Welcome back to the Salford Stadium and a very happy new year to you all from everyone here at Sale Sharks.

It feels like a long time since we’ve played at home and I know the lads are buzzing to get stuck into what is a huge, do or die clash against a Toulon side packed full of big names and quality players. They’re a really good side aren’t they, third in the Top14 and playing really well at the moment. It’s a massive game for us and it’s all on the line. 

Watching Toulon’s recent games, I’ve been so impressed by their work-rate and that’s not to mention their gamebreakers and their giant human beings. They were very dominant against Quins, particularly in the first half. It’s tough to contain Quins and they managed to do that. It’s a big, big challenge and a huge obstacle for us in our ambition to go to the next stage of this brilliant competition, which I believe is a great barometer of where you’re at as a team. It’s great experience and it’s fantastic exposure for some younger players. It’s a different style, against different players, with different referees and we want to be there, competing with the best. 

As I write this I’m not sure what Toulon team we will face but they’ve got such a good squad that they could rotate a few and still put out a team full of world-class talent. But we’ve got plenty of that too and we’re at home, where we pride ourselves on being really hard to beat. Physically, and at the set-piece we’re been really good, but if we don’t sort out our transitions in training this week, we’ll be in for a tough evening chasing shadows because they are so creative in the 22s and they love an offload. They score a load of tries from transition and they’ve scored the most tries from attacking kicks, which makes them very hard to defend. 

What it shows you is that teams that kick well get opportunities in transition when the ball comes back to you. With the runners they’ve got it’s really tough to stem the flow of quick ball and then they’re all over you. It’s a massive challenge that we’re really looking forward to. 

Like I said, we need to improve in a lot of areas from last week against the Stormers, when I was disappointed with the way the scoreline blew out. What was most frustrating were the missed opportunities on their line that actually ended up being 14-point swings – we didn’t score from five metres out and they go 95 metres and score. It was really deflating. Another chance went begging after half time with the missed cross-field kick and then a scrum pen, another penalty and we’re back defending our own line again. 

It was another lesson in how, at this level, you have to take your opportunities. Execution has to be razor-sharp and it just wasn’t. The scrum went well, the maul went well and physically we were good, but that’s not enough and putting it all together has been the focus this week. It felt like a game we could have won and all the stats tell you that we were in the fight for a big portion of the game. 

After the game we said to the boys that there was no point kicking stones and feeling sorry for ourselves. We’re two wins away from being in a really good position in both the Premiership and the Champions Cup – that’s the prize on offer if we can put it all together this week and then next week against Bath. 

Steve Borthwick named his England squad this week for the Six Nations and it was brilliant to see seven of our lads in there – I think we were the team with the most players in the squad and that tells you we’re doing something right. We’ve got five forwards in the squad and that shows the job that Dorian West and Neil Briggs are doing, and how we’re applying ourselves in the scrum and the maul. Bevan Rodd, in particular, has really stepped it up, especially in the scrum, and he was brilliant in Cape Town. It’s an area where he’s had criticism in the past but he was fantastic and it would be great if he could get a chance in the Six Nations. I have to mention WillGriff John as well, because I’m so chuffed for him to be back in the Wales squad. He’s had a tough road to get to where he is but he deserves everything he gets. 

We’re approaching a break in the Premiership season and it’s perhaps a good time to take stock of where we are and how we’re progressing this season. After Bristol we felt like our game and our game model was in good order, and then three weeks later we’re on the end of a thumping. It shows what a humbling game rugby can be, but my take is that we’re not far off. I really believe that and so do the lads.  

We’ve seen the best of us this season but not enough of it in terms of consistency, but we’ve got the quality within these four walls and the lads know that. It’s just about doing it back to back to back. These next two games set up the end of the season for us and that’s the big focus. That starts against Toulon.  

Enjoy the game, 

Al