and Powell made further yards but again couldn’t break through, though the referee penalised Sale for being offside, giving Myler another go at goal, this time from the 22 directly in front of the posts.  Ignoring the shouts of ‘get on with it’, the Saints’ #10 slotted the ball through the posts, giving the away side a 0-3 lead after just 5 minutes.  I should point out at this stage that the countdown clock I could see wasn’t working, so I’m afraid the timings from now on are borrowed from the report on the Offy!

MacLeod restarted for Sale with a long kick which the Saints cleared to just outside their 22.  The lineout was a little scrappy but well tidied, and set up a platform for a Sale attack until Macleod decided to kick the ball through to the Northampton full back Tonks, who cleared to touch. 

The next fifteen minutes or so were a little uneventful – free kicks, lineouts and scrums galore – none of which were particularly well executed!  Both sides had opportunities with the ball in hand but neither showed much in the way of invention.  The Saints attack, in particular, was slow and predictable, with a little too much use of the inside ball.  Jamie Elliott must have wondered what he needed to do to get his hands on the ball when he was ignored in space by first Jon Clarke and then Greg Tonks.

It was a familiar face who broke the monotony.  The Saints had the ball in the Sale half but it was turned over and Ben Cohen “rolled back the years” (according to the PA at half time), running in from 60m or so to cross for a try.  MacLeod’s conversion was successful, putting the home side up 7-3 after 23 minutes.

The Saints had the opportunity to attack again shortly afterwards through a lineout, but the Sale pack held firm until Clarke (J) found space but had no support.  Sharman and Wood continued the forward momentum, and the Saints were eventually awarded a scrum on the edge of the penalty area to the surprise of the Sale fans (and, I confess, myself) who thought the Saints were holding on.  Nothing came from the possession until Tonks found a gap but lost the ball in contact.  Sale were awarded a penalty from the scrum and were able to clear. 

There was a hearts in mouths moment soon after as a clearance by Myler was charged down by Peel, and when Tom Wood tried to tidy it up he was bundled into touch.  It was the Saints who came out on top, however, as Sale conceded a penalty within Myler’s range and he put it through the posts to close the gap to 7-6.

He did the same a few minutes later when Sale were penalised once again, putting the Saints 7-9 up at half time.

Sale attacked from the get go in the second half, with quick ball throughout the 22.  The ball was kicked through and Tonks misjudged the bounce but Sale knocked on and the Saints were saved.  The scrum was good and the Saints won a penalty which Myler kicked to halfway.  There was another penalty soon afterwards, so Myler opted to go for goal once more.  The kick was unsuccessful, but the Saints almost scored when MacLeod’s dropout was charged down, but Sale regathered and managed to clear to their 22.

The Northampton pack seemed to be gaining the upper hand when they won a penalty from a Sale scrum.  This time Myler kicked to the corner, giving the Saints a lineout on the 5m line.  It was well won by Sorensen in the middle, but the pack could make little progress so Powell threw the ball out wide.  Myler kicked across to Elliott who did well to tap the ball back infield to Grieg Tonks who received the ball with thanks and crossed the line to score.  Myler missed the conversion, but the Saints had a seven point lead at 7-14.

Roger Wilson was a welcome sight as he joined the fray from the bench, but he was almost sent back there immediately after he and a Sale player went for a high ball and the referee decided that Wilson had taken him out in the air.  The Sale fans called for the Irishman to be sent to the sin bin, but the referee didn’t agree.  MacLeod chose to kick at goal from a couple of yards inside his own half but the kick fell short.

It was Sale who kept up the pressure, however, as Tonks misjudged the high kick but the Saints cleared the ball to just outside the 22.  Sale were awarded another penalty, but MacLeod was again unsuccessful.  Sale gathered the restart and again Tonks was found wanting, this time saved by Jamie Elliott who did well to hang on to possession.  Sale knocked on from the subsequent lineout, giving the Saints time to regroup.

The home side eventually reaped the rewards for their persistence, with the Saints being penalised again.  This time MacLeod’s kick was good and the gap was closed to just 4 points at 10-14.

Fearns and Cohen were lively for the Sharks, but yet again play was broken up by a series of set pieces that neither side really dominated.  Eventually the Saints were given a penalty which they kicked to touch, giving them a lineout on the 5m line.  This tactic had resulted in the first try, and eventually it led to the second.  The forwards couldn’t gain any ground but Clarke made good yards in the centre, and the ball was quickly shipped out to Jamie Elliott who somehow squeezed over to score a try on his first premiership start, after consultation between the referee and the touch judge.  Myler missed the conversion, leaving the score at 10-19 with five minutes to go.

This act triggered an exodus from Edgeley Park, but Sale almost scored when replacement Neil McMillan burst through a gap.  He inexplicably decided to chip ahead, a la Chris Ashton against France, but Tonks fell on the ball and McMillan fell on him, conceding the penalty and giving the Saints the chance to clear to the Sale half.  The visitors almost scored their third try after good work by the forwards but the ball was deemed to have been held up.  Sale turned the ball over from the 5m scrum but they were unable to clear as the ball was knocked on.  The Saints had another scrum as the clock went to zero, so Powell decided to boot the ball into touch and end the game.

Altogether it was a fairly poor spectacle.  Neither side had much in the way of attacking flair and the forwards almost cancelled each other out in many occasions, the Saints not being quite as dominant as they have been used to in recent weeks.  Sale were dogged and but for their indiscipline and some errant kicking by MacLeod they may well have won the game.