Wasps keen to transfer European form to Premiership

Wasps are aiming to use their early European success to ignite a climb up the Premiership table when they face Sale at the AJ Bell Stadium on Sunday.

Emphatic wins against the Dragons and Montpellier have offered sight of the Champions Cup quarter-finals but Lee Blackett’s league runners-up have been less assured on the domestic front.

Since toppling Bristol on the opening weekend of the 2020/21 campaign, they have fallen to Gloucester and Newcastle and Blackett believes they must improve as they enter a tricky sequence of fixtures that includes next weekend’s home clash with Exeter.

“We were happy with the results in the European block just gone, especially when it was such a young side that got the bonus-point win against Montpellier last week,” head coach Blackett said.

Tough place to go

“We’ve got to take the confidence and energy we gained from those games into this match with Sale.

“We have a run of tough matches coming up in the Premiership, starting with this trip to Manchester.

“Sale is always a tough place to go, but we look forward to facing up to that challenge on Sunday.”

England scrum-half Dan Robson returns on the bench but his international team-mates Jack Willis, Joe Launchbury and Jacob Umaga are still observing their mandatory rest breaks.

Another of Eddie Jones’ Six Nations and Autumn Nations Cup winners is back with Tom Curry slotting in at openside for Sale, who are skippered by South African World Cup winner Faf de Klerk.