Sale Sharks hold on to beat Newcastle Falcons

Sale Sharks have secured a 34-28 win over Newcastle Falcons in the Aviva Premiership this afternoon, despite their opponents scoring two tries in the final 15 minutes.

The home side were dealt a blow less than a minute in when Tommy Taylor was sent to the sin bin for a tip tackle, but Sale still managed to break the deadlock when Chris Cusiter burst over.

Once back up to 15, the Sharks extended their lead through Mark Cueto and Sam Tuitupou, leaving them 13 points up heading into half time.

The visitors started to dominate the possession as the second half progressed, leaving Richard Mayhew and Juan Pablo Socino to close the gap in the final 15 minutes, but TJ Ioane put the win beyond doubt.

Danny Cipriani had a solid first half for Sale, adding the extras for all three tries and kicking a penalty, but neither of the home side's second-half tries were converted.

The result leaves Sale seventh in the table, while Newcastle remain 11th.