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'He loved to grab people by the throat and just be a pain'
England World Cup winner Jason Robinson has recalled his transformative time at Sale playing alongside the enigmatic Sebastien Chabal. The ex-rugby league legend moved from Wigan to the Sharks in 2000 and while he was able to use his own form as a springboard into the England and Lions set-ups, it wasn’t until the arrival of the French brigade under coach Philippe Saint-Andre in 2004 that Sale became a feared club powerhouse.
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The Manchester side won the Premiership title in 2006 with Chabal at the forefront after the French forward followed Saint-Andre from Bourgoin to England. Sebastian Bruno also joined from Beziers, as did Lionel Faure from Pau.
The story of how Sale defeated Wasps in the semi-final and then got the better of Leicester at Twickenham to clinch their first Premiership title, breaking the seven-year stranglehold those two clubs had on the league, has now been retold in the latest Rugby Stories podcast on BT Sport, with twice union World Cup finalist Robinson particularly dwelling on the galvanising Chabal influence.
“You look at someone like Sebastian Chabal, he wasn’t known as well when he came in and Sale was so good for him and Sale was so good for them because he grew so much while he was at Sale,” explained Robinson.
“He came in, had short hair, was clean-shaven. All of a sudden through him coming in and committing to the club he has grown his hair, has a beard, his performances go off the scale and he has created that character.
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“He certainly was performing and, for us, it was brilliant because he was a talisman. You’d see the hair flying about, he was very fit, loved the contact, loved to grab people by the throat and just, you know what I mean, be a pain in the backside, loved to take the ball back and carry and it was great because he slotted in so well.”
Second row Dean Schofield, who was capped by England the year after Sale won the Premiership title, added: “I don’t think the French lads were on big, big money, I just think they wanted to play for Philippe. He created an environment where you just wanted to play for Philippe.
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“There is a story about the French lads, a run at Lyme Park which is up in the sticks. It was a really cold day and it started snowing – we can’t see two metres in front of us and it was a whiteout. So you imagine Sebastian Chabal with his arms folded with the snow ploughing against his beard.
“The French boys didn’t want to train in the rain, never mind being stuck on the top of a hill in Derbyshire with torrential snow and the fitness coach ran, he left us up there. I don’t know what the French lads would have done if they had got their hands on him that day but he ran off. Luckily we gingerly got off the top of that hill.
“I don’t know how we did it but the French lads, I have fond memories of them but they just didn’t want to train. They hated the rain, they hated the cold, they definitely hated the snow and they played in Manchester which you can’t get away from at all.”
Schofield also recalled his first meeting with coach Saint-Andre, describing the put-down he experience as brutal. “It was tough. My first-ever meeting with Philippe he told me that I wasn’t good enough. The first meeting he was harsh, he was brutally honest, straight down the line.
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“I had been nurtured with Jim Mallinder and Steve (Diamond) as a young player coming through who started late and it filled me full of confidence. My first meeting with Philippe he said, ‘You’re not good enough, you have got to buck your ideas up or there is not a part for you in this club’. You can’t get any straighter than that.
“It was a really big moment in my career, it could have gone one way or the other. It was either stick with Philippe or join another club. Sale was for me. I wanted to prove I was good enough for this team and pre-season I remember running, it must have been a 10k run. It might have been five but it felt like ten, felt like 20.
“I didn’t finish the run, I ended up in hospital. I trained myself into the ground in the off-season and I still remember it to this day. I ran and I ran and I ran and I ran myself into hospital, I was desperate to get into this team.”
- For the full Sale episode, check out BT Sport’s podcast series, Rugby Stories, part of the BT Sport Pods lineup of podcasts. Every Monday, Rugby Stories, presented by Craig Doyle, will spotlight and celebrate English club rugby history. Btsport.com/pods
Comments on RugbyPass
A wallaby front-row of Bell, Blake and Tupou…now that would be hefty
1 Go to comments“But with an exceptional pass accuracy rating “ Which apart from Roigard is not a feature of any of the other 9s in NZ. Kind of basic for a Black 9 dont.you. think? Yet we keep seeing FC and TJ being rated ahead of him? Weird if it’s seen as vital to get our backline beating in your face defences.
1 Go to commentsThanks BeeMc! Looks like many teams need extra time to settle from the quadrennial northern migration. I think generally the quality of the Rugby has held up. Fiji has been fantastic and fun to watch
13 Go to commentsLets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
11 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
10 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
11 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
24 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
10 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
35 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
35 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
17 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to comments