London Wasps 29 Sale Sharks 19

Had Sharks been outplayed by a far superior outfit, maybe this defeat would have been easier to accept but that simply wasn't the case.

Ultimately, Wasps denied the visitors even a losing bonus point, sealing a 29-19 triumph, but Sharks should have had more.

It was tit for tat throughout an enthralling encounter but every time Sale seemed to gain a foothold, Wasps simply hit back harder.

Play like this in their remaining three games though and surely Sale won't go too far wrong.

Right from the off they meant business, hitting the rucks hard and playing with a bristling physicality in attempt to force Wasps onto the back foot.

And they did so with a degree of success. After taking the ball into the home 22, Wasps were penalised for coming in from the side at a ruck and Charlie Hodgson kicked a simple three points.

The travelling fans were even given hope their side might take complete control when Josh Lewsey made a catastrophic error 20 yards from his own line.

After calling for a mark from Hodgson's kick, he puzzlingly took a tap before clearing his lines, allowing a hungry Luke McAlister to charge it down.

But with covering defenders quickly scampering back, the Kiwi attempted to pass inside to Oriol Ripol and the chance was lost.

Much to Sale's dismay, they were swiftly punished for their profligacy.

From the resultant clearance, Ben Foden attempted a long outlet pass to Mark Cueto but Wasps wing Tom Voyce read it all too easily.

Like a tiger stalking it's prey, he ruthlessly picked off the loose pass and raced 40 metres to touch down. England's latest darling, Danny Cipriani, added the conversion.

After that fortunate break, Wasps began to play with the kind of supreme confidence that has characterised their performances of late.

Through phase after phase, they pounded at the Sale line, looking for gaps. But to the visitors' credit, they didn't find any.

Sharks' defensive effort was epitomised by a superb last-ditch tackle from Oriol Ripol, which denied Paul Sackey an almost certain try.

Cipriani wasted a chance to extend Wasps' lead, nudging a long range penalty wide of the posts and Sale might even have forced themselves in front a minute before the break.

An absolutely delightful pass from Hodgson sent McAlister powering through the Wasps line, but after the ball had been shifted to Ripol, he found himself quickly snaffled by covering tacklers.

Instead, the home side hit back and Cipriani atoned for his earlier miss with a penalty to make it 10-3 at half time.

It only got worse in the exchanges immediately after the break.

Sharks threatened for a spell but gained no reward and once Wasps turned over possession, they hit out hard.

Sackey was denied once in the right corner but they remained patient and the ball was moved wide again for Lewsey to send in Sackey at the second attempt. Cipriani converted to make it 17-3 to the hosts.

Despite the odds stacked against them, Sharks kept plugging away.

Hodgson kicked a couple of penalties and when Joe Worsley was sin-binned they looked to be right back in it.

But Ripol soon followed Worsley after failing to roll away in the tackle and Cipriani added a penalty of his own to once more put his side in command.

Back came Sale again though and Foden atoned for his earlier error after taking an inside pass from Hodgson and wriggling through two tackles to score.

The young star may see his future as Northampton's scrum half but recent performances suggest he would be better staying put.

Cipriani responded with another three points from the tee but Sharks kept themselves within striking distance when Hodgson responded in kind, once more after Foden had made the hard yards.

But it just wasn't to be for the gallant visitors, as Wasps re-asserted themselves in the final 10 minutes and pulled away with two further penalties from Cipriani.

It was a harsh end for Sale, but one that emphasised the challenge they face in securing a Premiership play-off spot.