History of Sale Sharks facts for kids

The Sale Sharks rugby club started way back in 1861. This makes them one of the oldest rugby clubs in England! For many years, Sale Sharks have been a top rugby union team in the North of England. They have a long and exciting history filled with great players and big wins.

How it All Started: Early Days

The Sale Sharks found their home at Heywood Road in 1905. They played there for a very long time, until 2003. The team had an amazing year in 1911. They played 26 matches and didn't lose a single one! They won 24 games and drew two.

Many talented players from Sale have played for their countries. Pat Davies was the first Sale player to play for England in 1927. But it was G.A.M. Isherwood who first played in an international Test match. He played for the British team during their 1910 tour to South Africa. The 1930s were a very strong time for the club. They had stars like Hal Sever (England), Claude Davey and Wilf Wooller (Wales), and Ken Fyfe (Scotland). It was no surprise when they won the Middlesex Sevens tournament in 1936.

Sale Sharks were champions in county cup rugby for 15 years straight! They didn't lose a single cup game from 1972 to 1987. During this time, they also tried to become English club champions. In 1972, they reached the semi-finals but lost to Coventry.

In the 1990s, the club faced some tough times. Even with exciting coaches like Paul Turner and John Mitchell, it was hard to manage the money side of running a professional rugby club.

Sale took 20,000 fans to Twickenham for the 1997 Pilkington Cup Final. But they lost a tricky match to Leicester 9–3. The club struggled until a local businessman, Brian Kennedy, helped them in 1999–2000. After that, the club was financially stable.

A new chief executive, Peter Deakin, joined the club. He helped make the club more famous. Sadly, he became very ill and passed away in 2003.

Success didn't happen overnight. Sale Sharks finished 11th and 10th in the Premiership in the early 2000s. Then, two former Sale players, Jim Mallinder and Steve Diamond, became coaches. They led the team to be runners-up in 2002. This meant they qualified for the important Heineken Cup.

The club started signing famous players. Scotland captain Bryan Redpath joined, along with Stuart Pinkerton, Barry Stewart, Graeme Bond, Jason White, and Andrew Sheridan. Sale also looked for talent from Rugby League. Apollo Perelini, known as "The Terminator," joined. Then, Jason Robinson, one of the most exciting wingers in the world, moved to Sale from Wigan Warriors.

In 2002, the team also won the Parker Pen Shield at Oxford. They beat Pontypridd 25–22.

In 2004, Sale played at Twickenham again in the Powergen Cup Final, but lost closely to the Falcons. Later that year, Jim Mallinder left the club. Sale then hired former French international Philippe Saint-André as coach. With new players like French internationals Sébastien Bruno and Sébastien Chabal, Saint-André helped Sale win the European Challenge Cup again in 2005. They beat Pau 27–3.

Becoming Champions: The 2005–06 Season

For the 2005–06 season, new players joined, including French prop Lionel Faure, Samoan back Elvis Seveali'i, and Welsh player Nathan Bonner-Evans. Building on their European Challenge Cup win, Sale had a fantastic season. They won 16 out of 22 games and finished at the top of the table. In the semi-final, they won 22–12. Sale Sharks then won the 2006 Premiership title! They beat Leicester Tigers 45–20 in the final.

Challenges and Changes: 2006–07 and 2007–08 Seasons

After their big win in 2006, many hoped for another great season. The team was strong with new players like Chris Bell, Ben Evans, and Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe. However, many players got injured, including Scotland captain Jason White, England fly-half Charlie Hodgson, and England prop Andrew Sheridan. At one point, Sale had only 17 fit players out of a 38-man squad!

The 2007–08 season was a World Cup year. This meant some big names like Jason White, Andrew Sheridan, and Sébastien Chabal were away playing for their countries. Charlie Hodgson stayed with the club. Sale signed new players like Rory Lamont, Brent Cockbain, and Luke McAlister. McAlister's signing was one of the biggest for Sale. The season had its ups and downs. Ben Foden became a superb player, and Sale beat Leicester Tigers both at home and away for the first time. Richard Wigglesworth also played for England for the first time. However, the team didn't reach the semi-finals or win a trophy, which were their goals.

At the end of the 2007–08 season, several players left the club. Ben Foden, Chris Mayor, and Ignacio Fernández Lobbe all joined Northampton Saints.

New Leadership and Records: 2008–09 Season

Before the 2008–09 season, Steve Hanley had to retire due to injury. Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe became the new captain. Sébastien Chabal and Dean Schofield were named vice-captains.

Sale Sharks set a new Premiership record at the start of the season. They played four games without letting the other team score a single try! These games were against Newcastle, Saracens, Bristol, and Gloucester.

