Basement boys stun Sharks

Reigning champions Sale Sharks slipped to their fifth straight defeat as basement boys Worcester to a comfortable 18-12 victory.

Warriors, buoyed by their first home win of the season last week against Bath, made it two wins in a row to leave the Sharks chances of retaining their title in tatters.

Shane Drahm and Tevita Taumoepeau scored tries for the visitors to leave Sale with just one win in their past nine in the Guinness Premiership.

Centre Dale Rasmussen, fresh from signing a new three-year contract with the Warriors this week, opened the scoring when he burst through the Sale defence and, following some slick handling from James Brown, Drahm eventually wriggled over the line.

Brown missed the conversion to extend the score, but the game was held up soon after for around 10 minutes as Sharks' Mark Taylor was carried off on a stretcher with what looked to be a neck injury.

The visitors stretched their lead after half an hour when Taumoepeau bundled over for his first score of the season.

Larrechea reduced Worcester's lead to just three points at the break, as he landed two penalties.

Sale, who had not scored a try in their previous two matches, were in touching distance of breaking that duck midway through the second half.

But a superb last-ditch tackle from Rasmussen on debutant full-back Julien Laharrague, kept the Sharks at bay.

And Worcester held on to go level on 25 points with Saints at the foot of the table.