Sharks Matchday Programme - Gloucester Rugby 12.03.22

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Shark Nat ions Week e n Sat 12 Ma d r • KO: 3PM

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SharkS v gLOuCeSter Sat 12 Mar • KO: 3pm • AJ Bell Stadium

VS

Last time we met: Sat 9 Oct • Kingsholm

33-32 W L d Historic stats vs Gloucester: WINS

LOSSES

DRAWS

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Officials: Ref: Christophe Ridley Assistant Ref’s: George Selwood & Phil Watters TMO: Rowan Kitt 5

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hOMe iS Where the Shark iS

T E E M R E V NE S E O R E H R U O Y S Y a a LW

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SanderS SaYS R o D N O S R E D N A S X E AL

Welcome back to the AJ Bell Stadium for another really big game, not just for us, but for our opponents, Gloucester Rugby, too. I feel like I say this every week but we are looking at every game as a cup final and today is no different. Given how tight the Premiership table is as we enter On behalf of everyone at Sale Sharks can I welcome George the business end Skivington and his staff and players to the AJ Bell. George is of the season, I’m building a really exciting team sure everyone at Kingsholm and we’re under no illusions about the size of our at Gloucester is challenge today. If we needed approaching every reminding of Gloucester’s quality, we’ve only got to watch fixture with the the return fixture earlier in the season. same mentality.

It was a game we could have snatched at the end, but as I said at the time, it would have been daylight robbery if we’d have won that game. For the first 65 minutes, we were outplayed in almost every area. They were more physical, more dominant at the maul and their kicking game was better. As a group that prides itself on its physicality and intensity, that’s tough to take, and it means that today’s game is a good barometer for us to measure how far we’ve come since that day.

We’ve been on a good run and although last week’s result at Exeter was disappointing, we know that if we do what we do best, we can get back on track today.

They say that all plans are good ones until the first shot is fired, and that’s what happened last week. The plan went out of the window and we spent most of the game trying to manage the collateral damage. Some of the lads went into the game having spent most of the week in bed unwell and when you’re a team that relies on physicality, that tends to mean that you come out second best in the collisions.

We were a fraction of a second off it, and that’s all it takes to lose a game.

what we did in the second half and the way we responded.

So that’s the benchmark now.

Nothing less than full power will do if we’re going to achieve what I know this team is capable of.

As I say every week, it’s such an exciting time for this club. I’m hoping I can tell you about one or two more additions to the squad in the next couple of weeks, and, sadly, there will be players leaving too. We’re trying to fit the pieces of the jigsaw together to give us the very best squad to compete not just next season but for five or even ten years down the line.

We’ve got big ambitions and I hope you’re every bit as excited as I am.

Enjoy the game, Alex.

Our urgency was not there and we were off it in every area, but we spoke heatedly at half time about how to fix what had happened, and for me, I measure our team on 9

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Sh rK In the SpOTLIGhT SS

O R JONO

From Faf de Klerk to Tom Curry and Rob du Preez, the Sharks squad is blessed with some big personalities. And in a team packed full of leaders, it takes a special person to stand out as the captain. But that’s exactly what Jono Ross has been doing through thick and thin since he was given the armband more than three years ago.

And despite some challenges in this campaign, our 31-year-old skipper is confident that good times are ahead for his Sharks.

Jono said: “We started slowly this season and didn’t get off to the start we all wanted. It was tough after a Lions tour but actually I think maybe we needed to experience a tough time like that to come out of it a better team.

“Last season was great and we won a lot of games but sometimes when it’s hard going, that’s when the true test of the group comes. Now I feel we’ve come through it as a better team and a tighter group.

“We’ve also seen some really good young players come through because they got chances at the start of the season. Guys like Tom Roebuck, Arron Reed and Kieran Wilkinson got opportunities and they have grown so much.”

After the defeat against Gloucester earlier in the season, Director of Rugby Alex Sanderson talked about the importance of getting some of his big players back.

And Jono says today’s game is a good way of measuring just how far the squad has come since that fixture at Kingsholm.

WE WERE DISAPPOINTED WITH OUR FIRST HALF AGAINST EXETER LAST WEEK BUT THIS TEAM HAS SO MUCH CHARACTER AND WE’LL TAKE A LOT FROM OUR SECOND HALF AND THE WAY WE CAME BACK. He said: “Gloucester are a really good team and it’ll be a huge challenge for us today, but I feel like in the last five or six weeks every game has been like that.

“We were disappointed with our first half against Exeter last week but this team has so much character and we’ll take a lot from our second half and the way we came back.

“In many ways this game is a good barometer for us, but we’ve always known that if we get our game and our processes right, the results will follow.

“Every game is a cup final for us and of course it would be great to get into that top four, but it would be really foolish to look too far ahead.

We’re focused on the next game and the job in hand and that’s today against Gloucester.”

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Jono has seen big changes on and off the field since he signed for Sale in April 2017. But he says he still gets the same buzz every day as he did the first time he ran out in a Sharks shirt against Wasps.

He added: “It’s always been an exciting place to be. That’s why I came here in the first place.

good players leave the club, there are some fantastic players coming in too.

“We’ve got some brilliant young players too, and as the captain that’s really rewarding. I can remember the Curry twins coming into the team for the first time and now look at what they’ve achieved. The future is so bright and I’m loving being a part of it.”

