Exeter Chiefs vs Sale Sharks Preview & Tips - Sale can get close in Rugby Premiership semi-final

By Ralph Staniforth

Ralph is a passoniate sports journalist and coach based in Cape Town.

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Exeter vs Sale predictions for Saturday’s English Rugby Premiership semi-final
Fixture is being played at 16:30 BST at Sandy Park
Sale have won 8 of their last 9 matches in the Rugby Premiership
I am backing Sale to win or lose by less than 8 points
Preview, predictions, stats & team news

Sale Sharks lost 20-19 at Sandy Park this past weekend (Getty images)

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Exeter vs Sale Preview & Tips

Sale Sharks pushed Exeter Chiefs all the way at Sandy Park just a week ago. We are expecting a similar match with Sale tipped to cover the +8 handicap. An upset win is certainly on the cards.

Exeter have won their last 7 matches.
Exeter have won 10 of their last 12 matches against Sale.
Exeter have won their last 6 Rugby Premiership semi-final matches.
Sale have won 8 of their last 9 matches.
Sale lost by 1 point in their last match against Exeter.

Head to Head

Exeter have won 10 of their last 12 matches against Sale Sharks. They met last weekend in a match Exeter won 20-19 at home. Earlier this season Sale won their home match against Exeter.

Exeter Form

Exeter Chiefs are the defending Rugby Premiership champions and come into this semi-final as favourites. They finished second on the table with 82 points after winning 17 of their 22 matches.

With seven wins in a row the Chiefs will be happy with their form coming into this knockout fixture. They will however be weary of Sale considering they met last week and the Chiefs only managed a 20-19 home win.

In their two matches prior to that the Chiefs beat Newcastle 74-3 at home and Northampton 29-26 away.

Exeter Team News

Sam Skinner is suspended after his red card last week. A retrospective card has also been given to Dane Ewers so he will miss this clash.

The rest of the Chiefs lineup remains the same.

Sale Form

Sale may be underdogs but they come into this fixture in superb form and full of confidence. Before losing to Exeter 20-19 away last weekend, Sale were on a eight-match winning streak.

It has been a dry spell for the Sale Sharks in recent years with their last semi-final appearance coming in 2006. They face an uphill battle against a Chiefs side that have made the last six semi-finals and won them all at Sandy Park.

Prior to losing to Exeter at the weekend, Sale beat the table topping Bristol Bears 22-12 at home and Harlequins 45-12, also at home.

Sale Team News

Alex Sanderson has made a few changes to the side that faced Exeter last weekend. Ben Curry, Robert du Preez and Curtis Langdon are recalled after being rested last weekend.

Exeter vs Sale FAQ

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Verdict

Exeter Chiefs v Sale Sharks

Both Exeter and Sale are in superb form. This promises to be very close so I'm backing Sale to lose by less than eight with an upset win possible.

Sale +8 Handicap

Handicap

@1/1 - 3 Units

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Sale Win

Full Time Result

@12/5 - 1 Unit

Bet £10 Get £50

Use the bet365 Bonus Code NEWBONUS. Bet £10 & Get £50 in Free Bets for new customers at bet365. Min deposit requirement. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits and are available for use upon settlement of bets to value of qualifying deposit. Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Time limits and T&Cs apply. The bonus code NEWBONUS can be used during registration, but does not change the offer amount of the offer. 18+ begambleaware.org

Bet at bet365