Sale Sharks v London Irish | Matchday Programme

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A WORD FROM THE AXE

WELCOME BACK TO THE AJ BELL STADIUM FOR OUR FIRST GAME THIS SEASON UNDER THE FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS.

We also have the BT Sport cameras with us for the first time this season, and they’ll be expecting a spectacle. If the two fixtures between these sides last season are anything to go by, that’s exactly what they’ll get.

Can I start by welcoming Declan Kidney and his excellent London Irish side to Manchester. With good reason they’re known as one of the best teams to watch in the Gallagher Premiership. They’ve got powerful forwards and a dangerous back line full of pace and guile, and we know we’ll have to be at our very best if we want to keep our unbeaten start to the season going.

Our start has been fantastic but the really exciting thing is that we know we can get better. We don’t feel like we’ve put a complete 80 minute performance together yet but the results have been excellent, and no more than the lads deserve for the work they’ve put in on and off the training field.

I talked about last week being just

another Saturday in one sense, but a win away at the champions shouldn’t be taken lightly. I was delighted with lots of aspects of our game but what pleased me the most was their composure at half time.

It’s easy at Mattioli Woods Welford Road to think the sky has fallen down when you’re 16-12 down at half time. But when we spoke at the break, the message that came back was ‘we’ve got this if we execute our gameplan.’ They were confident in terms of their physical ability and what they’d seen out on the park and they knew not to panic. That’s the biggest improvement that this group has made from the team we were last season. We saw it against Exeter too after a difficult first twenty minutes.

A lot of the headlines last week were about the return of Raffi Quirke. I have to admit that he was better than I thought he could be after six months out. I had a word with him before half time just to encourage him to do the basics well, but there was nothing basic about what he did. He was exceptional on both sides of the ball.

Raffi gets a chance to start tonight but that’s no reflection on Gus Warr, who I think has been fantastic this season. He’s stepped up to the plate and his performances have been superb.

We had two high scoring draws with tonight’s opponents last season which tells you how evenly matched the sides are. We felt we could and maybe should have won both games, but they had kicks to win both games.

Those leads which we gave up against Irish could have cost us a top four place but so could our performance away at Worcester, or our Covid match that was cancelled. I’m not a fan of draws but they’re part and parcel of the game. I was asked this week if we should ‘Americanise’ it so that we always have a winner and I gave that one short thrift – the three points you get from snatching an away draw

could be massive come the end of the season.

Either way, I’m sure you’re all in for another treat tonight.

Enjoy the game, Al

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FLATS OFF TO A FLIER

It was a summer of change for Your Sharks as the offseason saw the departures of some big names and some fans’ favourites. But as soon as the new Premiership season got underway the focus switched to the new faces in Alex’s squad, and it’s fair to say that one the highest-profile additions –winger Tom O’Flaherty - has hit the ground running.

Tom made the move to Manchester from Exeter Chiefs along with lock Jonny Hill, and the pair have starred as the team has made an unbeaten start to the Gallagher Premiership season. Ahead of this weekend’s round six clash with London Irish under the Friday night lights, we caught up with Tom to find out how he’s settling in to his new home.

He said: “It’s been brilliant –everyone has been so welcoming, and I feel like I’ve settled in really quickly. The rugby has been going really well too which definitely helps.

“Everyone has been clear on their roles and we’ve managed to fix a couple of issues from pre-season really quickly. We’ve stuck to our processes and we’ve executed really well on the field.

“The environment and the culture here are fantastic – not too different to what I was used to at Exeter. The group is really tight and there are a few differences in terms of the way the coaches like to work. That’s actually been a welcome change for me.

“Coming up with Jonny was really useful and I knew Sam Hill already too. It is a different way of life in Manchester compared to the

WE’VE STARTED THIS SEASON REALLY WELL BUT WE KNOW THERE’S SO MUCH MORE TO COME.

The home of domestic rugby

south coast but it’s been a really good move for me so far. The city is bigger than I thought it was and I’m enjoying getting to know new places.”