In December 2008, the club announced that coach Philippe Saint-André would leave at the end of the season. Head coach Kingsley Jones took over as Director of Rugby. Former Sale winger Jason Robinson became the new Head Coach for the 2009–10 season.

Sale was knocked out of the European Cup in the group stages. Despite a good win in France, losses to Munster and Montauban meant they didn't go further. Charlie Hodgson was voted the player of the year for the club in April 2009.

Changes and Struggles: 2009–10 and 2010–11 Seasons

Many key players left the club along with Saint-André. Captain Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe, Lionel Faure, Jason White, Sébastien Bruno, Rory Lamont, Luke McAlister, and Sébastien Chabal all said goodbye. The new coaching team for 2009–10 included Kingsley Jones as Director of Rugby and Jason Robinson as Head Coach. Dean Schofield remained captain.

In March 2009, Sale Sharks signed Ben Cohen, a famous former England winger. In February 2010, they also signed former Welsh international Dafydd James.

Sale had a tough 2009–10 season. They finished 11th in the Premiership and only avoided being relegated on the second-to-last weekend. Their Heineken Cup campaign also ended in disappointment. However, they did have exciting wins at home against Cardiff Blues and home and away against Harlequins.

Towards the end of the season, there were more coaching changes. Jason Robinson left the club. Former All Black player Mike Brewer replaced him as head coach. Kingsley Jones stayed as Director of Rugby.

In December 2010, after only eight months, Mike Brewer was let go as head coach. Academy coach Pete Anglesea took over temporarily. Sale finished 10th that season.

New Home and New Players: 2011–12 Season

In 2011–12, former player Steve Diamond became chairman. He started a big change, bringing in international players like Andy Powell and Tony Buckley. With these new players and coaches, Sale started the season well. But their performance dropped later in the season, and coach Tony Hanks was fired.

In April 2012, Sale announced they would move from Edgeley Park, their home since 2003, to the new Salford City Stadium (now called AJ Bell Stadium). They would share it with the Salford City Reds rugby league team. At the end of the season, Sale beat Gloucester and Bath to finish sixth in the Premiership. This meant they qualified for the Heineken Cup again. More new players were announced, including the return of Eifion Lewis-Roberts, Scottish international Richie Gray, and Danny Cipriani.

A Challenging Season: 2012–13 Season

The 2012–13 season was tough for Sale at their new stadium. They spent most of the season near the bottom of the league. However, they improved later and finished 10th. In the Premiership 7's tournament, they beat Leicester Tigers and Northampton Saints to reach the finals. But they lost to Saracens and Gloucester and didn't win the trophy.

A special moment happened when Mark Cueto broke Steve Hanley's record for most tries in the Premiership. Steve had 75 tries, and Mark scored his 76th against Exeter Chiefs.

Sale's only win in the Heineken Cup that year was against Cardiff Blues. They finished last in their group. They also had a very tough loss to Toulon, losing 62–0.

Their best performance was in the LV Cup. Wins against Saracens, Scarlets, and London Wasps helped Sale reach the semi-finals. They beat Saracens again to reach the final against Harlequins. Sale played well, with a try from Johnny Leota and three penalties from Danny Cipriani, scoring 14 points. But Harlequins won the final with 31 points.

Improvements and New Goals: 2013–14 and 2014–15 Seasons

The 2013–14 season showed a big improvement. Sale finished sixth in the Premiership. They didn't make the play-offs but qualified for the first-ever European Rugby Champions Cup. They also reached the quarter-finals of the European Challenge Cup, where they lost to Northampton Saints. Sale's success led to six of their players being called up to the England national team for their summer tour.

For the 2014–15 season, the Sharks finished seventh in the Aviva Premiership. They finished last in their European Rugby Champions Cup group, but they played tough games against strong teams like Munster, Saracens, and Clermont Auvergne at home. Young players from the club's academy, Mike Haley and Josh Beaumont, became regular first-team players. Josh was even called up for the England XV team and scored a try!

New Ownership: 2015–16 Season

The 2015–16 season saw some players leave, including club legend Mark Cueto, who retired as the all-time record Premiership try scorer. The Aviva Premiership season started later due to the World Cup. Sale had a tough start, losing 41–3 to champions Saracens. But they won their first home game against Northampton 20–13, with 21-year-old Sam James scoring a great try.

In the European Rugby Challenge Cup, Sale played against Newport and French teams Pau and Castres. They lost away to Newport but won at home against Pau. They then won both games against Castres. Sale won away against Pau again, setting up a big game against Newport to win their group. Sale won that game comfortably 38–5, scoring four tries. This meant they qualified for a home quarter-final against Montpellier.

In June 2016, Sale Sharks announced that an investment group, CorpAcq Ltd, led by Simon Orange, had taken over the club. This ended Brian Kennedy's 16 years of ownership.