Sale Sharks book place in Champions Cup last-16 with bonus-point victory over Toulon
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England’s squad fly to Girona for a pre-Six Nations camp on Tuesday and a couple of Sharks have bared their teeth with the most auspicious timing and in the most pernicious fashion. Ben Curry – the scorer of a memorable individual try – alongside Bevan Rodd, neither of whom have ever nailed down a starting spot for their country, starred for Sale in this bonus-point victory over the already-qualified Toulon, which handed the Sharks last-16 qualification at the expense of Racing 92 in Pool 4.
For Sale, the five-try victory against a team who currently sit third in the Top 14, with superstar talent and a sizeable budget, was the good news. For an added bulletin of positivity, it was the Sharks who restored some English respectability as the only side from this side of the Channel to earn victory in the Anglo-French Champions Cup ties this weekend.
Outrageous by Ben Curry 🔥. The @SaleSharksRugby man showcases his footballing skills before scoring a try 🦈#InvestecChampionsCup pic.twitter.com/ixSxmWhtXQ. The bad? Despite the irrepressible graft of Ben Curry and Rodd – alongside Ben’s brother, Tom, Asher Opoku-Fordjour and two-try Tom Roebuck – the Sharks will travel to Toulouse in the competition’s first knockout round. Earlier on Sunday, the defending champions put 80 points on Leicester’s first-choice XV, playing “rugby from a different planet” according to Sale director of rugby Alex Sanderson.
