Five years ago Sale Sharks were crowned Guinness Premiership Champions after demolishing the powerhouse of English rugby Leicester Tigers 45-20 in the final at Twickenham.
The side from the north-west had assembled one of the best squads in the country, but the cornerstone of their triumph was the forward pack which at the time was one of the best in the Britain and included a back-row of Jason White, Magnus Lund and the French monster Sebastian Chabal, who at that time was at the peak of his powers. The boiler room was made up Ignacio Fernandez Lobbe, Chris Jones, Dean Schofield and a young Christian Day, a 2011 Heineken Cup finalist with Northampton. In the front-row the Sharks had an embarrassment of riches with Andrew Sheridan, Sebastian Bruno, Andy Titterrell, Lionel Faure, Stuart Turner and Barry Stewart all competing for the front-three jerseys. Behind this massive pack the backline of Charlie Hodgson, Mark Cueto, Steve Hanley and Jason Robinson run riot and scored tries for fun, it truly was the golden era of Sale rugby.
But since that day the Sharks have not qualified for the Premiership play-offs but instead have been fighting to avoid relegation, it is a remarkable fall from the top. Injuries did take their toll and the spine of the title winning side never really played together after the win over the Tigers. Jason White struggled with injuries, Chabal was starting to be nullified by sides his ball carrying could still be destructive but it was all too rare a sight to see him charge through defences. Andrew Sheridan started to spend more time on the sidelines than dismantling the opposition scrum.
Another key factor in Sale's demise was the disassembling of the squad, players were allowed to leave, in many cases it was not through any fault of the club but they simply couldn't compete with the big spending French sides and several star players such as Chabal, White, Lund, Bruno, Faure and 2008/09 skipper Juan Fernandez Lobbe all made the trip across the English Channel for the glitz and wages the Top 14 offered. All-Black starlet Luke McAlister returned to his native New Zealand after a two year spell, Ben Foden left for Northampton and quickly established himself as their starting full-back. These players were never adequately replaced and the team suffered, performances on the field seemed to get worse each week.
Charlie Hodgson was still weaving his wand but had very little outside him in terms of backs, and very pedestrian pace ball from the forwards, the spark seemed to have disappeared, and the team that used to grab try bonus points like they were picking up sweets seemed to forget where the try-line was. The decline on the pitch walked hand-in-hand with the decline of attendances, and it wasn't until the return of fan favourite Steve Diamond as Director of Rugby that people started making their way back through the turnstiles.
Diamond has brought a refreshing honesty to back to the club, after the heavy final day defeat to Gloucester, Diamond said "In the second half we conceded seven tries and that's an indication of how far this club has dropped.
"Thirteen or 14 of them won't be at Sale next season and we didn't come down here with the right mindset. I expected it as that is what happens if you are not up for it and players don't show any self respect."
The club is now looking forward to next season with the addition of more than 15 new players, and Diamond has gone back to basics by rebuilding the weary and depleted pack. Irish international Tony Buckley has joined from Munster to help beef up the front-row and he is joined by former Wasps hooker Joe Ward and Scotland prop Alasdair Dickinson. But it is the back-row where the Sharks have made some very exciting signings, England flanker Hendrie Fourie has joined from Leeds and will bring a dogged determination but also a rugby brain, a true over the ball style flanker who has shown his worth both to England and Leeds last season. British Lions number eight Andy Powell has joined from Wasps despite his recent troubles if he can get back to the level he was at when he first broke into the Welsh squad then he will be a handful for any defence. Richie Vernon has travelled down from Glasgow to be part of Diamond's new look pack and will bring a lineout options along with a fabulous work-rate. The back-line has been bolstered with the signings of Samoan international Tasesa Lavea from French giants Clermont, and explosive centre Sam Tuitupou has joined from Munster, many will be hoping the All-Black will produce his characteristic barnstorming runs through the defence and help the Sharks backline cross the gain-line a lot more than they have recently.
A big loss though is the one of Charlie Hodgson who has been a fantastic servant to the club and his creativity will be sorely missed, he has taken a lot of criticism in his career for not producing his club form for England, but in the Premiership there is not a better fly-half to be found anywhere. It's a real shame that we won't see Hodgson working off the new look Sale pack and firing the passes out to the likes of Tuitupou. His departure to current Champions Saracens will be felt, but in this new era for the Sharks perhaps it isn't the worst thing that could have happened, for too long the club have relied on Hodgson to get them out of trouble and save them from relegation, now it is time for a new team to step up to the mark and find a way to win matches in a fiercely competitive league.
The mood with fans is optimistic, it won't happen overnight but maybe Steve Diamond is building something very similar to what Phillipe Saint-Andre created five years ago.
Danny Till
Quotes from BBC Sport
