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The Sale update that will have England and Springboks fans smiling

By Liam Heagney
Manu Tuilagi is back to match fitness (Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images)

Sale boss Alex Sanderson is poised to unleash fit-again duo Manu Tuilagi and Faf de Klerk in this weekend’s Gallagher Premiership action after the England midfielder and the Springboks scrum-half upped the ante on the training ground this week in the respective comebacks following surgery.

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Tuilagi hasn’t played since he damaged a hamstring in the act of scoring against South Africa last November at Twickenham while the hip-damaged de Klerk hasn’t taken the field since his October appearance for the Springboks against the All Blacks on the Gold Coast.  

However, both are now in harness at Sale and potentially ready to make their comebacks in this Sunday’s Premiership match at Harlequins, a development that will especially pique the interest of England fans hoping that Tuilagi might now return to the Test scene in time for the round two Six Nations match away to Italy on February 13. 

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“It’s a very definite maybe for this weekend I have to say,” enthused Sanderson at his weekly media briefing when asked about the latest likely return date for Tuilagi. “He has been out there the last two weeks. This week he has trained really well, looked sharp, looked good, happy. Yes, he is up for selection. Fit.”

Sanderson, however, would prefer if Tuilagi got a number of games for Sale before getting recalled by England. “More than one game would be advisable. His load has to be incrementally increased. We are over-cautions so. 

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“That is what we are aiming towards but I am being flexible on either side of that depending on how he feels and his communication with England. I don’t really have a say in it. I have just got to see how he feels, see what the physios say and it is England’s call then really.”

Switching to de Klerk, who underwent surgery on his return to England following international duty in Australia, Sanderson added: “He is also up for selection, buzzing around, a little ball of blonde energy around the training ground. He is in good form.”

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De Klerk wasn’t initially expected to be available until late February, leaving Sanderson to explain that his half-back is two or three weeks ahead of schedule. “I got told two weeks on Sunday and four weeks on Monday – that was just the medical team wanting a pat on the back in front of the coaches, so I think it is two or three weeks ahead of schedule.”

Looking at his sudden riches at scrum-half when Raffi Quirke is also set for Sale duty after being cut on Tuesday from the England squad for Murrayfield, Sanderson said: “Raffi has only played three, Faf hasn’t played any (games this season). It’s not an excuse. The lads who have come in have done a really good job but they are world-class players them two. 

“Any team would miss them. Just to worry the defence, speed away from the breakdown and the threat they are with ball in hand, they are triple threats those guys. They can do everything.”

 

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Jon 8 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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j
john 11 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

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