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Sale Sharks vs London Irish – Teams and Aviva Premiership Match Preview

 

Sale Sharks vs London Irish takes place this afternoon in the Aviva Premiership.

The game takes place at the AJ Bell Stadium and is scheduled to start at 14:00 GMT.

Sale will be looking to leapfrog London Irish on the Aviva Premiership ladder when the two lock horns this afternoon.

The Sharks are currently in 10th position in the 12 team competition with a total of 11 points and they have won just twice all season, while London Irish are one place and one point better off.

Sale Sharks have won only one of their last five matches in all competitions – 32-29 at home to Wasps in round one of the Anglo-Welsh Cup.

The Sharks only defeat in their last four fixtures at AJ Bell Stadium was by the narrowest of margins against Munster in the European Champions Cup on October 18.

London Irish have lost three of their last four fixtures in Aviva Premiership Rugby, the win being 22-19 at Leicester in round four.

The Exiles have won three of their last five away games in all tournaments. Things could not be move even in the last five Aviva Premiership Rugby encounters between the two clubs, with two wins apiece plus a draw.

London Irish have not beaten Sale at home since Sharks took their 2010/11 home fixture to the Reebok Stadium in Bolton.
Sean Cox will make his debut for London Irish in the game against his former club Sale. He joins captain George Skivington in the second row after recovering from a hamstring injury.


Leo Halavatau of London Irish (Photo by David Jones/Getty Images)

Tom Court, David Paice and Halani Aulika make up the front row with Kieran Low, Luke Narraway and Tom Guest in the back row.

Chris Noakes and Darren Allinson form the half back pairing with Eoin Griffin and Fergus Mulchrone in the centre. Topsy Ojo, Alex Lewington and Andrew Fenby make up the back three.

Teams:
 
Sale: Mike Haley, Tom Brady, Mark Jennings, Sammy Tuitupou, Tom Arscott, Danny Cipriani, Will Cliff, Eifion Lewis-Roberts, Marc Jones, Vadim Cobilas, Jonathan Mills, Michael Paterson, Dan Braid, David Seymour, Josh Beaumont

Replacements: Cameron Neild, James Flynn, Ross Harrison, Magnus Lund, Mark Easter, Nathan Fowles,Nick McLeod, Andy Forsyth

London Irish: Andrew Fenby;  Alex Lewington; Fergus Mulchrone; Eoin Griffin; Topsy Ojo;  Chris Noakes; Darren Allinson; Tom Court; David Paice; Halani Aulika; George Skivington (C); Sean Cox; Kieran Low; Luke Narraway; Tom Guest

Replacements:  Jimmy Stevens; Jamie Hagan; Leo Halavatau; Dave Lyons; Ollie Curry; Scott Steele; Myles Dorrian; James Short

 

Leigh is, without a doubt, the most over worked writer here at Crunch Sports. A statistician at heart, she can reel off Superbowl plays from decades ago. If we need a deep-dive into the numbers in any sport, we call Leigh first.

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