The Sale side attacked around the fringes and kept the ball tight playing into the wind. Good defensive pressure in the Saints' 22 led to a kick charge down and a kind bounce straight into the arms of the Sale lock who dived over the line.
Injuries in the Saints back line saw three players out of position but the Saints side were a constant threat when the ball was moved wide. Fly-half Darryl Veenendaal struck a drop-goal to close the gap to 12-8 after a sustained period of pressure. Lock James Cannon and prop Jon Vickers, both returning from injuries, successfully completed 50 minutes of the match and left their mark in the set piece.
The Sale side capitalised on a loose pass in the Saints midfield and made ground up to the 22-metre line with an attacking lineout. Three powerful picks infield sucked in the Saints defence and created the space out wide for the Sale backs to cross the line for the third time.
Facing a 19-8 score line the Saints side showed no signs of panic and quickly went back on the offensive with some penetrating runs from centre Nick Greenhalgh. All the replacements made a big impact and added fresh impetus to the team. The best try of the afternoon was scored by wing Josh Clark who rounded off several phases of possession and his try was successfully converted from wide out.
With a few minutes to go and Sale with a man in the sin bin for killing the ball at the breakdown Saints opted for a scrum five metres from the Sale line. A well worked back row move saw flanker Liam Neale dive under the posts for a match winning score.
Despite a nervous final few moments in the Saints 22, Sam Hodgson won a crucial ball and hooker Alex Roper secured possession allowing Saints to clear our lines and kick the ball clear for the final whistle to sound.
Thanks go to Sale for hosting us and we look forward to the return fixture at Franklin’s Gardens on April 11th.
The next Academy match is Sunday 24th Feb at Solihull School when Saints take on England U18s in a conditioned match.
