Preview: Sale Sharks v Newcastle Falcons
The Premiership season enters its second weekend with just one game taking place on Friday as Sale host Newcastle Falcons at the AJ Bell Stadium.
Newcastle have made just one change to their side, with Scott Lawson coming in at hooker.
The experienced Scot replaces Kyle Cooper in the only switch from the side which defeated Worcester Warriors 35-8 last Friday, man of the match Cooper missing out with a shoulder injury.
On the bench last season’s top try-scorer Vereniki Goneva could be in line for a return after missing the season-opener with a calf problem, director of rugby Dean Richards keen for his side to build on their promising start to the campaign.
He said: “I thought the boys played well against Worcester and we were delighted with five points. We showed discipline, we stuck to our task and the players responded to what we asked of them. We didn’t actually change much in terms of what we did as a team – we just did it more effectively.
“The good thing was that we did all this with just one of our new signings [Josh Matavesi] in the starting side, so it shows the quality we have in the group before we even start to look at injecting more of the new guys into the team. Their sheer presence here has raised the quality of performance of the other boys, and you could see the difference.”
Determined for the bonus-point victory to be a springboard for further victories, Richards said: “We know Friday will be a tough game against a good Sale side. Their director of rugby Steve Diamond has made a big point of saying they want to go unbeaten all season at home, and every club which visits them will now be taking that comment as a target to knock them off that perch.
“They are a good side with key individuals in key areas, and we know what they’ll bring to the table. It will be a different game to last weekend, Sale will be massively up for it with being the home side and it should be a good contest.”
Asked about the absence of a number of his summer signings, Richards explained: “They’re not far off. Toby Flood (hamstring) will be another week or two and DTH van der Merwe (knee) has put in a full week’s training this week, so he should be available next week against Saracens. The new lads as a group have gone really well, they’ve raised the standards and the squad as a whole have responded in kind.”
The only off-season acquisition to be included in the starting line-up is Fijian international Josh Matavesi, who is keen for his side to kick on from last week’s opening-night triumph. He said: “It was good to get the win against a niggly Worcester side, but it’s all about Sale now and how we can move on as a team.
“Backing up is the key for us if we want to really improve and achieve something. It’s all well and good beating Worcester but it means nothing if we go to Sale and get 30 points put on us. It’s about having a ruthless mind-set where we focus on doing our jobs right, and let Sale worry about us rather than the other way round.
“We’ve done our homework on them and we know they’re a strong side, but we back our game plan to come to fruition. It’ll be a tough game because Sale away on a Friday is not easy. The ground is pretty open, it looks like rain is forecast but we have the ability to deal with that. We’re professional, and it’s about turning over every stone in our preparation. Do that and the rest takes care of itself.”
Prop Rob Vickers lines up for the Falcons for the 234th time, and in the week he was awarded a testimonial year by the club the prolific front-row man said: “Although the end result was good against Worcester we know it’s only a one-off, and we start from scratch at Sale on Friday.
“It’s a new game against a new team, and we have to perform well and be on our game to stand any chance of winning. They’ve got good players, a big front row and their set-piece is something they pride themselves on.
“We believe in the work we’re doing and the team we’ve got, and that’s really key. It’s not just about the new players who’ve signed for us, it’s also the lads who were here last season and the depth we now have. You have to be playing well to get a game here because they’re always someone behind you ready to step into your place.
“It takes a lot of work on the training ground and a lot of concentration, and if you have one or two players who don’t understand their roles it impacts on the performance quite significantly. Last Friday we were reasonably successful, but this week is a new challenge.”
Meanwhile, Sale Sharks director of rugby Steve Diamond says he is expecting a reaction from his squad.
In last weekend’s opening fixture away at Wasps, Sale picked up a try bonus point as they lost 50-35 on an afternoon where there were positives and negatives for a Sharks side who scored five tries in what was a action-packed encounter.
