Sale squad’s ‘honest’ meeting with owners has reset ambitions, says Sanderson

Alex Sanderson has said an “honest” meeting of Sale’s owners, players and coaches this week has set their intention for the Boxing Day encounter with Harlequins and beyond.

The Sharks are seventh in the Prem table, with two wins from seven, and were soundly beaten by Northampton at Franklin’s Gardens last Saturday. Their most recent Prem victory came against Newcastle on 10 October, and the director of rugby knows they need to start winning to have any chance of reaching the playoffs for a fourth straight season.

“It wasn’t a crisis meeting, but honest – about what kind of team we want to be,” Sanderson said. “Not an inconsistent one, a one week on, one week off team. Those teams don’t reach semi-finals, don’t reach finals.

“We’ve got this opportunity now, at home, in front of our families [against Quins]. We talked about families watching, your kids watching. Does it matter? Does it [defeat] hurt enough? Real deep questions around that. We’ve delved into that.”

Both sides will have a point to prove at CorpAcq Stadium on Friday: “dented pride” as Sanderson put it. Harlequins were thrashed by Bristol at Twickenham last Saturday, conceding 40 points, while Sale leaked 47 against rampant Saints on the same day.

Sanderson said the pre-Christmas meeting with the owners, Simon and Michelle Orange, established minimum requirements for the squad given the level of investment: Sale’s most recent accounts showed an annual loss of £8m.

“The owners came in to say: ‘This isn’t going to stop.’ They’re supporting the players financially and will continue to do that … The understanding is that if they’re financially supporting the club, the minimum they ask for is a performance based around effort. Everyone can try hard, can’t they?

“They came in to show solidarity and to tell the players that nothing’s going away in terms of support. It wasn’t an ultimatum but just: ‘Understand we’re all in this together.’ I thought that was quite a powerful thing.”

Sanderson welcomes the England fly-half George Ford back to face Harlequins after a groin strain with Bevan Rodd, Joe Carpenter and Rekeiti Ma’asi-White also returning to action.

“There’s a few big hitters that could come into the frame,” Sanderson said. “They are going to be a massive boost for us, not just in terms of experience, but how they drive standards which weren’t there last weekend. We need a response.”