Sale 33-47 Leicester: Ollie Chessum stars for clinical Tigers' final round victory

The visitors struck inside two minutes through captain Ollie Chessum. A clever kick from Orlando Bailey picked out Adam Radwan, whose sharp inside pass released Will Wand into the Sale 22. The ball was quickly shifted wide to former Shark James O’Connor, who found Ollie Hassell-Collins in acres of space before the winger sent Chessum crashing over. O’Connor converted for an early 7-0 lead.

Sale responded immediately with a superb backline move. Rekeiti Ma’asi-White sliced through midfield before Joe Carpenter and Tom O’Flaherty combined to send Tom Roebuck flying down the wing to score. George Ford pushed the conversion wide, leaving the hosts trailing by two.

Ill-discipline soon punished Sale. Bailey pinned the Sharks deep before Leicester’s maul rumbled forward, allowing Jamie Blamire to power over from close range. Bailey added the extras to restore Leicester’s cushion. The Tigers pack continued to dominate, particularly at scrum time. A destructive shove near Sale’s own line ended with Joaquin Moro crashing over for Leicester’s third try of the afternoon.

To their credit, Sale remained dangerous in attack. Quick thinking from Raffi Quirke off a scrum penalty created space for Jacques Vermeulen to burst through and score, with Ford converting to cut the deficit to 21-12. Leicester, however, finished the half with another hammer blow. After a series of close-range carries, Joe Heyes marked his 100th Tigers appearance with a deserved try, giving the visitors a commanding 28-12 lead at the break.

The second half began much like the first, with Leicester immediately back on the attack. Jack van Poortvliet’s break created territory before Wand chipped ahead and gathered brilliantly to score the Tigers’ fifth try. Bailey maintained his flawless afternoon from the tee.

Leicester’s attacking precision continued moments later with a slick training-ground move from a lineout. Bailey and Radwan combined neatly to release Hassell-Collins in space for another score, stretching the lead to 40-12. The Tigers forwards then flexed their muscle again as Charlie Clare’s powerful break from the lineout eventually allowed replacement prop Archie Van Der Flier to crash over from close range.

Sale did rally late on. Ernst van Rhyn finished under the posts after slick handling from Carpenter, Gus Warr and Ma’asi-White, before Sam Dugdale crossed in the corner following another sharp attacking sequence orchestrated by Warr. Arron Reed added a final flourish in the closing stages as Sale exploited space out wide to grab their fifth try of the afternoon, but by then the damage had long been done.

Leicester’s ruthless efficiency, particularly through their forward pack and set-piece dominance, ultimately proved the difference in a high-scoring encounter.

After the game, Director of Rugby Alex Sanderson on the use of his young lads in particular Ollie Davies said “he’s been training really well as a ten/full back, and we have had a late omission from the squad in Marius (Louw), so he has come in. His outside break, the way he moves and how quick he is lends itself to more full back than ten. And he has a sweet pair of hands, so it keeps the attacking threat alive.”

Also capitalising on that omission of Louw is Luke James. The outside centre was given his first start of the season. “Luke’s a great player, and there is always a conversation if he’s fit, he’s starting.”

Being forced his hand over the past couple of weeks, Sanderson remarks that “it’s good to have competition,” after a torrid season with injuries across the whole squad.

Carpenter 7, Roebuck 7 (Davies 70’ 6), James 6, Ma’asi-White 6, O’Flaherty 6 (Reed 51’ 7), Ford 7, Quirke 7 (Warr 40’ 6); Opoku-Fordjour 6 (McEachran 62’ 5), Longstaff 6 (Austin 60’ 6), Harper 4 (Bell 56’ 5), Van Rhyn © 7, Bamber 6, Vermeulen 7 (Andrews 43’ 5), Dugdale 7, T Curry 7 (Kelly 51’ 6)

Steward 6, Radwan 6, Wand 7, Bailey 8 (Whiteley 58’ 5), Hassell-Collins 6, O’Connor 4 (Kata 12’ 6), Van Poortvliet 6; Smith 6 (Van Der Flier 51’ 7), Blamire 7 (Clare 51’ 6), Heyes 8 (Hurd 51’ 6), Martin 5 (Henderson 51’ 5), Chessum 8, Liebenberg 7, Reffell 8, Moro 7 (Cracknell 50’ 5 (Watson 71’ 5))

Roebuck 9’, Vermeulen 31’, Van Rhyn 66’, Dugdale 70’, Reed 77’

Ford 32’, 66’, 71’,78’

Chessum 2’, Blamire 15’, Moro 23’. Heyes 38’, Wand 42’, Hassell-Collins 50’, Van Der Flier 55’

O’Connor 3’, Bailey 16’, 24’, 39’, 43’, 56’