Sale Sharks consigned Exeter Chiefs to yet another Gallagher Premiership defeat with a 28-10 victory at the Salford Community Stadium.
Chiefs have yet to win in their eight Premiership matches this term and would have to go all the way back to May last season for their last victory in the league.
Exeter struck first through a Henry Slade penalty seven minutes into the game and held that lead for almost 15 minutes until Sale’s first score.
Luke James crossed the line for the hosts after a flurry of nice carries from Sharks forwards left plenty of gaps in the Exeter defence near their line.
It was an arm-wrestle type of clash until Joe Carpenter cut the Chiefs open right before half-time. The Sale full-back swept up a loose ball and ran in from halfway for an outstanding finish.
Sale’s third try was a result of relentless pressure in Exeter’s 22, with Chiefs eventually bringing a maul down that resulted in a penalty try and a yellow card for Dafydd Jenkins.
The visitors managed to find a route back into the game shortly after 60 minutes with a try through Jimmy Roots. It was a classic Chiefs try with a succession of carries close to the line breaking down Sale enough for the prop to crash over.
But the hope of a comeback and a first win of the season for Exeter was demolished when Jonny Hill dived over 10 minutes from full-time, condemning his former team to another Premiership defeat.
BATH RETAKE TOP SPOT WITH NEWCASTLE WIN
Bath finished a blustery night in Newcastle with a 40-15 win over the Falcons to retake top spot in the Premiership table.
Newcastle drew first blood as they caught Bath napping in the first minute. A dangerous kick over the top made a mess of Bath’s backline and Jamie Blamire took full advantage of Joe Cokanasiga’s sloppy handling to touch down.
Alfie Barbeary cancelled it out less than two minutes later as he crashed over, only for Newcastle’s Freddie Lockwood to score from close range four minutes later.
Bath managed to quell the hosts for much of the rest of the first half, scoring through Tom de Glanville from a chaotic crosskick before Will Stuart touched down after battering back a stubborn Newcastle defence.
The second half was entirely Bath’s, scoring three tries and clinching a bonus point within seven minutes of the game restarting.
Charlie Ewels stomped his way to the line to score his first try in over six years for Bath’s fourth try, which secured the bonus point.
Despite being 13 points ahead, it was not until Finn Russell’s 67th-minute try that the game was finally sealed for Bath, and Sam Underhill’s 80th-minute try served as a cherry on top.
BRISTOL THRASH TIGERS
Bristol Bears briefly took the top spot in the Premiership table with a 54-24 win over Leicester Tigers.
It was the most points Leicester have conceded at home in the Premiership, as confirmed by the Telegraph, with the Bears finishing with eight tries at Welford Road.Per a report from the BBC, Bristol scored the most points they ever had in the first half of a Premiership game, but it was the hosts who made the ideal start as Ollie Hassell-Collins got on the scoresheet first.
The lead lasted just two minutes, as Gabriel Oghre finished under the posts thanks to a slick pass from former Tigers prop Ellis Genge.
Oghre followed up with a second try that was soon cancelled out by Hassell-Collins, only for FIjian flyer Kalaveti Ravouvou to stroll over for another try in a relentless half.
Bears fly-half AJ MacGinty was unfortunately pulled off shortly before the half-hour mark due to a knee injury, but it did not stop the visitors’ flair as Viliame Mata scored Bristol’s fourth try of the half.
Both Rich Lane and Gabriel Ibitoye scored to send the Bears into the second half with over 40 points on the board.
Lane ran in a stunning try from halfway after magically taking a pass from Ibitoye over his head and sprinting to the line.
Despite a yellow card for Oghre and a Freddie Steward try, a second Ravouvou try and a charge-down try from Benhard Janse van Rensburg were more than enough to seal an incredible win for the Bears, who finished the day level on points with league leaders Bath.
A consolation try from Josh Bassett slightly softened the blow for Leicester, who missed the chance to keep pace with both Bristol and Bath in the top three of the table.
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