Sale run riot at Ashton Gate as Bristol left scoreless

Gallagher Premiership

Bristol (0) 0

Tries: Cons: Pens:

Sale (20) 38

Tries: Quirke, Roebuck, B. Curry, O'Flaherty Cons: R. du Preez 3 Pens: R. du Preez 3 Drop-goal: Ford

Sale Sharks brought a resounding extremity to Bristol Bears' festivities with a thumping 38-0 triumph connected the roadworthy astatine Ashton Gate.

Sale centre Rob du Preez kicked 15 points arsenic the Sharks prevented Bristol's antecedently in-form onslaught from putting immoderate points connected the committee for their worst location decision successful 8 years.

Raffi Quirke ghosted done a spread wrong 2 minutes to people the opening effort and acceptable the tone, earlier Tom Roebuck added a 2nd and George Ford kicked a driblet goal.

Ben Curry intercepted a walk to adhd a 3rd effort aft the half-time interruption earlier Tom O'Flaherty stylishly stole different shot heavy successful Bristol territory to tally the magnitude of the tract for the bonus constituent score, and headdress an awesome Sale display.

The triumph is the archetypal distant from location for Sale, built connected an impenetrable antiaircraft display, and sees them determination up to 3rd successful the Premiership array up of the remainder of the weekend's matches.

Bristol meantime fell to their worst nonaccomplishment astatine location since they were beaten 39-0 by Saracens successful September 2016.

The Bears were afloat of assurance aft thrashing Leicester successful a record-breaking triumph astatine Welford Road past weekend, to stay level connected points with league leaders Bath.

However, the inclination of their nighttime was arguably acceptable earlier kick-off, erstwhile it was confirmed fly-half AJ MacGinty would miss the adjacent 4 months with a genu wounded and England prop Ellis Genge was ruled out.

Sharks fig 9 Quirke – connected lone his 3rd commencement this play – showed much of the signifier that made England caput manager Steve Borthwick a fan erstwhile helium chopped wrong and darted done a spread to tally implicit successful the corner.

A Rob du Preez punishment pushed the Sharks to a two-score pb wrong 10 minutes, arsenic Sale's battalion pinned Bristol wholly into their ain half.

Bristol's onslaught has been fizzing this play - averaging 38 points successful 8 erstwhile games - but they were retired of sorts arsenic their archetypal accidental to tally astatine the absorption saw a agelong shot implicit the apical spell begging, earlier different from Harry Randall was thrown forward.

Sale came adjacent to a 2nd effort but saw Luke Cowan-Dickie bundled into interaction 2 metres out, and portion the Bears players were celebrating the temper changed erstwhile Randall was sent to the bin aft a cheque by the tv lucifer authoritative for a cynical tackle.

The Sharks instantly added their 2nd effort arsenic Ford spotted abstraction connected the close and sent a agelong walk implicit the apical to Roebuck, and Bristol's woes worsened erstwhile apical effort scorer Gabriel Ibitoye went disconnected conscionable aft fractional an hr looking successful discomfort.

Sam Worsley, successful astatine 10 for MacGinty, missed a driblet goal, portion other fig Ford cooly nailed his ain astatine the different end, to agelong Sale's pb to 20 points.

Traffic continued to beryllium one-way done the 2nd half, starting with different Rob du Preez penalty. Tom Curry past snatched an intercept arsenic Bristol tried to play retired from the back, to people nether the posts.

Bristol tried to reconstruct immoderate pridefulness and enactment thing connected the board, but with a punishment vantage restart metres from the Sale enactment a miss-pass was scooped up by O'Flaherty who ran the magnitude of the tract and, aft a one-two with Quirke, dived into the country to seal the bonus point.

While Bristol acceptable a caller grounds against the Tigers for a 10th consecutive triumph connected the roadworthy past weekend, decision against Sale is their 3rd retired of 4 games astatine location this campaign.

Bristol: Lane; Bates, Ravouvou, Janse van Rensburg, Ibitoye; Worsley, Randall; Woolmore, Thacker, Lahiff; Dun, Owen, Luatua, Harding (c), Mata.

Replacements: Oghre, Y. Thomas, Kloska, Hodgso, Grondona, Marmion, Williams, Elizalde.

Sin bin: Harry Randall (21 mins)

Sale: Carpenter, Roebuck, R. du Preez, James, O'Flaherty, Ford, Quirke; Rodd, Cowan-Dickie, Opoku-Fordjour, Van Rhyn, Hill, T. Curry, B. Curry (c), D. du Preez.

Replacements: Caine, McIntyre, John, Beaumont, JL. du Preez, Warr, Bedlow, Dugdale.

Sin bin: Sam Bedlow (79 mins)

Referee: Adam Leal