SALE Sharks director of rugby Steve Diamond was glad to get his second consecutive win at the AJ Bell Stadium as his side prevailed 20-13 against the Northampton Saints.

He said: "Playing sides like Northampton, to get a win is always good, we're delighted."

Diamond celebrated his teams forward effort: "In the first half, we attacked very well with the possession we got. The driving maul became a weapon and it managed to suck them in so there was space out wide."

After the match, Diamond commended the strength of the academy set up at the Sharks as he highlighted the good performances of his young players.

He said: "Sam James showed a bit of class with his try after the break by Beaumont.

"He's got a great skill set. He's tall, a good defender and he showed that today. He's another lad putting his head above the parapet in the academy, so I'm really delighted for him.

"He's a good young lad coming through the academy, he plays around Johnny Leota and more experienced players he gets more opportunities, and he took them today."

Diamond was also content with the performance of young fullback Mike Haley, who has performed consistently at the start of the Aviva Premiership season.

He said: "I think Haley was outstanding today, he caught everything that was kicked at him, he's like an old rugby league fullback, up in the air with his knees up."

The Director of Rugby emphasized the attacking threat of his team, saying: "As long as we can guarantee some ball, with the players we've got, we'll always do alright."

He also was satisfied with his team's defensive effort: "We showed our resilience in the second half and in the last 10 minutes, when we had no ball and we were conceding field position all the time we managed to stay reasonably disciplined and managed to see the game out."

He added: "It was just a case of staying connected in defence which we managed to do, we left probably six or nine points out there on the penalties."

Diamond summarised the result, saying, "Its always good to win, and have lots to work on, the biggest thing we've got to work on is recovery as we're playing in four days."

The Sharks now sit in sixth position in the table after a strong performance against the Northampton Saints, and head to the Stoop to take on Harlequins on Friday.

Meanwhile, Sale Sharks are offering one lucky Sale and Altrincham Messenger the chance to win one of their newly launched GR8 tickets that covers every game from the European Challenge Cup game against Pau right through to the game against Saracens in February. There is no cash alternative available all normal Sale Sharks competition Terms and Conditions apply.

To be entered into the draw all we want to know is who is the current Captain of Sale Sharks:

A Danny Cipriani

B Dan Braid

C Sammy Tuitupou

Email either A, B or C to info@salesharks.com and we will notify the winner ahead of the Pau game. The closing date is November 16.