Sale overcome Saracens in north London despite Vermeulen red card
Sale beat Saracens in north London on 4 October 2026, recovering from a disappointing opening weekend to record victory despite Jacques Vermeulen receiving a 20-minute red card after 17 minutes.
Nathan Jibulu, Tom O’Flaherty and Ben Bamber scored tries for Sale, with the side’s display described as committed and cussed from start to finish and underpinned by the experience of George Ford and Tom Curry. The win came against a Saracens team who, the report says, seldom made it beyond second gear and were frequently unable to find consistent rhythm.
Sale were reduced to 13 players for a large portion of the opening half-hour following Vermeulen’s dismissal and at one point looked likely to be down to 12, but an attempted knockdown by Courtney Lawes of a Fergus Burke chip flew backwards rather than forwards with Alex Lozowski and Vermeulen already sidelined. The article records the red card as occurring after 17 minutes and lasting 20 minutes.
Saracens were kept scoreless until the 33rd minute when Eroni Mawi ploughed over from close range. A potential Saracens try for Nick Tompkins, converted by Burke, was later scrubbed out for obstruction at a preceding lineout, contributing to a first half the report labels as messy despite the talent on the pitch.
The second half produced more action: O’Flaherty finished a solo score after reacting quickest to a mishit high punt, and Saracens, having replaced Alfie Barbeary, Hugh Tizard and both starting props at half-time, were rewarded when Sione Va’enuku exploited a narrow visiting defence to bring them back into contention. Charlie Bracken’s try, created after a surge from his brother Jack, narrowed the gap to 21-17 entering the closing stages, but Sale’s physicality saw them hold out.
The match report notes further player movements and absences: Sale’s victory came without the involvement of Noah Caluori on this occasion, while Saracens fielded England forwards Maro Itoje, Ben Earl and George Martin; their England internationals Theo Dan and Elliot Daly departed prematurely in the second half and Alfie Barbeary lasted only 40 minutes.
Brendan Venter spoke to TNT Sport before the game, saying he is not the man in charge of picking the Saracens team and describing selection as a collegiate enterprise that this week lasted five hours and covered teams for the season’s first eight weeks. The article also records his nicknames and current job title as “Brendan Vintner” and “head of culture and technical director”, and states that speaking to the written media is not set to be a regular part of his remit.
The performance represented a marked contrast with last season, when Sale leaked 150 points in their two fixtures against Saracens, and on this occasion the Sharks had enough in reserve physically to see the game out and silence the home crowd.