It's game day.
Bristol Bears host Sale Sharks tonight in Round Nine of the 2024/25 Gallagher Premiership with Pat Lam's side looking to go top of the table for New Year. The Bears are neck and neck with local rivals Bath in the battle for top spot with the two sides locked on 34 points each with Bristol's ability to keep earning attacking bonus points making up for losing one game more than the Blue, Black and White this season.
Bristol come into the game off the back of a stunning 54-24 win away at Leicester Tigers before Christmas and are now looking to transfer that form to Ashton Gate. Sale Sharks battled to 28-10 victory against Exeter Chiefs at the Salford Community Stadium to put them in fifth, one point off the play-offs.
The game kicks off at 7.45pm on Friday night.
Follow all the build-up, team news, live play-by-play match updates, reaction, stats, analysis and highlights from Ashton Gate with regular updates below...
Key Events
Reaction from Bristol Bears director of rugby Pat Lam
Lam said:
It was a red hot Sale team and we will just dust ourselves off and get on. This one is a bit of an outlier and massive respect to Sale but we won't be defined by this.
Saracens away is probably what we need to get our focus backm Bristol Bears have never won there. Everyone has a bad day at work sometimes and that was a bad day for us and we are not going to dwell on it. The proof will be in the pudding next week. We are in a strong position with the work we have done.
Reaction from Sale Sharks director of rugby Alex Sanderson
Sanderson said:
I feel pretty emotional. You make sacrifices at this time of year and performances like that make it worth it.
I think La Rochelle and Leinster had a pretty similar strategy to us.
Bristol want to get the ball wide so you have to counter it with your line speed and then scramble when they break you and we did that tonight.
Bristol are a brilliant side, they deserve to be near the top of the tree but they get their energy from scoring. Our boys get their energy from rolling their sleeves up and digging in.
That is one of the best defensive performances from this group, it was pretty awesome tonight.
Official player of the match
Sale captain Ben Curry is named player of the match by broadcasters TNT Sport.
0-38
FULL TIME - Bristol Bears 0 Sale Sharks 38
A stunning bonus point win for Sale Sharks.
The first time Bristol have failed to score a point for eight years.
0-38
YELLOW CARD - Sale Sharks - 0-38
Sam Bedlow is shown yellow for an offence killing the ball close to his tryline as the Bears look to batter over.
0-38
Staggering scramble defence
I am not sure I have ever seen scamble defence as good as this from Sale.
Benjamin Elizalde escapes down the left wing and pass back inside to the tracking Kieran Marmion but he is cut down by Joe Carpenter as the Bears scrum half looks to score in the corner.
The Bears are facing down the barrel of being nilled at home.
0-38
Sale's defence is impregnable
Bristol go through a dozen phases of attack around the edge of the Sale 22, but eventually the hosts are forced into a knock on just moments after Raffi Quirke came up with a brave tackle on Rich Lane.
0-38
TRY - Sale Sharks - 0-38
Sale have the bonus point and do it in style going 95m.
Playing from a 5m tap penalty move, the Bears look to pull it back to a deep pood but James Williams, back from a pectoral injury, misses his team mates with his pass and the Sharks are onto it, with Raffi Quirke putting away Tom O’Flaherty despite the best efforts of Rich Lane to stop the score.
0-38
NO TRY - Bristol Bears - 0-33
Attacking from a close lineout, the Bears batter away but replacement hooker Gabriel Oghre knocks on with the final thrust.
We come back for an earlier penalty for a no arms tackle.
0-33
So close to an interception
The Sharks defensive line is so hungry.
Sam Bedlow gets into the passing lane and is so close to hanging onto it and running away but the former Bears just knocks on.
0-33
PENALTY GOAL - Sale Sharks - 0-33
Fitz Harding gambles trying to turn the ball over in a ruck but gets pinged for playing the ball off his feet.
Rob du Preez keeps the pressure on from the kicking tee and nails the 25m penalty.
0-33
Outstanding defence from Sale
Bristol are suddenly getting some joy at the breakdown and counter ruck to turn the ball over.
The pill is worked through the hands to Joe Owen again and he backs himself on the outside and is very close to getting away, but Rob du Preez does brilliantly to recover and drive him into touch.
