By Fenland Shark
October 13 2004

It had to end sometime. The last team to win in the league at EP became the team to end the run. Time to look forward, though, to the next encounter. Fenland Shark dons his waders and squelches his way westward to Northampton.

A trip to Franklins Gardens is always an attractive prospect: a fantastic stadium, my nearest ZP ground, and a place where away fans are always made to feel so welcome. Perhaps this has something to do with the end result of our last two league visits there, occasions when Sale have underperformed and Saints have turned on the style. However, things are lokking a little different this season.

While we come to terms with the disappointment of Friday’s defeat by London Irish, spare a thought for Saints fans. After the mass migration of South African talent into the club (and the loss of Matt Dawson), and the astute signings of former Biarritz centre Mark Stcherbina and ex-Wasps winger, John Rudd, there were many pundits tipping Northampton for the ZP this season. Alan Solomons appeared to have assembled a squad of hard men, and so it proved with convincing early season victories over Bath (4 tries) and Harlequins (6 tries, away from home). At that stage, a dominant back row of Krige, Blowers and Seeley was powering aside all those put before it. Unfortunately for Saints, their next three matches came against Gloucester (H), Leicester (A) and Wasps (H). All ended in defeat, with the local derby at Welford Road being a particularly bitter pill to swallow. With confidence dented, the away defeat to Saracens was perhaps not the surprise it might at first have seemed. Publicly, Solomons is not pressing the panic button, telling fans to keep the faith. However, Saints’ failure to turn possession and territory into points, other than from the reliable boot of Shane Drahm, has seen them slide down the table to their current standing of 9^th. Perhaps no-one symbolises the decline more than England winger, Ben Cohen, who has been sadly out of form. Rumblings about lack of tactical awareness suggest something more systemic than a case of individuals underperforming. Beware, though, for the Saints have the potential for fast, flowing rugby, with the ever-dangerous Bruce Reihana a willing and powerful runner.

Sale need to put recent disappointing performances behind them and travel to Northampton with renewed confidence. Previous matches between the two sides have tended to be open affairs, and the backs need to see some good quality ball in order to test the Northampton defence. The centre pairing of Robert Todd and Chris Rhys Jones will need to be alert to the threat posed by Tucker and Stcherbina, but will also need to find the spaces themselves. With Mark Cueto on top of his form, Saints will no doubt attempt to keep him wrapped up all afternoon. However, the numerous options that the in-from Charlie Hodgson presents mean that Sale can exploit the spaces in the midfield that have cost Northampton dearly once or twice this season. Up front, expect a battle between two combative sets of forwards, and it will be an interesting to compare the respective form of Thompson and Andy Titterell, competing for the England hooker’s position. Greater consistency in the line-out will be essential for Sale and this, combined with quick, quality ball, should be enough to see a change of fortunes this Saturday.

Expect a close encounter, in an important game for two sides wanting to get back to the winning ways of their early season form.