Northampton Saints vs. Sale Sharks: A Probable Continuation of the Sharks’ Superiority

Of all the matches scheduled for 19 February 2022 as a part of round 17 of the Gallagher Premiership, one will be amongst the Northampton Saints and The Sale Sharks at Cinch Stadium at the Franklin’s Gardens, UK.

Northampton has had some great successes in the Premiership season 2021-22. During the last month of 2021, the team won a match by Bath with an almost double score of 40-19. This year, the Saints have 2 out of 4 fixtures, one over the Newcastle Falcons 44-8 and the other against Worcester Warriors 29-13. In the past 2 years, out of the last 4 head-to-head matches played by the teams, Northampton has only won 1 game with a minor score difference of 17-14. In the last 4 successive European Rugby Champions Cup games, Northampton has unfortunately not won. They lost the most recent Premiership tournament by Leicester Tigers 35-20. The team needs success over the Sharks in order to settle their overall scores. Hence, they’ll need to be vigilant and confident for the coming fight. 

• Paul Hill
• David Ribbans
• Courtnall Skosan
• Alex Mitchell
• Tommy Freeman

In the last rounds of the Premiership, the Sharks scored 3 uninterrupted wins in matches against Leicester Tigers 35-26, Harlequin 36-14, and Worcester Warriors 36-12. The team has been performing really well this season and will surely continue to do so. They explicitly won 3 head-to-head tournaments, all with a tremendous score difference of 34-14, 32-23, 30-6. One of their great wins was in the European Champions Cup when they beat Ospreys 49-10. Sharks are currently ranked second for the number of dominant tackles. The squad's previous game is proof of their capabilities, and it will push them to put on their best suit.

• Jono Ross
• Josh Brown
• Aj Macginty
• Byron Mcguigan
• Will Cliff

The Saints would want to regain their trace for the upcoming game, which was interrupted by a loss against Leicester Tigers. However, The Sharks will not be ready to let go of their lead yet and will probably present a good fight against the Saints.