Category News

The Prem.

Bath (21) 28

Cons: Spencer 4; Tries: Arundell, Redpath, Obano, Ojomoh

Sale (9) 16

On a miserablely wet and windy night at the Rec, Bath defeated Sale 28-16 to claim their second straight victory in the Prem.

As Bath opened an 11-point lead in the first half, Henry Arundell, Cameron Redpath, and Beno Obano all crossed for the hosts.

Before the Sharks scored their first try through Nathan Jibulu shortly after the break to close the five-point gap, an impressive George Ford scored 11 points, including two drop-goals, to keep Sale in touch.

Playing the conditions as much as the opposition was crucial for both sides as the night progressed, with swirling wind and increased rain.

As Sale began with the wind in their path, Ford excelled from the boot and kicked a pin-point penalty in the third minute when Bath were penalized for the breakdown.

However, Bath were at their most brutal when they had the ball in hand and scored with a thrilling Arundell try, his third of the summer.

Arundell skipped, accelerated, and then ran into the corner under the watchful eye of England head coach Steve Borthwick as the winger, Ollie Lawrence, collected a Sale kick, and raced from his own half with the winger on his shoulder.

When Sale were forced back in the attack, Ford’s quick thinking eventually closed the gap.

The England fly-half opportunistically scooped up the ball, took a step inside the halfway line, and sweetly landed a second drop-goal to make it 14-9 as a second Ford penalty bounced off the sticks, but Bath’s clearance came right back to him.

However, as Lawrence was centimeters from scoring, Sale captain Ernst van Rhyn was flagged yellow six minutes before the break for a cynical foul, and Obano headed over for Bath’s third.

Seven minutes after the restart, Sale’s only try was scored by Hooker Jibulu, who blasted over from close range. However, as the game progressed, Bath’s defense had to be rock solid to halt the run.

Replacements: Van Wyk, Frost, Van Wyk, Griffin, Molony, Underhill, Carr-Smith, Butt, Barbeary, and others.

Sale: Carpenter, Roebuck, Bedlow, O’Flaherty, Ford, Warr, Rodd, Jibulu, Opoku-Fordjour, Bamber, Andrews, Van Rhyn (c), B. Curry, Dugdale, and R. du Preez.

Caine, McIntyre, John, Burrow, Woodman, Hanson, Reed, and Louw are the replacements.

Sin bin: Van Rhyn (34 mins), John (79 mins)

The Prem

Bath (21) 28

Tries: Arundell, Redpath, Obano, Ojomoh Cons: Spencer 4

Sale (9) 16

Bath made it two wins from two in the Prem this season as they beat Sale 28-16 on a miserably wet and windy night at the Rec.

Henry Arundell, Cameron Redpath and Beno Obano all crossed for Bath during the first half as the hosts opened an 11-point lead.

An impressive George Ford kicked 11 points, including two drop-goals, to keep Sale in touch before the Sharks scored their first try through Nathan Jibulu shortly after the break to close the gap to five.

With swirling wind and rain that intensified as the night went on, playing the conditions as much as the opposition was half the battle for both sides.

Ford was excellent from the boot as Sale started with the wind behind them, kicking a pin-point penalty in the third minute when Bath were penalised at the breakdown.

Yet Bath looked at their ruthless best when they got the ball in hand and they cantered into the lead through an electric Arundell try – his third in two matches since joining this summer.

Ollie Lawrence collected a Sale kick and raced from his own half with the winger on his shoulder and Arundell skipped and accelerated, then accelerated again, to sprint into the corner under the watchful eye of England head coach Steve Borthwick.

Ford’s quick-thinking closed the gap to a point as he kicked a drop-goal out of nowhere when Sale were pushed back in attack.

While a second Ford penalty bounced off the sticks, Bath’s clearance came straight back to him and the England fly-half opportunistically scooped up the ball, took a step inside the halfway line and sweetly landed a second drop-goal to make it 14-9.

But Sale captain Ernst van Rhyn was shown yellow six minutes before the break for a cynical foul as Lawrence came centimetres from scoring, and on the restart Obano powered over for Bath’s third.

Hooker Jibulu scored Sale’s only try seven minutes after the restart, barging over from close range, yet their defence had to be rock solid to stifle Bath as the game went on.

Bath: De Glanville; Cokanasiga, Lawrence, Redpath, Arundell, Ojomoh, Spencer (c); Obano, Dunn, Sela; Roux, Ewels, Hill, Pepper, Reid.

Replacements: Frost, Van Wyk, Griffin, Molony, Underhill, Carr-Smith, Butt, Barbeary.

Sale: Carpenter; Roebuck, R. du Preez, Bedlow, O’Flaherty, Ford, Warr; Rodd, Jibulu, Opoku-Fordjour; Bamber, Andrews, Van Rhyn (c), B. Curry, Dugdale.

Replacements: Caine, McIntyre, John, Burrow, Woodman, Hanson, Reed, Louw.

Sin bin: Van Rhyn (34 mins), John (79 mins)

Dragons (14) 17

Cons: De Beer 2 Pen: De Beer 2 Tries: Wainwright, O’Brien

Sharks (17) 17

At Rodney Parade, the Dragons draw 17-17 against the Sharks, ending an 18-game losing streak in the United Rugby Championship (URC).

Although it should have been Filo Tiatia’s men’s first home win since the opening weekend of last season, Newport’s team shared the spoils.

Marvin Orie and Vincent Tshituka, both scorekeepers, gave the Sharks lead 17-14 at half-time, with scores from Dragons’ eighth-ranked Aaron Wainwright and full-back Angus O’Brien.

Sharks kicked a penalty to the corner before Orie headed over for an eighth-minute try that fly-half Jean Smith converted, and the Dragons made a poor start that paid off.

After Paea’s powerful burst and Wainwright’s strong line and quick finish, the home side had their first notable attack.

De Beer converted, but Smith added a penalty in the 19th minute to make the Sharks 10-7.

Paea made it 14-10 after 25 minutes when he burst through from midfield partner Aneurin Owen’s short ball and kept his cool after bumping off wing Christie Grobbelaar.

After winning the match, the Sharks went to their changing room with a 17-14 lead after kicking to the corner and hammering away for Tshituka to score a try Smith converted.

Four minutes after the restart, when TMO footage revealed a knock-on by Wyn Jones before Rio Dyer went over from a cross-kick, denied the Dragons a third try.

As the game approached the final quarter without any second-half scores, they were dealt the blow of losing Paea, and things started to get more difficult.

With a penalty in hand, Dragons chose to go for the posts, and De Beer leveled the scores with a quarter-hour to go.

After receiving a yellow card for tight-head replacement Chris Coleman, the hosts finished the game with 14 men.

Dragons escaped an attack on their line and were hunting for a winner in the red when they ran out of time.

Burrows, Martinez, Coleman, Douglas, Keddie, Hope, Ackerman, and Anderson are the replacements.

Van der Merwe, Sobahle, Julius, Am, Grobbelaar, J Smith, Ja Hendrikse, Matanzima, Mbatha, Dreyer, Slabbert, Orie, Buthelezi, M Tshituka, V Tshituka (capt.),

Replacements: Kunene, Dawson, Dawson, Dlamini, Hatton, Braude, F Venter, and Swart.

Referee: Fillip Russo (FIR).

Lucas Yendle (WRU) and Ben Whitehouse serve as assistant referees.