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#YourSharks continue to gather momentum in the Gallagher Premiership and ensure they are the side left unbeaten after defeating Exeter Chiefs in style at the AJ Bell Stadium this afternoon.

Akker van der Merwe put Sale in front early in the second half only for Sam Maunder to level the scores soon after.

A second penalty for Rob du Preez and a debut try for Joe Carpenter secured the win as Henry Slade missed a late penalty to get a losing bonus point.

The win moves Sale up to second place in the early Premiership table as Exeter drop to third place – Saracens leapfrogging the Chiefs at the top after their win over Leicester.

Exeter dominated the early possession and territory and were rewarded when Cowan-Dickie came up from a 12th-minute rolling maul after a five metre line-out.

Du Preez and Slade swapped penalties before Curry’s try five minutes from the break as Exeter saw starting locks Jack Dunne and Dafydd Jenkins come off injured, along with scrum-half Stu Townsend.

A pushover try from van der Merwe early in the second half was cancelled out as Maunder went in under the posts after Olly Woodburn worked an opening in the Sale defence.

Exeter should have gone ahead five minutes later but Stuart Hogg failed to gather Harvey Skinner’s pass with the try-line gaping.

It was a miss they would rue as du Preez landed his second three-pointer after Sale had failed to score from close range after an hour before Carpenter went over.

The 21-year-old, starting his first Premiership match, got on the end of a long pass and went over in the left corner after Sale had sucked the Exeter defence in.

Du Preez kicked his third penalty with two minutes left to deny Exeter a bonus point as Slade’s late effort from the tee missed the target.

Sale: Carpenter; Roebuck, James, Tuilagi, O’Flaherty; R du Preez, Warr; McIntyre, van der Merwe, Oosthuizen, Wiese, J Hill, T Curry, B Curry (capt), D du Preez

Replacements: Ashman, Rodd, Harper, Ross, JL du Preez, Simpson, S Hill, Reed

Exeter: Hogg; O’Loughlin, Slade, Whitten, Woodburn; Skinner, Townsend; Hepburn, Cowan-Dickie (capt), Williams, Dunne, Jenkins, Kirsten, Vermeulen, S Simmonds

Replacements: Yeandle, Iosefa-Scott, Schickerling, Van Heerden, Capstick, S Maunder, J Simmonds, Kata

Referee: Wayne Barnes