Ahead of Tom’s arrival in the summer Alex spoke about how excited he was to work with the 28 year old – and it seems that after a couple of months of working with his new DoR, the feeling is mutual.

He said: “Alex is fantastic. He’s really personable and takes a real interest in everyone off the pitch as well as on, which I really like. He takes time to speak to everyone, and I love the open communication.

“I think he’s building something special here. We’ve started this season really well but we know there’s so much more to come.”

Sharks made it four from four in the league last weekend with a statement win against the Premiership champions Leicester Tigers – but Tom says there’s no room for complacency.

He added: “It was a good win against a really strong team. The second half was good but there are things to work on from the first half. You could say it was an acid test for our team because they’re the champions but this season a lot has changed.

Players have moved clubs and it’s difficult to tell where teams are at this early in the season.

“The league is so competitive and nothing is a given and we’ll need to be at our best

again to beat London Irish. They’re a really dangerous team with a very strong back three.

“They’re solid defensively too so it’ll be a really tough test, and hopefully an exciting game. We know we can’t take our eye off the ball because every game is tough and every team has a point to prove and a lot to play for.”

FROM THE SHARK TANK

OUR WEEKLY GUEST SPOT FROM THE PODCASTING SUPERFANS OVER AT THE SHARK TANK, THE NORTHERN POWERHOUSE OF RUGBY PODCASTING, WITH A DETAILED, IRREVERENT AND OCCASSIONALLY CYNICAL LOOK AT ALL THINGS SALE SHARKS.

Life doesn’t get much better than this as a Sale fan does it?

Unbeaten so far all season, bonus points aplenty, academy talent driving the way with the squad depth looking incredibly strong, and a feeling that the best is still yet to come. Even the most pessimistic of Sale fans would struggle to find fault in that start to the season. Ahead of our first game against Northampton we said that the one thing this team hasn’t been able to put together in the last few years is a fast start to the season – well, we can consider that particular issue consigned to the history books.

The two games since our last notes haven’t been anything short of big tests either – a resurgent Exeter at home and the champions Leicester away. The Exeter game saw the level of near test match intensity we expect from our clashes with them, and what stood out was our defensive ability in the tackle to hit Exeter and take them back behind the gainline. Exeter’s tries actually largely came from momentary lapses in defence rather than them breaking us down, and our power and

intensity seemed to overwhelm them for our three tries when we were on the attack. Any caveats that this might have been an out of form Exeter side were swiftly blown away when they then put 50 points on Bristol the week after.

While there were a number of excellent performances in the Exeter game, we can’t move on without talking about Joe Carpenter. With Luke James injured,

the full back position could have been a cause for concern over the next few months. Step up Joe, taking high balls with aplomb, scoring tries on debut, and even winning jackal turnovers. It must be lesson one in the Sale Sharks academy – we expect it from the Currys but now even the backs are doing it!

We then came on to an away game against the champions, and even the most optimistic Sale fan probably thought this was a tough test, with Leicester expected to react at home coming off the back of a big defeat away at Saracens. But yet again our ferocity in defence and, more excitingly, slick attacking play were in evidence throughout. Tom Roebuck’s strength for the first, Gus Warr’s flick between the legs to set up Rob for the second, then a try assist and try from the electric returning Raffi to secure the game in the second half.

So we come to Friday night sitting 2nd in the table, only bettered by the frankly freakish Saracens who are blowing sides away with ease. We welcome the always exciting London Irish to the AJ Bell knowing a win will put us back on top. There’s a feel good atmosphere around the club and we’re back under Friday night lights, so with a raucous crowd behind the team, we’ll hope for another win to continue the dream start we’ve seen this season.

Come on you Sharks!

Alex, James and Lewis

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SHARKS JOIN LOOSEHEADZ MISSION WITH NEW MENTAL HEALTH LEAD

Sale Sharks has appointed its first clubwide mental health lead as it becomes the first Gallagher Premiership club to officially partner up with mental health movement LooseHeadz.

