What a fantastic way to end what has been the longest regular season in Premiership history.
A well-deserved bonus point victory over a dogged London Irish side at a windswept, sodden Stoop. Although conditions dictated we weren’t able to play the expansive rugby we are renowned for, it was a controlled and assured performance from Pat Lam's men with more kicking than we have seen all season.
The penalty try awarded by referee Karl Dickson towards the end was the icing on the cake which will now extend our season into the play-offs, and as beautiful as the free flowing tries are, it was refreshing to see the forwards muck in with some good old fashioned brute force to eventually put the game to rest.
Bringing home the five points was all that mattered today.
I should now be writing this column with complete knowledge of our final league position, but unfortunately it feels like the circus has arrived in town this week, with Sale Sharks announcing 19 players and staff testing positive for Covid-19.
Leaders are elected to lead but the lack of information or clarification from Premiership Rugby on this subject has been nothing short of appalling.
It started with the delay in naming squads for the weekend's fixtures and followed with the test results being leaked, throwing up a mushroom cloud of confusion and conjecture.
We are now told Sharks' game with Worcester will take place on Wednesday evening. As a supporter this has left me feeling bemused and annoyed.
A few weeks ago French Top 14 side Castres had to forfeit their European Challenge Cup Quarter Final against Leicester after having three players testing positive, why should Sale be treated any differently?
All of the games should have taken place as scheduled on the same day at the same time, this is the only fair way to do it and as harsh as it seems, if Sale were unable to field a team for Sunday, they also should have suffered the same fate.
The whole integrity of the league has been undermined by this outcome, despite saying the overriding priority is about safety, with players and staff looking at Top 4 related bonuses, the cynic in me believes it may all come down to our old friend money.
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