It doesn’t always require a qualified ‘wine consultant’ to identify a non-vintage performance. Brendan Venter, whose ever-changing job title at Saracens has been a subject of debate all week, will certainly not be cracking open the special reserve when he rewatches this game, ultimately most notable for Sale’s perseverance, physicality and resilience after being reduced to 13 players at one stage in the first quarter.
Committed and cussed from start to finish, Sale deserved this unexpected success over hosts who seldom made it beyond second gear despite having a liberal sprinkling of England internationals in their pack. Tries for Nathan Jibulu, Tom O’Flaherty and Ben Bamber, underpinned by the experience of George Ford, Tom Curry and Courtney Lawes, represented a major upgrade on their opening weekend home loss to Bristol.
