Ford leads from the front for sharp Sale

GEORGE Ford may not be England’s first choice but the Sale fly-half showed why he's being champi-oned by some for the British & Irish Lions tour this summer.

- By LUKE JARMYN

The 32-year-old capitalised on Sharks’ dominance up front to produce some magician-like eye catching moments and rounded it off with a pinpoint crossfield kick for full-back Joe Carpenter's try late in the game.

Sale’s victory is their fifth win out of the last six ‘northern derbies’ between the two sides and puts them within a point of the top four play-off places.

Sharks director of rugby Alex Sanderson said: “How good is George Ford? He looked brilliant, as he has every time he's played for us but he's had a few niggles.

“George has got the bit between his teeth, you can see it in his eyes. He's galvanised the squad, driving standards and to deliver a singular performance of that magnitude is crucial when we want to execute in the final third, score bonus points and bring in crowds.

“I'm really pleased, Newcastle is a difficult place to come, but our boys looked super physical, they've trained with confidence over the past week and it came through in some of our attacking ambitions which is what we've been working hard on.”