Since it has now been well over two weeks since this site was updated, I thought I'd write a quick post to placate fears that The Shark Tank has gone into a state of permanent hibernation.
As alluded to in the last post to the site (Halani Aulika) I currently have some significant educational commitments that, as I'm sure everyone can understand, are my foremost concern at this time. However I am currently crafting a schedule of posts which will be uploaded over the forthcoming eight weeks or so. Please note that the order in which the article titles are listed below is not necessarily how I intend to chronologically structure them:
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Sale Sharks kicked the week off with a bang on Monday morning with the announcement that London Irish and Tonga tighthead prop Halani Aulika is their ninth new signing ahead of the 2016-17 season. Capped 17 times by Tonga, Aulika, 32, joined London Irish from Leeds Carnegie in 2012 and went on to make 81 appearances for the Exiles, notably grabbing 23 tries across four seasons in Reading. Standing at just a shade under 6ft 3" and 19 stone, Aulika is a far cry from the conventional model of a tighthead prop and his unorthodoxy is compounded by his ability to score tries like this: Needless to say, Aulika is a powerful and deceptively quick ball-carrier who has a penchant for scoring tries; his signing gives Sale yet another loose forward to help share the carrying duties amongst the pack; a far cry from two seasons ago when the Sharks lacked any forwards capable of breaking the line on a consistent basis. And whilst on the surface it would not appear to have been absolutely integral that Sale acquire Aulika since they already have Brian Mujati, Ciaran Parker, and from next season Kieran Longbottom at their disposal, Aulika is another excellent rotation option to have considering Longbottom's recent long-term injury struggles and Sale's upcoming participation in the European Champions Cup - a competition that will undoubtedly stretch the squad to its limit. Aulika's signing also hypothetically frees up Longbottom to cover loosehead if absolutely necessary and allows additional development time for Ciaran Parker, who according to Steve Diamond last week "will be locked in the gym next year". Overall this is a signing that shows Sale are more serious than ever about amassing an appropriate amount of depth at key positions to allow for effective competition across three tournaments. And with the season in which Sale only had one tighthead prop - Vadim Cobilas - for the entire campaign still fresh in this writer's mind, having three Premiership options on the books for 2016/17 is a pleasant turnaround. Follow The Shark Tank on Twitter for more news, analysis, and opinions on all things Sale Sharks. A season in which Sale supporters were treated to the most ambitious and exciting manner of play for a number of years concluded in ideal fashion on Saturday; an abrasive 21-16 win away to Newcastle Falcons coincided with Harlequins' 62-24 capitulation to Exeter Chiefs to hand Sale the final qualifying place for next season's European Champions Cup. Despite a Nili Latu hat-trick, tries from David Seymour and Sam James, along with two late penalties from Joe Ford and five points from Danny Cipriani propelled Sale to victory at Kingston Park and into sixth place. Securing a place in Europe's premier club competition for the third time in five seasons since Steve Diamond took the role of Director of Rugby whilst considering the minute budget on which Sale operate once again speaks to the unbelievable job taking place behind the scenes at the AJ Bell and the unquantifiable impact of the cohesiveness and chemistry eminent in the Sharks' collection of players. The possibility of renewing pleasantries with some of the biggest clubs in world rugby next season is an undeniable boon to both club and community and symbolises the upward trajectory on which Diamond and all of the club's staff have the club on. Importantly, Champions Cup qualification is yet another factor which will aid any further recruitment Sale embark upon before the start of next season as they look to potentially recruit another backrow and/or a fly-half. Observations
Follow The Shark Tank on Twitter for more news, analysis, and opinions on all things Sale Sharks. N.B. Apologies for the recent inactivity on the site. The paucity of articles is due to increasing amounts of university work in the run up to the exam period , which I hope can be appreciated as my foremost priority at this current time. Said workload is also why I am amalgamating the three pieces of Sale news this week into one 'megapost'. A schedule of upcoming articles focusing on the end of the season will be published in the next few weeks.
It's been a busy week for Sale Sharks. The biggest news, coming on Thursday morning, was that the Sharks have agreed to sign Welsh scrum-half Mike Phillips from Racing Metro 92 on a one-year deal. Phillips is the most capped scrum-half in Welsh history having amassed 94 caps since his debut in 2003 before retiring from international rugby after last year's World Cup. He also featured on both the 2009 and 2013 Lions tours to South Africa and Australia respectively, serving as the first-choice half-back on both occasions. With Phillips turning 34 by the time the season starts I'm reasonably confident in saying that a repeat of the form that saw him start on two consecutive Lions tours is unlikely during his first season in Manchester, but irrespective, I think this is yet another astute acquisition by Steve Diamond and the Sharks braintrust. Phillips, needless to say, will bring a wealth of invaluable experience of the top levels of global rugby to the club, but more importantly, due to his unorthodox physique for a scrum-half (he stands 6ft 4" and a shade under 16 stone), he will bring a dominant physical edge to the fringes of the ruck that Sale's other scrum-half Peter Stringer cannot offer. Regardless of whether Stringer or Phillips begins the season as Sale's incumbent no.9 (although my inkling is that it'll be the latter who gets the nod), acquiring Phillips gives the Sharks an intriguing combination at the position that should allow them to take a more varied approach to their backline depending on their opposition on the day. Against bigger and more hard-nosed opposition (i.e. Saracens), Phillips gives Sale the luxury of operating almost as a fourth back-rower due to his ability to make powerful breaks from the base of the ruck alongside his playmaking duties. Meanwhile, against sides where speed of service is the key to unlocking defences, Peter Stringer will get the nod to start. Next season's platoon at scrum-half therefore should result in a much more heterogeneous style of attacking play allowing Sale to change their stratagem on the fly should they find themselves struggling to break down the opposition's defensive line. Finally, James Mitchell might be the luckiest scrum-half in the entire Premiership; the 21-year-old is now understudy to two of the most renowned names in world rugby with a combined experience of 192 international test appearances. I'm expecting big things of James Mitchell in 2017-18. In other news, the signing of Phillips was necessitated by the announcement that Chris Cusiter will retire at the end of the season to pursue a whiskey business in Los Angeles. Whilst 33 is nowadays considered slightly young to be announcing a move away from the game, the 70 cap Scottish international has struggled with the notoriously prickly issue of concussion this season and has presumably taken the decision to step away from the game in order to preserve his health beyond the end of his rugby career. Plus who wouldn't want to live in LA? Speaking of premature retirements, Thursday also saw news that flanker/No.8 Mark Easter was likewise choosing to quit professional rugby, in this instance to pursue a teaching opportunity in Shropshire. Whilst it is understandable to want to retire on your own terms rather than being forced out due to injury or lack of opportunity , Easter's retirement - whilst heavily rumoured beforehand - still came as quite a shock. Easter has produced arguably some of his best rugby in a Sale shirt this season compiling a number of exemplary performances as a replacement for incumbent Number Eight Josh Beaumont who has missed the latter half of the season with injury. Still we wish both Chris and Mark all the best in their future endeavours and thank them for their service to the club. In a final piece of news, it would appear that the construction of the squad for next season is still not fully completed. Neil Leigh reported on Thursday that there is still one more signing to be announced and Steve Diamond revealed on BBC Radio Manchester that he is still pursuing a third fly-half and a back-row. Writing about Sale is a cathartic means of procrastination from revising. Follow The Shark Tank on Twitter for more news, analysis, and opinions on all things Sale Sharks. |
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