Sale hold off Saracens for first Premiership win despite Vermeulen red card
Sale Sharks claimed their first Premiership win of the season, beating Saracens 21-17 despite having Jacques Vermeulen sent off in the second quarter of the match.
Sale Sharks secured their first league win of this Premiership season on Saturday, beating Saracens 21-17 at home despite being reduced to 14 men for a significant part of the match.
Saracens enjoyed a numerical advantage for 27 minutes after Alex Lozowski was shown a yellow card and Jacques Vermeulen received a 20-minute red card in the 18th minute. Despite this extended advantage, Saracens were unable to break down a resilient Sale defence.
Match story
Sale nonetheless led 7-5 at half-time thanks to an early converted try from Nathan Jibulu, which had been answered by a try from Eroni Mawi. Soon after the restart, Sale extended their lead further when Tom O'Flaherty crossed for a try.
Ben Bamber later stretched Sale's advantage to 11 points, after Sione Va'enuku had narrowed the gap. A late try from Charlie Bracken brought the scores close again, but the home side held on to secure the result.
The match was officiated by referee Joe James.
