Crisis? Not in my view, says Sanderson

WITH four straight defeats in all competitions and a season-ending injury to England lock Jonny Hill adding to their extensive list of unavailable players, the impending two month break from Premiership action cannot have come at a better time for Sale. 

- JON NEWCOMBE

Last season’s beaten finalists have dropped out of the Premiership playoff places and also the Champions Cup, following last Sunday’s defeat to La Rochelle, and head to Gloucester with a squad weakened by injuries and England call-ups.

Losing is a slippery slope that Premiership strugglers Gloucester know all too well about but the Cherry & Whites’ back-to-back Challenge Cup wins against Edinburgh and Castres in Europe have made the Sharks’ task that much bit harder.

Sale won 24-10 when the teams met in November and director of rugby Alex Sanderson knows the importance of backing that result up.

“You can look at their games and maybe look at ours and see some correlation with the games they have lost, they have lost by three/four points; they have been pushing teams real close, they are a good team and they have just had a couple of wins on the bounce where they have got their maul back into action,” he said.