The victory for Harlequins was polished but Jack Clifford’s suspected dislocated shoulder promptly removed the shine. The back-row joins their walking wounded – already a seemingly endless list – and leaves Eddie Jones with a further headache for England’s autumn internationals in November.
The 24-year-old, drafted into the England training squad for the injured Billy Vunipola last month, was withdrawn shortly before half-time against Sale and is a serious doubt for the autumn fixtures. With Vunipola already out of the running and Nathan Hughes missing Wasps’ trip to Saracens on Sunday, Jones is swiftly running out of options at No8.
It is rotten luck for Clifford, who underwent surgery on the same shoulder in April and subsequently missed England’s June tour of Argentina, and it is untimely for Harlequins, who ended last weekend with 25 players on the injured list. In addition Kyle Sinckler is suspended until late November, Will Collier went off with a back injury and James Horwill was a late withdrawal after failing his concussion protocols.
“It looks as if [Jack has] dislocated his shoulder,” said Harlequins’ director rugby, John Kingston. “It’s frustrating for him. Last night we had five players in question, two missed out, three got in – he was one. He had [painkillers] to get him out there in the first place and it’s disappointing because he was playing ever so well. It’s too early to say how long he’ll be out.”
In the face of all that upheaval, however, Harlequins had their first-half blitz and 17 points from Marcus Smith, who continues to show an authority beyond his years, to thank for victory against a Sale side who began the match every bit as poorly as they were impressive against Gloucester last week. Three second-half tries from the Sharks opened the possibility of an unlikely comeback but ultimately Smith steered his depleted side home.
With Joe Marler at his abrasive best after emerging from the physio room described by Jamie Roberts as “a morgue” this week, and Danny Care at his liveliest, it was a relative stroll for the home side in the first half, as three tries within the opening 24 minutes testified.
Care teed up the first for Tim Visser with an artful kick, Marler barged over for the second from close range and Joe Marchant charged down Sam James for the third – Smith converting each of them with no little conviction.
Sale were on the scoreboard when Mike Haley evaded Chris Robshaw’s tackle a little too easily and carved his way in under the posts. Harlequins then had more hardship to endure before the interval as Clifford was withdrawn and soon followed by his team-mate Collier with Sale’s Josh Beaumont also taken off. The Premiership’s alarming injury rate shows little sign of abating.
Harlequins at least had a penalty that Smith in this mood was not going to miss, and his second of the evening gave Harlequins a 20-point lead at the break. Another Care kick, this time a grubber, was expertly gathered by Visser seemingly to put the game to bed after 48 minutes but Halani Aulika barrelled over for a second Sale try and James’s interception effort put the visitors firmly on the front foot.
Ross Harrison’s close-range effort earned Sale a bonus point but Smith’s chip over the top led to Marland Yarde’s late try which condemned Sale to a 10th straight away Premiership defeat. “We didn’t get off the bus with the right mentality,” said Sale’s director of rugby, Steve Diamond. “We asked them at half-time to get a bonus point and it’s a small consolation. Last week all the planets aligned and our top players played well. It’s frustrating. We probably thought after last weekend we were a world XV.”
Harlequins Morris; Yarde, Marchant, Roberts (Alofa, 66; Swiel, 72)), Visser; Smith, Care; Marler (Lambert, 68), Ward (capt), Collier (Swainston, 39), Merrick, Matthews, Robshaw (Elia, 78), Clifford (White, 36), Luamanu (Lamb, 57). Sin-bin Swiel 79
Tries Visser 2, Marler, Marchant, Yarde Cons Smith 4. Pens Smith 3.
Sale Haley; Solomona, James, Jennings, McGuigan; MacGinty (O’Connor, 47), De Klerk; Harrison, Jones (Webber, 47), Tarus (Aulika, h-t), Evans, Beaumont (Ostrikov, 39), Ross (capt), B Curry (Neild, 47), Strauss (Ioane, 47). Sin-bin McGuigan 79
Tries Haley, Aulika, James, Harrison Cons MacGinty, De Klerk 2. Referee Matthew Carley Attendance 14,228