0-30
Bristol Bears go 80m
Finally the Bears get away in their 22 as Harry Randall comes around the corner to release Jack Bates who flys up to halfway and then kicks long to spark a footrace.
But some how Ben Curry gets back to dive on the ball, beating winger Bates to it 5m out.
0-30
TRY - Sale Sharks - 0-30
Bristol heads have fallen.
Looking to run out from deep in their 22, Sale captain Ben Curry reads the pull back pass from Fitz Harding and intercepts to score under the posts.
Rob du Preez converts from right in front.
0-30
Easy entry into the 22 for Sale
Jake Woolmore strays offside defending at a lineout on halfway to allow George Ford to kick deep into the Bristol 22, but Joe Owen saves the day with a steal at the line out.
0-23
Bristol getting some more joy
The Bears have got on the outside twice in quick succession to stretch the Sale defence but the visitors work so hard to chase back and shut down the danger, corner flagging in numbers to force Kalaveti Ravouvou to step back inside.
0-23
More injury concerns for Bristol
Max Lahiff has just limped down the tunnel.
George Kloska is on.
0-23
PENALTY GOAL - Sale Sharks - 0-23
Bristol show no signs of being more conservative in their play and look to run out from deep but Sam Worsley gets isolated and is penalised for not releasing with Tom Curray jackalling over the top of him.
It didn't look like the Sale flanker released having been involved in the tackle but the referee thought differently.
0-23
SECOND HALF KICKS OFF
George Ford gets the second half underway for the visitors.
The Bears simply have to score first here.
0-20
Match action
HALF TIME - Bristol Bears 0 Sale Sharks 20
That was an utterly disastrous first half for Bristol Bears who were schooled in 'Test match' style rugby from Sale Sharks who dictated the pace and won the physical battles all over the park, including at the scrum.
The Bears look like they are desperately missing AJ MacGinty at fly-half and might just have too many aces on their injured list with Ellis Genge pulling out of the match with a back spasm.
It should be an impossibly long way back for the hosts.
0-20
DROP GOAL - Sale Sharks - 0-20
George Ford has done it again.
The England international gets back in the pocket to land a 37m drop goal to teach the Bears a lesson in keeping the scoreboard kicking to make the most of all their first half dominance.
This half has been all Sale.
The Bears are scoreless in the first half for the first time since April, agianst Leicester.
0-20
A change of tide in the scrum
Bristol win their first scum penalty of the game against the head but criminally the Bears have missed their kick for touch again.
0-17
Cross-field kick
George Ford attempts a shallow cross-field kick with Harry Thacker bearing down on him, but the ball is lost into touch.
0-17
Key man departs for Bristol
Gabriel Ibitoye is off having just put in a long kick and chase. It appears to be an injury
The Bears are losing attacking threats all over the place.
Benjamin Elizalde is on.
0-17
DROP GOAL MISSED - Bristol Bears - 0-17
Bristol finally find the outside edge in the backs and work the ball wide to rapid lock Joe Owen.
He opens his long legs and smashes through the first tackle as the Bears get up to the Sale 22.
But the Sharks scamble back well and Bristol, playing without a scrum half with Gabriel Ibitoye filling in, lose all the pace in the attack and Sam Worsley opts to line up a 35m drop goal attempt but he pulls it to the left of the uprights.
0-17
TRY - Sale Sharks - 0-17
The Bears are in a hole.
Sale batter away at the tryline in the middle of the pitch for 10 phases before a wide miss pass from George Ford puts Tom Roebuck over in the corner.
Rob du Preez nails the right touchline conversion.
Wow.
0-17
YELLOW CARD - Bristol Bears
Sale are almost in again.
The Sharks attack down the blindside through lock Ernst van Rhyn who released Luke Cowan-Dickie. The Sharks hooker is stopped short of the line by a great cover tackle from Fitz Harding to drive him into touch, by the TMO spots that Harry Randall pulled Cowan-Dickie back off the ball in the build-up and the Bristol number nine is given his marching orders.
Thr Sharks kick to the corner.
0-10
Big scrum penalty
Bevan Rodd wins a penalty at the scrum against Max Lahiff as the whole setpiece spins.
George Ford kicks the penalty on halfway deep into the Bears' 22.
0-10
