Heineken Cup

Sale Sharks hung on to claim a crucial Heineken Cup victory against Cardiff Blues 27-26 at Edgeley Road in Stockport on Friday evening in a seesaw match that was both thrilling and controversial.

Fortune swung back and forth in this game. The game itself varied between tedium and intense thrill and the lasting impression was of a thriller with just one point separating two determined sides in 53 points. In the end the side that score three tries to two won, which seems fair enough except that two of those tries came during a controversial period in the match.

The match started off as if Cardiff were simply going to overwhelm Sale. Then Sale got a try and their spirits lifted. Stockport was not the Toulouse of the week before and there were several strong men back as this time Sale picked its best side.

Then Sale dominated and looked on the verge of getting a bonus point when the Blues, wearing pink, came racing back with two tries, leaving Sale hanging on by the skin of one point at the end.

Teenagers often do well in rugby but seldom as tight forwards but on this evening the stellar performance came from a teenage lock, fresh-faced, athletic and enthusiastic James Gaskell, a three-try performance as he made one, scored one and saved one.

Two [penalties by a disappointingly subdued Ben Blair gave the visitors a 6-0 lead after 10 minutes. At this stage Cardiff were sharp on the tackle, efficiently coping with the muscle of Andrew Sheridan, Andy Tuilagi and Sisaro Koyamaibole - or so it seemed. But gradually Sale shifted the balance of possession and territory, and when Robin Sowden-Taylor was penalised at a tackle, Charlie Hodgson, who had missed a kick, made the score 6-3.

Hodgson missed one but Leigh Halfpenny missed two. To be fair to the young man they were attempts from inside his own half which showed how Cardiff were battling. Halfpenny's third attempt, from two metres inside his own half, made it 9-3.

Now Sale got into gear. They used pick-'n-drive and the big men's muscle started to breach the defence - Tuilagi, Koyamaibole and Sheridan. They hammered art Cardiff and then Hodgson, swirling, was close and Sheridan closer till a heap was at or over the line. The referee referred to the television match official asking if there was a reason for him not to award a try. The TMO could not see that a try had been scored but, importantly, he could see no reason not to award the try, and so it came about that Koyamaibole scored for Sale. Hodgson converted and Sale led 10-9 after 33 minutes. They kept their lead for the rest of the match.

After the conversion the referee spoke to his assistant and they decided that Andy Powell should be sent to the sin bin for shoving Dwayne Peel after the scrumhalf had passed.  Powell's absence, for what seemed relatively trivial, was worth 14 points to Sale.

From a scrum near the Blues' 22, Koyamaibole picked up and backed away towards the left of the scrum. Then he shot a short pass inside to his left to Gaskell as he broke from the scrum and the tall young man galloped through a hole where Powell would have been and on towards the Cardiff line. Tackled he put the ball into Dean Schofield's hands and the captain bundled over for the try. 17-9.

From the kick-off Koyamaibole started a Sale break out that saw Lee Thomas racing strongly down the field. Hooker Marc Jones and prop Eifion Lewis-Roberts drove on as Cardiff scrambled in desperate defence.

Half-time came with the home side leading 17-9.

In the second half there were five free kicks at scrums, four of them on Cardiff's ball. At one of these Sale chose to scrum and low and behold they pulled exactly the same move with Koyamaibole backing away and playing to Gaskell. This time the rangy lock galloped past Sam Warburton to score close in, not disguising his delight at all. 24-9 after 43 minutes, and then only did Powell come back.

Now it was Cardiff's turn as they ran the ball back and forth across the field till Tom Shanklin was tackled out at the left corner. Cardiff turned a penalty into a five-metre line-out, formed a maul and with consummate ease ran the maul  well over the Sale line where Powell dropped to the ground for a try. 24-16 after 59 minutes.

When Koyamaibole was penalised for a high tackle of the swinging arm variety, which did not elicit a yellow card but may attract the attention of the citing commissioner, it was close enough for Blair and he goaled. 24-19 with 15 minutes to go. Cardiff were within bonus-point range.

Peel chipped and Cardiff cleared poorly to set up a Sale attack till Hodgson stood back and from slap in front put over a drop. 27-19 and Cardiff were out of bonus-point range with 11 minutes to go.

There was sad drama at one of the messy scrums. It went down and massive Andrew Sheridan dislocated a shoulder. It could not immediately be put back and he was helped from the field in pain and discomfort. Not a happy sight.

Cardiff attacked hither and thither and Halfpenny had an overlap and he went low for the corner but some how Gaskell got across to tackle him, quite brilliantly, into touch.

That gave the Sharks a five-metre line-out but replacement hooker Neil Briggs over threw. The ball bounced beyond the line-out and then broke off towards the Sale line where Sowden-Taylor dived to grab it and on over the line for a try. 27-26 with two minutes to play.

Sale kicked off deep and Cardiff yielded possession which Sale kept till it was time for Peel to boot the ball into victory.

Scorers:

For Sale Sharks:
Tries: Koyamaibole, Schofield, Gaskell
Cons: Hodgson 3
Pen: Hodgson
Drop: Hodgson

For Cardiff Blues:
Tries: Powell, Sowden-Taylor
Cons: Blair 2
Pens: Blair 2, Halfpenny

Teams:

Sale Sharks: 15 Nick MacLeod, 14 Mark Cueto, 13 Andy Tuilagi, 12 Lee Thomas, 11 Ben Cohen, 10 Charlie Hodgson, 9 Dwayne Peel, 8 Sisaro Koyamaibole, 7 David Seymour, 6 Carl Fearns, 5 Dean Schofield (captain), 4 James Gaskell, 3 Eifion Lewis-Roberts, 2 Marc Jones, 1 Andrew Sheridan
Replacements: 16 Neil Briggs, 17 Gavin Kerr, 18 Jack Forster, 19 Sean Cox, 20 Luke Abraham, 21 Richard Wigglesworth, 22 Mathew Tait, 23 Chris Bell, 

Cardiff Blues: 15 Ben Blair, 14 Leigh Halfpenny, 13 Tom Shanklin, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 Tom James, 10 Sam Norton-Knight, 9 Richie Rees, 8 Andy Powell, 7 Robin Sowden-Taylor, 6 Sam Warburton,  5 Scott Morgan, 4 Deiniol Jones, 3 Faao Filise,  2 Gareth Williams, 1 Gethin Jenkins (captain)
Replacements: 16 T Rhys Thomas, 17 Darren Morris, 18 Gary Powell, 19 Ben White, 20 Rhys Williams, 21 Gareth Cooper, 22 Ceri Sweeney, 23 Richard Mustoe 
 
Referees: Christophe Berdos (France)
Assistant referees: Eric Gauzins (France), Laurent Cardona (France)
Television match official: Daniel Dartigeas (France)
Assessor: Gianni Romano (Italy)