13-man Sale fall as Club triumph
TWO late penalty tries gave Blackheath a bonus-point win in an incident-packed encounter at Heywood Road.
Sale, who were competitive throughout, finished the game with 13 men following a red card in each half for prop Joe Kelly and hooker Neil Briggs.
Despite the numerical advantage, the south London side lacked fluency and had to come from behind to claim their third win on the bounce, maintaining pressure on their promotion rivals.
It was Blackheath who took the lead in a dynamic opening spell – Leo Fielding stroking home a penalty from close range.
Emiliano Calle Rivas levelled the score before the hosts went ahead as a text book catch-and-drive from the lineout saw lock Stone Priestley-Nangle dot down.
The visitors were quick to regain parity. Claiming possession at the restart, the ball found its way out to skipper Marcus Burcham.
The centre cut a swathe through the Sale defence before finding Jake Lloyd on the left, who sprinted in for his 18th try of the year.
The sides were still at 8-8 when, midway through the half, Kelly was shown red for the use of a fist.
The effect was to galvanise Sale, who spent the rest of the half in Blackheath territory but their only reward was a further Calle Rivas penalty just before the break.
The hosts built on their lead from the restart. Fullback Robert Povey ran
from deep to allow winger Paolo Odogwu to force his way over in the corner.
A second penalty for Fielding brought the score back to 18-11, and against the run of play Blackheath then drew level.
A knock-on by Sale’s John Blanchard allowed flanker Harry Bate to pick up on halfway and romp home unopposed for 18-18.
With the hosts’ 14-men tiring, Blackheath went looking for the win. A prolonged phase of reset scrums ended when the referee finally lost patience, awarding a penalty try.
Shortly after, Sale were reduced to 13 men when Briggs was dismissed for throwing a punch and, as the clock went red, a second penalty try was awarded from the scrum – also sealing a bonus point.