Harleqins v Sale - Round Three
After the glitz, glamour, record crowd and disappointment at the narrow defeat to Wasps at Twickenham last weekend, Quins head back up the M6 to face Sale for the third time in four weeks.
Having braved the snows of the North last time in the Heineken Cup, this week sees the two sides battling it out for position in the Guinness Premiership.
Quins have made six changes this week to the starting XV with Aston Croall, Matt Cairns and John Andress filling the front row, James Percival making up one half of the engine room, George Lowe at 13 and Tom Williams on the wing. Last week’s starting front row, Tani Fuga, Ceri Jones and Mark Lambert move to the bench, along with Lewis Stevenson and Ugo Monye.
Quins will be hoping to make it third time lucky after going down to Sale in the last two entertaining encounters. Both teams have been showing what rugby is all about of late, with an array of skills on display, proving that good, running rugby is still very much a part of the modern game. With some quarters saying a new bond has been formed between the two teams, it has all the ingredients to make up a thrilling encounter.
Sale meanwhile head into the match well aware of how important a fixture it is for both squads.
“This is a big game for both Sharks and Quins,” said Sale boss Kingsley Jones.
“Quins will come here desperate to put the narrow defeat by Wasps behind them. They have quality players all over the field and we are expecting a very tough game to start of the New Year.”
The Teams:
Sale: 15 Nick Macleod, 14 Mark Cueto, 13 Mathew Tait, 12 Jonny Kennedy, 11 Ben Cohen, 10 Charlie Hodgson, 9 Dwayne Peel, 8 Sisa Koyamaibole, 7 David Seymour, 6 Carl Fearns, 5 James Gaskell, 4 Dean Schofield, 3 Jack Forster, 2 Neil Briggs, 1 Eifion Roberts
Replacements: 16 Mahonri Schwalger, 17 Gavin Kerr, 18 Martin Halsall, 19 Chris Jones, 20 Luke Abraham, 21 Richard Wigglesworth, 22 Chris Bell, 23 David Docherty
Harlequins: 15 Mike Brown, 14 David Strettle, 13 George Lowe, 12 Nils Mordt, 11 Tom Williams, 10 Nick Evans, 9 Danny Care, 8 Nick Easter
7 Will Skinner (captain), 6 Chris Robshaw, 5 George Robson, 4 James Percival, 3 John Andress, 2 Matt Cairns, 1 Aston Croall
Replacements: 16 Tani Fuga, 17 Ceri Jones, 18 Mark Lambert, 19 Lewis Stevenson, 20 Tom Guest, 21 Karl Dickson, 22 Rory Clegg, 23 Ugo Monye
Date: Friday, 1 January
Venue: Kingsholm
Time: 17.30 (17.30 GMT)
