Saints fall to hallowed Hodgson

Sale 34 Northampton 14

This was a game of two halves and two half-backs. Sale won on both counts; and the margin in each was decisive.

The second half was almost no contest as Sale amassed 20 unanswered points to win a game which, at half-time, looked as if it would go Northampton's way, such was their control at the breakdown and their hunger for possession. Then there was the half-back cameo.

If, or when, Jonny Wilkinson fails England, or succumbs to injury, Clive Woodward need have few worries about the quality of the outside-halves jostling for the England manager's attention. As well as Dave Walder, Wilkinson's understudy at Newcastle, who was capped on the summer tour to the United States and Canada, there are three other outstanding candidates in the frame: Olly Barkley had pulled on an England shirt before he made his first-team debut for Bath, while James Brooks, 21, and Charlie Hodgson, 20, were in opposition yesterday. Both can play a bit.

By the break, though, it was clear that Hodgson is the better prospect, especially as the Sale pack were almost driven out on to the motorway on more than one occasion. It is never easy for an outside-half to play really well when it is off the back foot. Hodgson did. He scored a quite beautiful try before the interval and then broke Northampton completely in the second period.

Saints had raced into an 11-0 lead thanks to a try from Ben Cohen and two penalties by Mark Tucker, who was to have a far from comfortable afternoon under a shower of kicks from Hodgson and Vaughan Going. Hodgson got Sale under way with a penalty before hoisting a steepling kick at Tucker, who spilled it. Hodgson scooped up the loose ball, left Cohen and Budge Pountney for dead, to scamper over under the bar for Sale's only try of the half. The conversion was a formality, and he and Tucker swapped penalties to make it 13-14 in Saints favour at the break.

When Northampton re- appeared, Brooks, who never looked as composed as he can be, had been replaced by Alastair Hepher. If anything it slowed Saints down, and though they won acres of territory and bucketsful of ball, apart from Pountney, Andrew Blowers and John Leslie, they had no one who had a clue how to use the possession.

Sale had Hodgson. His chip and catch led directly to Pete Anglesea's try, five minutes after the restart, which he also converted. While Sale were now six points clear, their lead was far from unassailable, especially while Pountney and Blowers were leading the charge. When Steve Hanley crossed for Sale's third try, the question was not if Sale would win, but whether they would score a fourth try to claim their fourth bonus point of the campaign.

No worries. Mark Cueto got the touchdown. Hodgson converted to rattle up 19 points, and draw the comment from Sale's coach, Jim Mallinder: "Charlie had an outstanding second half. He totally dominated the game." Look out Jonny Wilkinson.

Sale: V Going; M Cueto, M Shaw, S Davidson (P Devlin, 80), S Hanley (A Elliott, 80); C Hodgson, B Redpath (capt, A Dickens, 80); K Yates, A Titterell (B Jackman, 72), S Turner (A Black, 65), I Fullarton, S Lines (M Giacheri, 69), A Perelini (R Wilks, 61), S Pinkerton, P Anglesea.

Northampton: M Tucker; L Martin, P Jorgensen, J Leslie, B Cohen; J Brooks (A Hepher, h-t), J Howard; T Smith (K Todd, 69), S Thompson (S Brotherstone, 69), M Stewart, A Newman, O Brouzet, A Blowers, B Pountney, G Seely (R Hunter, 50).

Referee: S Lander (Wirrall).