Eddie Owen, who works as Mental Wellbeing Manager at the club’s charity partner, the Sale Sharks Foundation, will take up the role, which will see him support the club’s players and staff.

The partnership will also see Sale Sharks support Wilmslow-based LooseHeadz with their mission to tackle the stigma around mental health, and place a mental-health lead – known as a ‘LooseHead’ – in every rugby club worldwide.

And that will start with a special event in November where Sharks will introduce LooseHeadz to its ‘100 Clubs’ network of rugby clubs all over the North West.

Sale Sharks CEO Sid Sutton said: “We know that the mental health and wellbeing of our players and staff is every bit as important as their physical condition when it comes to making sure they are ready to perform at their very best on and off the pitch.

“But more importantly than that, we want to create an environment

ROB SHOTTON

where our players and staff become better people during their time here, and feel supported in every aspect of their lives.

“We want to be so much more than a rugby club and the partnership with LooseHeadz is a perfect way to make an impact both at home and further afield in our communities.

“The LooseHeadz team has ambitious targets and we’re really excited to see how we can support them to make as big an impact as possible in rugby clubs and beyond.”

Sale Sharks players Manu Tuilagi, Sam James and Luke James are already ambassadors for LooseHeadz, and they’ll be joined in that role by Sharks Women’s co-captains Lauren Delany and Georgie Perris-Redding.

The club is also committed to rolling out LooseHeadz’ mental health toolkit to all junior academy and Centre of Excellence players and participants in the Sale Sharks Foundation rugby camps.

Sharks’ new LooseHeadz mental health lead Eddie said: “LooseHeadz is doing some amazing work and I’m honoured to have the chance to support that within our club. Our player and staff all have mental health and we all need to check in with each other and support other.”

Rob Shotton, Co-founder of LooseHeadz, said “We’re delighted to be partnering with

Sale Sharks to tackle the stigma of mental health together.

“LooseHeadz was born out of a conversation right here in the North West of England so we’re delighted to be working with the club to further our mission of placing a mental health lead at every rugby club.

“The three co-founders of LooseHeadz are all Sale Sharks supporters so this is partnership is a special one and we can’t wait to get started!”

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DU PREEZ TWINS COMMIT FUTURE TO SHARKS

JEAN-LUC AND DAN HAVE SIGNED NEW DEALS KEEPING THEM AT SALE UNTIL THE END OF THE 2025/26 SEASON.

Alex Sanderson has hailed ‘honorary Mancunians’ JeanLuc and Dan du Preez as two of the Premiership’s very best after the twins committed their long-term futures to Sale Sharks.

The powerful 27-year-olds, who signed for the club on permanent deals in 2019, have put pen to paper on deals taking them up to the end of the 2025/26 season.

The twins arrived in Manchester from Durban-based Super Rugby side Cell C Sharks, where they had played alongside older brother – and now Sale teammate – Rob.

Since then both players have become key parts of the Sharks side, with versatile Jean-Luc, who initially joined on loan, racking up 83 appearances for the club, and number eight Dan featuring 73 times.

Sharks Director of Rugby Alex said the new deals for two of his key players demonstrates the level of the club’s ambition.

He said: “Where do I start with the du Preez twins and their physicality, their passion and their quality? My cup runeth over.

“They are two of the very best and most consistent performers in the Premiership and for them to both commit three of the best years of their careers to this club goes so far in shouting out what a special place this is.

“The lads had offers from Japan and from France but they want to be here and that demonstrates just how high our aspirations and ambitions are.

“Jean-Luc and Dan have had kids here, their families are happy here and they’ve really found a home. I know they’re from South Africa but they’re honorary Mancunians.”

Jean-Luc has won 13 international caps since making his Springbok debut as a replacement against

Wales, in Cardiff, in 2016.

Dan, who has six caps, made his debut for the Springboks the following year and in doing so made history.

The twins’ dad Robert played seven tests for South Africa and when Dan took the field against France, it was the first time in South African rugby that two sons of a Springbok had played Test rugby.

