Sale's Sebastien Chabal takes some stopping at the Madejski Stadium © Getty Images

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Matches: London Irish 28 - 6 Sale Sharks

Tournaments/Tours: Guinness Premiership

Teams: England | London Irish | Sale Sharks

Head coach Toby Booth believes London Irish are on a "winning ticket" and set to become a significant force in the Guinness Premiership after they ended Sale's four-game unbeaten start to the season.

Australian Peter Hewat bagged 13 points - including a try, drop goal and conversion - from the unfamiliar role of fly-half while Richard Thorpe, Alex Corbisiero and Sailosi Tagicakibau also crossed. In response, Sale could only score two penalties from the boot of Charlie Hodgson.

And for Booth, who took over the top job when Martin Johnson recruited Brian Smith for the national team set-up, it represents the progression that continues to be made. "We brought the defensive intensity that we had against Wasps and if you have nights like that you are on a winning ticket.

"With the strike force we have got, and a lot of passion and a lot of competitiveness - and that is the real thing that is fuelling this side to go forward. If you can tell me a side that can turn around to 20-3 down and win and come up against Sale, who are a fantastic side with fantastic players that are very well coached and have a massive defensive record, then that means you are on the right ticket and that is very important."

Meanwhile, Sale director of rugby Philippe Saint-Andre hinted concerns over his players' safety would force him to rotate his squad against Cardiff on Saturday in the EDF Energy Cup - their third game in eight days. "I will do a lot of changes because the safety of the players is more important," he said.

The Sale director of rugby conceded his side deserved to lose their unbeaten record in the Premiership this season, but was confused about the number of penalties his side conceded from scrums. "You have (Andrew) Sheridan in your scrum and you are penalised (rather) than the other team - it is a bit of a joke for me.

"They did well, they are clever, they are crafty and there are some fantastic match winners and they deserved to win today. We made too many mistakes, we dropped too many balls in contact, we did not keep the ball enough and against a team like them, if you lose the ball in contact, they punish you."

Saint-Andre also reported that Sebastian Bruno will have a scan on his damaged bicep tomorrow and could be out for between 12 and 16 weeks.