World Cup stars have energised squad says Ross
CLUB captain Jono Ross hopes Sale Sharks can feed off the energy brought to the club by returning World Cup finalists, Faf de Klerk and Tom Curry, and open their Champions Cup account with victory over La Rochelle today.
World Champion Springbok de Klerk and England’s rising star Curry both missed last weekend’s 13-7 defeat at Glasgow but are back in the squad for today.
“They have brought an energy to training, and it’s great to see them back,” said Ross. “Faf is as excitable as ever and Tom, I think, has really grown as a person and a player since he has been away.
“He has taken on a new leadership role in the couple of days he’s been back, and I think he has a new-found respect from the guys.
“He is probably one of the best players in the world at the moment, as is Faf, and I’ve no doubt he’d have been Player of the Year if England had won the World Cup, and rightly so, because he has been outstanding.
“Hopefully he can bring that confidence and form to us. I’m sure, knowing the type of guy he is, that he’ll do that.”
In Geoffrey Doumayrou and Jeremy Sinzelle, Ross will be coming up against two team-mates from his previous spell in France with Stade Francais.
And the back rower is well-versed on the threat the Atlantic Coast outfit will bring to the AJ Bell Stadium.
“Hopefully we can put in a big performance at home, we know La Rochelle are a quality team across the park – they have a really big pack with people like Antonio and some exciting backs – and have really good coaches in Ronan O’Gara and Jono Gibbes.
“We know they’ll be hurting from their defeat at home (31-12 to Exeter), French teams pride themselves on winning at home. We’ll have to be at our best to come out with the right result.”
Sale conceded a 13-0 lead to Glasgow in round one before working their way into the contest to score a converted try and earn a losing bonus point.
“They scored a try off set-piece which we were quite disappointed to concede,” Ross admitted. “But I thought, defensively, we were very good in the first half and our attack looked good when we had a go, we probably just missed one or two opportunities.
“Our lineout didn’t quite function the way we wanted it to (they missed four of their own throws), and had it done, it could have been a different story.
“To come away with a losing bonus point against a good team at a tough place to play, shows this team is prepared to stick in there and fight.”
Sharks director of rugby Steve Diamond says it is “fantastic”“to have the continent’s premier club competition back at the AJ Bell Stadium.
“After the disappointment of losing the arm wrestle during last weekend’s trip to Glasgow, the lads will be looking to bounce back and perform on Sunday,” said Diamond.
“La Rochelle are a hugely physical team – we had a great match with them last year in the Challenge Cup quarter-final – so we know what they are about; we just have to make sure we get our basics right and perform this weekend.”