Gulls swooped
Warragul have been feeling the pain this season in the literal sense, with a number of their top stars out with long term injuries.
And now they're feeling the pain on the scoreboard after their second triple digits loss in as many weeks.
The 3.4 (22) to 19.11 (125) defeat was a tough pill to swallow for the Gulls, who have been robbed of a chance to put anything resembling their best side on the park for some time now.
And with Sale now making strides towards becoming the team that made the grand final last season it was a recipe for disaster for the Gulls.
The Magpies had things their way for much of the day, winning the ball at the contest despite missing superstar Shannon Lange.
This was largely thanks to Jack McLaren, who more than stood up in Lange's absence.
Their forward line were also clicking, as Brad Dessent made the most of his second senior match back from injury with five goals. He was ably supported by Jarrod Freeman, who booted four.
By contrast, the Gulls' forward woes were on full display, as Corbin Sutherland was the only multiple goalkicker for the home side with two.
It's been a lean few weeks for Warragul in terms of their forward half efficiency.
Since the injury of coach and 2022 league leading goalkicker Jed Lamb early in round five, they've booted six, four and three goals.
Their lack of a genuine tall target has presented them with issues since the beginning of the year, but with players like Lamb out of action it's led to an undersized forward line that hasn't been getting the delivery it requires to be effective.
The signs were there early of a potential Sale domination, as the Magpies kept the home side scoreless for the first term.
The Gulls had their chances, but each and every time they threatened they were repelled by a rock solid Sale backline.
The Magpies really broke the game open in the second quarter, putting on seven goals in a flash while the Gulls managed just one.
It meant the half time margin stood at 58 points, the result just about settled already.
From there the rest of the game played out to an inevitable conclusion, as with the Gulls being so blunted in attack any sort of comeback was going to be close to impossible.
Nine more goals to two in the second half put the margin beyond 100, leaving Warragul to try and pick up the pieces.
Gulls youngster Riley Senini, who earlier had played in the fourths, was a strong performer yet again in his second match.
With the sheer number of injuries the Gulls have been forced to bear, it's the development of their young players like Senini that will give their fans hope for the future.
Brad Hefford and James Davidson put in solid stints for Warragul, as backman Sean Masterson refused to stop trying despite the sheer number of inside 50s going Sale's way.
Michael Lynn and Scott Kelly also had the opportunity to celebrate bringing up 150 club games for Warragul, though they'll wish it was in better circumstances.
Regardless, the Gulls now sit ninth on the table with a percentage of just 40.
Four of their six losses have been by 90 points of more, while their two wins have been by three points (vs Drouin) and 10 points (vs Morwell).
It's left the team in a challenging position, as their scoring struggles mean that the rest of the season will be about blooding the youth and preparing for years to come, rather than building on last year's four and a half wins, which was the original plan.
Next week's match away to Bairnsdale does present an opportunity, given the Redlegs are on a five-game losing streak.
The Gulls got the best of them in their last encounter in 2022, but it's up to their group if they are to repeat that effort.
Much can be made of the players that aren't on the field for the Gulls.
Now it's time to see what the players they do have are capable of.