Henry Arundell Leads Bath to Tense Victory Against Sale as Borthwick Takes Note

Almost everything is going swimmingly for the Bath team at this juncture. Finally, their much-anticipated stadium upgrade appears on the verge of starting, and on the pitch, the reigning winners have won two from two after the first couple of weekends. With the star fly-half scheduled to return in action next week to reclaim the number 10 role, it is will require a seriously good side to dethrone them.

On a rainy and blustery night in the West Country, however, they were made to work extremely hard by a tenacious Sale Sharks team who dug in deep and refused to go away. It was only with the final three minutes that Max Ojomoh dove over to score his side’s bonus point try to preserve his squad’s flawless opening to the campaign.

This was Sale’s fourth straight defeat on their rival’s home turf and the way it unfolded was mostly typical to previous matches. Bath make a virtue in squeezing teams in the final quarter of games, and here was another example of it. The Bath side might have simplified matters for themselves had they decided to go for an earlier penalty to extend their lead to eight points, but in the end, the young center had the decisive moment.

The observing England head coach the national team boss had no shortage of other players to check out, with the powerful center and Henry Arundell also looking determined to impress him. Sale’s Nathan Jibulu scored a second-half try and is clearly a young player on the rise, while the leadership and kicking accuracy of the composed George Ford were notable in difficult weather.

The fly-half was a standout for the visitors despite the loss.

It was another of those sodden nights when a shelter on the open makeshift seating would have kept fans dry. Their tickets can still be priced at a hundred pounds, but a reprieve is finally on the horizon. After lengthy debates, the green light has been granted for an 18,000-capacity stadium, with the heritage body and the government minister having approved the plan.

That merely leaves Bath awaiting final authorization, which the club are confident will materialise within a few months. And as and when Bath do at last own their own stadium by the river to complement their exceptionally squad depth, life is going to become even tougher for future visitors.

Not that Sale were in any disposition to be frightened in a combative if somewhat disjointed first half. Bath were regrettable to lose their international forward the experienced player to a knee injury inside the opening stages, and the Sharks’ scrum also made some early headway. It was Bath, though, who showed resilience and registered the game’s opening touchdown, just when Sale were applying pressure they were unzipped down the left by the center before the speedy the winger evaded the defender to score his maiden Premiership try at home for his long-supported side.

It was to be the theme of the half: glimpses of away team quality only for Bath to respond with devastating effectiveness. The game was still less than 30 minutes old when they added another try, the flanker slicing clear off the back of a Bath throw and feeding the inside center on his inside to finish exuberantly.

Thankfully Sale still had the exceptional Ford to keep them in touch. The national number 10 had already converted a well-executed penalty and a clever drop kick when a Bath restart rolled right to him on the halfway line. Having taken a moment to compose himself, the No 10 executed another precise drop-goal to close the deficit before the prop forward, from short distance, scored Bath’s third try with Sale’s captain Ernst Van Rhyn absent in the sin bin.

Coming back from a twelve-point deficit on the road would be a difficult task in any venue, especially against a Bath team with a man advantage and a deep reserves. It was a reflection of Sale’s resolve, then, when they set up Jibulu from close range just seven minutes after the restart to undermine any Bath overconfidence.

Typically that is the cue for Bath to shift up a couple of gears, but this time the Sale side were prepared. They made their own series of substitutions and, at a narrow margin, it required a spectacular tackle from the flanker to contain the powerful carries of Marius Louw. A big collision by the defender also led to Ted Hill to be substituted injured, but where it was decisive, up on the result, Bath consistently deliver these days.