Sale Sharks' new Director of Rugby, Brian Redpath, has stressed the important opportunity that the Fylde pre-season game at the Woodlands offers for some of his young players trying to make their mark in the Premiership club's squad system.

Quoted in the Manchester Evening News he said: "We need to see guys being hit, being tested in the scrum and being tackled as that’s when you really learn about players. We need to work with each other now and this week has been all about that ... building up our team spirit and team ethic and developing a never-say-die attitude.

“The next three games will determine what our starting 15 is for the first league game at Exeter."

Read the complete article including some background on the Sharks squad for the game by clicking here.

Also on the Sharks website is a piece on the two local boys who will be in the visitors blue strip on Saturday, Fylde's Josh Beaumont and Preston Grasshoppers' Mike Haley.