In 2021 both Jean-Luc and Dan were named in the Springbok squad for the series against the British and Irish Lions.

“This is a huge coup for the club. Jean-Luc and Dan were highly sought after and had plenty of offers from both the Gallagher Premiership and abroad. They see what we’re building here and they want to stay and be a part of it.

“It’s a huge statement of intent for us. We want to create an environment where the very best players feel like they can grow and thrive and be successful.

“Jean-Luc and Dan are absolutely integral to what we want to achieve and we’re all thrilled that they’ve decided to stay.”

WELCOME

SALE SHARKS FOUNDATION CHANGING YOUNG LIVES WITH MERSEYSIDE POLICE

SALE SHARKS FOUNDATION AND MERSEYSIDE POLICE HAVE JOINED FORCES TO ENGAGE AND INSPIRE PRIMARY SCHOOL CHILDREN THROUGH THE POWER OF RUGBY.

Knife crime, cyberbullying, illegal e-scooters, and other offences are all discussed in classroom sessions with police officers, while outdoor tag rugby sessions are delivered by Sharks community coaches.

The programme aims to prevent crime through early intervention and by introducing children to an alternative hobby.

Police Officer Emily Scarratt, who delivers the classroom sessions, said: “Children who commit antisocial behaviour are often bored and don’t have a hobby.

“Hopefully the conversations we have today will help inform the children to make positive choice as they grow up.”

The first week of the programme was delivered to over 220 children in Wirral in multiple schools, including 96 children in Overchurch Junior School.

Libby Nixon, year six teacher at Overchurch Junior School, said: “The children have loved it. The values of rugby reflect the values we have here at our school and the Sharks coaches have been fantastic.”

Merseyside Police Officer

William Hughes said: “It’s been immense, they’ve now got an Overchurch School dance inspired by the Haka, so hopefully that’s something that they’ll remember and take away with them.

“Historically we tend to find that rugby players have a certain mindset that is consistent with good behaviour in the community. What we’re trying to do is

grow the game and grow positive behaviours across our community.”

After its positive reception, early plans to expand the programme are already underway, with rugby clubs in the North West invited to host sessions for older teenagers. The sessions will focus on risk-taking ahead of a joint rugby session.

IT’S BEEN IMMENSE –THEY’VE NOW GOT AN OVERCHURCH SCHOOL DANCE INSPIRED BY THE HAKA!

WILLIAM HUGHES

PLAY LIKE THE PROS

YOUR SHARKS

GEORGE ARNOLD

ROUBAN BIRCH

BEN BAMBER

EWAN ASHMAN

ETHAN CAINE

JOSH BEAUMONT

DOM BARROW

BEN CARLILE

PATREECE BELL

ELLIS CAUSEY

HUW DAVIES

JAMES HARPER

SAM DUGDALE

BEN CURRY

DAN DU PREEZ

ROSS HARRISON

CAL FORD

TOM CURRY

JEAN-LUC DU PREEZ

JONNY

ALEX GROVES

JOE JONES

NKONGE

JONO

MATT POSTLETHWAITE

SIMON MCINTYRE

TUMY ONASANYA

NICK

WILL RILEY

EWAN MURPHY

COENIE OOSTHUIZEN

TOMMY

BEVAN RODD

BACKS

HARRY THOMPSON

TRISTAN WOODMAN

CONNOR DOHERTY

JOE CARPENTER

AKKER VAN DER MERWE

ROB DU PREEZ

WILL CLIFF

COBUS WIESE

JOE BEDLOW

GEORGE FORD

TOM CURTIS

ELLIOT GOURLAY

SAM JAMES

ARRON REED

TOM O’FLAHERTY

SAM HILL

BYRON MCGUIGAN

TOM ROEBUCK

AARON POPE

LUKE JAMES

BEN MOTAMED

JOE SIMPSON

RAFFI QUIRKE

CHARLIE WARDLE

TULAGI KIERAN WILKINSON

GUS WARR

WOODWARD

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