Four-try Bath battle elements to beat Sale

The Prem

Bath (21) 28

Tries: Arundell, Redpath, Obano, Ojomoh Cons: Spencer 4

Sale (9) 16

Tries: Jibulu Cons: Ford Pens: Ford Drop-goal: Ford 2

Bath made it two wins from two in the Prem this season as they beat Sale 28-16 on a miserably wet and windy night at the Rec.

Henry Arundell, Cameron Redpath and Beno Obano all crossed for Bath during the first half as the hosts opened an 11-point lead.

An impressive George Ford kicked 11 points, including two drop-goals, to keep Sale in touch before the Sharks scored their first try through Nathan Jibulu shortly after the break to close the gap to five.

The visitors' defence worked in overdrive to keep Bath from getting any more on the board until Max Ojomoh chased and touched the ball down three minutes from full-time to give the reigning champions the maximum five points from the game.

With swirling wind and rain that intensified as the night went on, playing the conditions as much as the opposition was half the battle for both sides.

Ford was excellent from the boot as Sale started with the wind behind them, kicking a pin-point penalty in the third minute when Bath were penalised at the breakdown.

Yet Bath looked at their ruthless best when they got the ball in hand and they cantered into the lead through an electric Arundell try - his third in two matches since joining this summer.

Ollie Lawrence collected a Sale kick and raced from his own half with the winger on his shoulder and Arundell skipped and accelerated, then accelerated again, to sprint into the corner under the watchful eye of England head coach Steve Borthwick.

Ford's quick-thinking closed the gap to a point as he kicked a drop-goal out of nowhere when Sale were pushed back in attack.

But Bath again moved further in front as Cokanasiga's kick-chase forced Ford to find touch deep in his own territory, and from the line-out Miles Reid punched a hole through and Redpath ran past the posts.

While a second Ford penalty bounced off the sticks, Bath's clearance came straight back to him and the England fly-half opportunistically scooped up the ball, took a step inside the halfway line and sweetly landed a second drop-goal to make it 14-9.

But Sale captain Ernst van Rhyn was shown yellow six minutes before the break for a cynical foul as Lawrence came centimetres from scoring, and on the restart Obano powered over for Bath's third.

Hooker Jibulu scored Sale's only try seven minutes after the restart, barging over from close range, yet their defence had to be rock solid to stifle Bath as the game went on.

Sale made more than 120 tackles, defending 57 phases in their own 22 without conceding any points, before Ojomoh chased down Ben Spencer's chip and showed great skill to dot it down just before it went dead for the all-important fourth try.

Bath: De Glanville; Cokanasiga, Lawrence, Redpath, Arundell, Ojomoh, Spencer (c); Obano, Dunn, Sela; Roux, Ewels, Hill, Pepper, Reid.

Replacements: Frost, Van Wyk, Griffin, Molony, Underhill, Carr-Smith, Butt, Barbeary.

Sale: Carpenter; Roebuck, R. du Preez, Bedlow, O'Flaherty, Ford, Warr; Rodd, Jibulu, Opoku-Fordjour; Bamber, Andrews, Van Rhyn (c), B. Curry, Dugdale.

Replacements: Caine, McIntyre, John, Burrow, Woodman, Hanson, Reed, Louw.

Sin bin: Van Rhyn (34 mins), John (79 mins)

Referee: Anthony Woodthorpe