“With Simon, Michelle and Ged as owners there’s always been so much ambition and then when Alex came in last year, it felt like it went up to another level.

“On and off the field we’re putting in the work and putting building blocks in place for the future and while that might mean some good friends and

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FrOM the Sh rK tank S N A F R E P U S / T S A PODC

The phrase ‘a game of two halves’ has never been more applicable than last week.

Let’s be honest, that first half was an absolute horror show and we don’t want to talk about it.

Couldn’t throw, couldn’t scrum, could leave wide gaping holes on the wing for O’Flaherty and Woodburn to fly through at pace.

Second half then. Better, but somehow still frustrating.

Finally, we got some points on the board which in fairness our second half play deserved - and we get over at the very end of the game to secure a bonus point. Plus, crucially, we denied Exeter a try bonus point (or the TMO did – your call). Come the end of the season,

that might be more important than it feels right now and we’ll be looking back and saying those points turned out to be crucial.

As we look back out of the heat of the moment, we might also see the caveats which this result has written all over it. We were away from home, of course. We were against a very good Exeter side, with international class in Hogg and Vermuelen back. And most crucially we suffered a slew of injuries and illnesses which disrupted us both before the game and during it. It’s a testament to the mentality and resolve of this squad that being 19-0 down at half time, having had nearly the worst half of rugby we’ve had this season, and with multiple changes, we came out and won the second half 12-0. On that basis, in the cold light of day, a losing bonus point is actually something of a result?

(Our ability to turn losses into weird optimistic signs for the future will never cease to amaze).

So, we’ve now had a six day turnaround after a bruising encounter against Exeter, with injuries all over the squad, an in-form team turning up and a huge pressure game that might determine our season – it’s fair to say backs are somewhat to the wall on this one. Luckily we have a squad, a DoR and a fanbase that are used to that situation in a variety of ways. On that basis, we should walk it...

end of the season. Still might be one trophy left for him to lift yet...

(Okay, that might be too optimistic.

But you never know).

Alex, James & Lewis

Of course it won’t be that easy, as it’s an in form Gloucester side we welcome back to the AJ Bell, and one that put us to the sword for 75 minutes of the game at Kingsholm earlier in the season. Hopefully then, it’s the momentum from that last five minutes that we take into this game.

Finally before we go, a note for James Phillips who since our last programme notes has been forced to retire from rugby due to injury. As we said in the pod this week, James has been a great servant to the club who continues to be missed on the field for his style of play – he exceeded all expectations and we are gutted that we won’t see him pull on a Sale shirt again. Hopefully we can give him the send off he deserves with a fantastic run of form to the

To listen to the podcast:

CLiCk here 19

S P I L L I H P S E M JA

Sale Sharks’ forward James Phillips has retired on medical advice following a serious injury sustained in a pre-season game in September.

The 34-year-old, who joined the club from Bath ahead of the 2018/19 season, suffered a double fracture of his jaw in the game against Benetton Treviso.

He underwent an operation the next day but suffered from headaches and dizziness in the weeks that followed.

And after further scans and consultations with experts as well as Sale Sharks medical staff, the former Bristol and Exeter man has called time on a professional rugby career that has seen him play almost 300 games.

James said: “I’m absolutely gutted to be honest that my career has been cut short, but I’ve known for a little while that this was likely to be the end.

“I can’t remember too much about the incident in the Treviso game but I’ve watched it back since. I got my head in the wrong place in a tackle and took a knee to the jaw.

I’VE LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF MY TIME AT SALE SHARKS. THE COACHES, THE PLAYERS AND THE STAFF AT THE CLUB HAVE MADE ME FEEL SO WELCOME AND THE SUPPORTERS HAVE ALWAYS BEEN BRILLIANT WITH ME. “After the operation, I thought I’d be back playing within four or five weeks but then I started getting headaches and feeling dizzy and groggy all the time. I had some scans and tests and it was clear that it was more serious than we thought at first.

“It’s hard to take but I’ve loved every minute of my time at Sale Sharks. The coaches, the players and the staff at the club have made me feel so welcome and the supporters have always been brilliant with me.

“The last few months have been really difficult for me but I’ve had fantastic support from the club, but more importantly from my wife and my two girls. I don’t know how I’d have got through it without them so I want to say a big thank you.”

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Known affectionately at the club as ‘Philsy’, 6’4” powerhouse James started his career at Bristol, making his debut against Sharks in the 2007/08 season.

Spells at Exeter Chiefs and Bath followed, before he joined Sale on an initial two-year deal in March 2018.

After signing a contract extension, he played a key role for Sharks last season, making 26 appearances in all competitions as Alex Sanderson’s men reached their first play-off semi-final in 15 years.

Paying tribute to the versatile forward, Alex said: “James is a fantastic player, but more importantly, he’s really honest, genuine guy who is so well loved by everyone at the club.

“He’s not been able to train at all over the past few months but he’s still been down at Carrington regularly and you can see how popular he is with the players.

“He’s a converted northerner and I know that despite his playing career being cut short, he’s got so much still to give to the game as a coach.

“I genuinely hope that he’ll be one of those people who will be part of the Sharks family for life.

We’ve loved working with him and wish him all the very best for the future.”

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#YourClub is a programme created in 2019, which aims to bring Sale Sharks support to grass-roots rugby clubs, in the North West.

Summer 2019 saw limited places available on the very popular Sale Sharks camps, due to Covid, which meant a lot of young developing players were left disappointed.

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