Newcastle were impressive 35-8 victors over Worcester in their league opener and Diamond is expecting Richards’ side to offer a formidable challenge.
But the Sale boss, who has a fully-fit squad to pick from with the exception of James O’Connor, is also backing his players to right the wrongs of last weekend as the Sharks look to record their first victory of the season.
“Newcastle are a good side. They have got their act together over the past couple of years with Dean and they will be difficult opposition,” said the Sale director of rugby.
“They have lots of very good players so we are going to have to be at our best to win the game.
“But if we sort our defence out, which we hopefully have over this past couple of days, we’ll be a difficult side to beat at home.
“Our endeavour at Wasps was good. I think we broke every record on our GPS units and we ran more miles in that game than in any other over the past couple of years.
“So we know that we are fit – we just made some basic errors.
“The key in this competition is to win your home games and to pick up bonus points away from home. If you can win 90 per cent of your home games and claim a couple of wins on the road along with bonus points then you are pushing for the top four.
“So the key is about winning your home games and then putting in highly competitive performances on the road.”
Reflecting on last weekend’s loss, Diamond said the Sale squad were determined to learn the lessons as regards tightening up their defence.
“When we got an opportunity we took it but defensively we were poor,” the Sharks boss reflected.
“It’s all about working together and we conceded a couple of tries from a set-piece up at Wasps which the lads are all frustrated about.
“The key for Friday is that our forward pack has to front up, we have to be on the front-foot in attack and our defence needs to be solid.”
For the game Diamond gives starts to Cameron Neild, Alex Tarus and Mark Jennings with WillGriff John and George Nott drafted in for places on the bench.
Form: Sale Sharks’ only win in their last four Premiership Rugby matches was 27-24 over Bath at AJ Bell Stadium in round 22 last season – the only match they played at home in this sequence. Sale’s only defeat in their last seven encounters in Salford in all competitions was 12-32 to Northampton in Premiership Rugby in March. Newcastle Falcons have won their last three Premiership matches but have not won four in succession since March 2009. The Falcons won their most recent away game 39-27 at Bristol and have not clocked up two wins in a row in the tournament for four years. Newcastle have not begun a campaign with a pair of victories since 2004/05. The Sharks solitary defeat to the Falcons in their last seven Premiership Rugby meetings was 17-19 at Kingston Park in the opening round last season, whilst Newcastle’s only previous victory at AJ Bell Stadium was by a single point in September 2013.
The teams:
Newcastle: 15 Simon Hammersley, 14 Alex Tait, 13 Chris Harris, 12 Josh Matavesi, 11 Belisario Agulla, 10 Joel Hodgson, 9 Sonatane Takulua, 8 Callum Chick, 7 Will Welch (c), 6 Mark Wilson, 5 Will Witty, 4 Calum Green, 3 Jon Welsh, 2 Scott Lawson, 1 Rob Vickers
Replacements: 16 Santiago Socino, 17 Sami Mavinga, 18 Trevor Davison, 19 Tevita Cavubati, 20 Nili Latu, 21 Sam Stuart, 22 Juan Pablo Socino, 23 Vereniki Goneva
Sale: 15 Mike Haley, 14 Denny Solomona, 13 Will Addison (c), 12 Mark Jennings, 11 Byron McGuigan, 10 AJ MacGinty, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Josh Strauss, 7 Tom Curry, 6 Jono Ross, 5 Andre Ostrikov, 4 Josh Beaumont, 3 Alex Tarus, 2 Cameron Neild, 1 Ross Harrison
Replacements: 16 Marc Jones, 17 James Flynn, 18 WillGriff John, 19 George Nott, 20 Ben Curry, 21 TJ Ioane, 22 Will Cliff, 23 Sam James
Date: Friday, September 11
Venue: AJ Bell Stadium
Kick-off: 19:45 local (18:45 GMT)
Referee: Andrew Jackson
Assistant Referees: Greg MacDonald, Steve Lee
TMO: Trevor Fisher