Hodgson leads Sale recovery

Northampton's Mark Tucker evades the Sale defence

Sale 34-14 Northampton

A second-half display that included 21 points without reply saw Sale to an ultimately comfortable victory over Northampton.

The Sharks started slowly but played with increasing confidence after the break to bring another four-try victory.

Neither side particularly impressed in a dreary first half in which handling was made difficult by steady drizzle.

The slippery surface frustrated Sale's backs as they struggled to play their usual running game while Northampton looked static in attack.

Hodgson contributed 19 points for Sale

Sale's forwards were starved of possession early on and Saints managed to sneak ahead after six minutes with a penalty from Mark Tucker.

Then Ben Cohen, who lost his place in the England squad this week, was out to impress and made his mark with a try after 15 minutes.

It took another penalty from Tucker to kickstart Sale into action.

Charlie Hodgson pulled the Sharks back into contention with two penalties, a try and a conversion in the last 10 minutes of the half to ensure his side trailed by just a point at the break.

It was a different story in the second half as the home side cut loose.

Pete Anglesea, who finds out on Thursday if a one-year ban for a gouging incident in the game against Newcastle is upheld, went over five minutes into the half.

Sale winger Steve Hanley then showed the Saints a clean pair of heels to score 15 minutes later.

Northampton fought to get back into the game but Sale's defence held firm and Mark Cueto, an exciting prospect on the wing, landed Sale's bonus point with try number four in the dying minutes.

Sharks fly half Hodgson had another busy day, chalking up a personal tally of 19 points with all four conversions and two penalties to go with his first-half try.

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Sale:
Going, Cueto, Shaw, Davidson, Hanley, Hodgson, Redpath, Yates, Titterrell, Turner, Fullarton, Lines, Perelini, Pinkerton, Anglesea.
Replacements: Dickens, Devlin, Elliott, Wilks, Giacheri, Black, Jackman.

Northampton:
Tucker, Martin, Jorgensen, Leslie, Cohen, Brooks, Howard, Smith, Thompson, Stewart, Newman, Brouzet, Blowers, Pountney, Seely. Replacements: Brotherstone, Todd, Phillips, Hunter, Soden, Bass, Hepher.

Referee: Steve Lander (RFU)