Sale Sharks player ratings vs Saracens | 2025/26 Gallagher Prem

One week removed from a heavy defeat at the hands of Leinster in the Investec Champions Cup. Alex Sanderson’s injury depleted Sale Sharks would endure a Saracens’ shellacking en route to an 85 – 19 home defeat.

Blitzed from the off, the Sharks had no answers for a clinical Saracens display.

Conceding the opening inside two minutes, the writing was on the wall for the hosts. Shipping 13 tries in total, 5 of which were scored by Noah Caluori, Sale’s hopes of a morale boosting end to a tough season took a major dent.

Unable to get a foothold at the breakdown or set-piece, the hosts simply could not contain the Saracens’ ball carriers.

Here is how the Sharks players fared.

1. Asher Opoku-Fordjour – 7
Flattened by Rhys Carre in the build-up to his try, Opoku-Fordjour struggled to match the level of the Welsh international. Despite losing the battle of the starting looseheads, Opoku-Fordjour remained the pick of the Sale pack on the day. Barging over Noah Caluori and scoring a try of his own will be the key highlights from the day.

2. Ethan Caine – 5
Picked off at the line-out on a couple of occasions clearly shook the 24-year-old’s confidence in that department. Around the park he was one of his pack’s top statistical performers with 8 carries and 22 tackles.

3. James Harper – 5
Simply could not match Rhys Carre at scrum time, the tighthead battled admirably but was not in the same league as the Welsh international. In open play, Harper rolled his sleeves up making 9 tackles and 7 carries before being replaced in the 50th minute.

4. Ernst van Rhyn – 4
Marshalled out of the game by the Sarries’ pack, van Rhyn simply could not make a dent with the ball in hand. Defensively he still got through plenty of work with 17 tackles and a turnover. On the whole, his side needed more from him to have a chance.

5. Ben Bamber – 6.5
Ultra physical from the off, the former Rugby League prospect made a mess of the Saracens breakdown early in the contest. Unfortunately for him and his teammates, his impact faded when the more experienced visitors went through the gears. Still, he battled hard with 22 tackles and 9 carries to go with 5 line-out wins.

6. Jacques Vermeulen – 4
Perhaps the quietest performance the physical South African has had for the Sharks since joining them at the start of the season. Similar to van Rhyn, Vermeulen had little impact with ball in hand and defensively he was found wanting on a few occasions.

7. Jos Gilmore – 4
Topped the tackle charts with 24, the backrow’s intent cannot be questioned. He did however miss 7 tackles a couple of which were costly for his side. On the offensive side of the ball, Gilmore simply could not make any in-roads with ball in hand.

8. Sam Dugdale – 4
Nullified with ball in hand, Dugdale was another Shark who spent the afternoon chasing shadows. Closing his account with 22 tackles made and 5 missed is a workmanlike but perhaps disappointing return.

9. Gus Warr – 4
Playing behind a beaten pack, the Scottish international was always going to struggle. Still with the rare opportunities he did have, Warr struggled to capitalise.

10. George Ford – 4
Started reasonably well with a few nice phases of play but when things began to simmer, Ford went off the boil. Unable to get his side into strong positions, the England veteran found himself running laterally on far too many occasions. Whilst his side were out of the fight early on, Ford will be disappointed that he couldn’t put them in better positions with the boot.

11. Tom Roebuck – 4.5
Spilled the ball with just Noah Caluori between himself and the try line inside the opening five minutes. This would sum up the England winger’s afternoon against a player who will likely be a direct competitor in Steve Borthwick’s squad in the coming seasons. Across the 80 minutes, Roebuck simply never got to grips with Caluori in the air.

12. Rekeiti Ma’asi-White – 4
Enjoyed a couple of strong carries early but in truth, the physical centre was completely outplayed by his opposite number.

13. Marius Louw – 6
Outside of Tom O’Flaherty, the South African centre was the pick of the Sale backline. Making 14 carries, Louw went ferociously into the heart of Saracens’ stingy defence.

14. Tom O’Flaherty – 7.5
On what was a dark day for the Sale Sharks, O’Flaherty had himself a top notch showing. Putting aside an early defensive mishap for Saracens’ opening try, the winger was immense. Topping the carry charts with 22 for 86 meters, beating 14 defenders and scoring two tries.

15. Robert du Preez – 4
Completely anonymous in the opening forty minutes, the South African struggled to impose himself in the wide channels. Growing in stature somewhat in the second half, du Preez had a couple of promising moments with a try assist being the highlight.

Substitutes
16.Alfie Longstaff – 5
Brought some energy from the bench in the 50th minute with a few decent shots in defence. Unfortunately he was forced off in the 76th minute to add to Sale’s injury woes.

17. Ralph McEachran – 5
Generally managed to hold his own at set-piece time against Saracens all international replacement front row. Away from the set-piece, he mucked in defensively but in reality it was always going to be a challenge for him to make an impact.

18. Tye Raymont – 4
This will be chalked up as a learning experience for the highly promising 20-year-old who unfortunately departed with an injury in the 74th minute.

19. Dylan Hodkinson – 4
Tough to rate given how dominant the Saracens’ pack were all afternoon. Similar to Raymont, the 19-year-old will take plenty of learnings from what his more experienced rivals put on.

20. Reuben Logan – 5
Brought some oomph from the bench with a couple of tight carries close to the Saracens’ line.

21. Dom Hanson – 5
Got stuck in defensively with 11 tackles but simply could not get his hands on the ball. Similar to those around him, the 20-year-old has potential but today’s clash was a bridge too far.

22. Joe Bedlow – 3
Exceptionally quiet during his 20 minute spell which is hardly surprising given those around him were out on their feet.

23.Tristan Woodman – 4
Clearly looked for work but rarely had opportunities to show what he can do with ball in hand. The 23-year-old backrow made 3 tackles and 2 carries.