Exeter 37 Sale 12

Exeter eased to a comfortable victory over Sale Sharks, scoring five tries to blow their opponents out of the water.

The hosts were looking to bounce back from a narrow defeat to Bath a week earlier, while Sale were on a high following an entertaining victory over Wasps. But it was Exeter who got off to the best start when Phil Dolman crossed for a try following great work from Jason Shoemark and Richard Baxter. Igancio Mieres was wide with the conversion, but added two penalty goals shortly after the try to extend Exeter's lead. Then, with half-time fast approaching, the hosts were over the line again. This time it was Baxter who did excellently to ground the ball under pressure. Mieres was this time on target with the conversion, leaving Sale with a mountain to climb in the second period. But disaster struck for the visitors on 47 minutes, when Nic Sestaret finished off a superb team effort to score his side's third try. Mieres was wide with the conversion, but it didn't seem to matter to the rampant Chiefs and, when Matt Jess struck less than ten minutes later, you knew it wasn't going to be Sale's day. The visitors did stage a late rally in the closing stages, with substitutes Tony Buckley and Luther Burrell crossing for tries, but deservedly it was Exter who had the final say, courtesy of a penalty try in the final minute, awarded following persistent infringements in the scrum.