Sale Sharks fly-half George Ford has urged his side to get into “a finals mindset” as they approach the business end of the Premiership campaign.
Ford claimed his first win in a Sale shirt last Friday as the north-west outfit powered past Bristol Bears at Ashton Gate, confirming a play-off place.
The next task is to beat Gloucester this Saturday at Kingsholm where they know that a victory would hand them home advantage in the semi-finals.
Trophy could return to Sale
Sale, who last lifted the Premiership trophy in 2006, are desperate for silverware and Ford has laid out the roadmap to potential glory for the Sharks.
“We are not going to stand here and talk about winning (the title), but when you put yourself in a position the whole point is to go on and do it,” he said.
“If we keep taking steps forward going into that semi-final, hopefully anything can happen when it comes to the semis and hopefully the final.
“We have got to keep the mindset of trying to get better and putting ourselves in that position.
“It is about getting into a finals mindset. We want to exert pressure on teams and come away with points.
Impressive job by @SaleSharksRugby last night. Curry brothers immense, George Ford in supreme form. All building nicely towards the play-offs and a major title push.
— Andrew Baldock (@balders2) April 15, 2023
“If you change the scoreboard, sometimes you change the way the opposition play. Opportunities come off the back of that.
“Sale have always been known for being a physical team. They love that side of the game. Our job is to put them in the right areas to do it.
“If we can get in that sweet-spot, hopefully we will be a difficult team to beat.
“We haven’t been in the best of form recently, but I think there’s been a difference in the last two weeks in the way we have looked at and spoken about our game and, more importantly, taken action to improve it.
“We had to be pretty honest with each other because we want to take a step forward at this time of the year. We don’t just want to hang in there.”
Impressed at Ashton Gate
Ford scored 21 points against Bristol last week and will be key to their run to possible silverware, with boss Alex Sanderson urging him to be a leader.
“He (Ford) is one of the few who has won titles and understand what a championship attitude and mindset is,” he said as Sale look to win the trophy.
“We’ve leant into him, Manu (Tuilagi), Jonny Hill, Tom O’Flaherty and their understanding of it, pull together the best parts of the information and use it for ourselves.”
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