News in Brief
Jones heaps praise on Hodgson
Scrum.com
January 1, 2010
Sale's Charlie Hodgson slots a kick during his side's narrow victory over Harlequins
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- Sale director of rugby Kingsley Jones paid tribute to fly-half Charlie Hodgson after his last-ditch tackle helped the Sharks claim a dramatic 21-16 Guinness Premiership win over Harlequins.
"I'll be honest, I was really worried in the last 15 minutes," said Jones. "It's no coincidence that Quins finish really strong. At the end of every game they come back. I was really concerned that we had let the game slip. But the way Charlie Hodgson made that tackle sums up the way he is playing at the moment. Any flanker would have been proud of that tackle. It's importance is massive.
"I've over the moon with Charlie. I think he's playing the rugby of his life. The tackle just sums up the attitude of the whole squad. The extra one per cent commitment and the spirit we have here showed through."
Hodgson also kicked four goals but the pivotal score came just before half-time when 19-year-old lock James Gaskell finished off a break by Neil Briggs with a glorious 70-metre try.
"He was in the right place and that's what happens when you've got the magic dust," said Jones. "Being in the right place at the right time makes top rugby players. James is just going to grow in confidence and get better and better. He's starting to find his feet at this level. He is a tremendous talent."
Quins head coach John Kingston bemoaning his side's misfortune. "We felt we had just about done enough up here in the Heineken and we certainly feel we've done enough tonight," he said. "I'm glad we're not coming back here for a little while. I felt it would have been the least we deserved had we scored the try at the end because we knuckled down and stuck at it. It's a very disappointed changing room because they put in a huge amount of effort and I think probably deserve far more than they got."
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1. Max Verstappen ()
