Sale boss Kingsley Jones has paid tribute to Charlie Hodgson on becoming the highest-scoring player in Guinness Premiership history.
Sale boss hails record breakling fly-half
Sale director of rugby Kingsley Jones has paid tribute to Charlie Hodgson after he became the highest-scoring player in Guinness Premiership history on Sunday.
Although Hodgson could not prevent his side losing 32-25 to Newcastle at Edgeley Park the fly-half was hugely influential, hitting 20 points with the boot throughout the match.
His 64th minute penalty took him past Jonny Wilkinson's record haul of 1,489 to 1,492 career points.
"It is a great achievement for Charlie, said Jones. "You think of players like Jonny Wilkinson who he has passed and it is a great achievement.
"He is 28 years old and who knows where that will end."
Jones was left shellshocked by the result however as the Sharks lost their second successive game thanks to a last gasp try by Newcastle flanker Brent Wilson.
Crucial period
"It is a disappointing result and we have a few injuries in what is a crucial period for us - it is not good at all," he added
"I would have been disappointed with a draw five minutes from time but to then lose the game is very hard to take.
"We started well but our second-half performance was poor, but I have to give Newcastle credit for the way they played.
"We now have around 17 players injured and I am concerned how tired we looked today.
"We need to freshen up, keep everyone fit and wrap them in cotton wool."
Tremendous
For Newcastle it was their fifth consecutive win and Falcons director of rugby Steve Bates praised his side's resilience.
"It was a tremendous game, a bit nerve-wracking at the end there," he said:
"We played some good stuff this afternoon and four tries was a fair reflection of a lot of our game.
"I am proud of the way they fought back and they dominated possession and territory for the last 20 minutes.
"They are a great bunch of guys and deserve this for the tough and hard work and maybe bit of criticism they received early in the season.
"We had to restructure our game, it took longer than planned, but we are benefiting from it now."