Mighty Leicester are not yet ex-champions but Dean Richards's side suffered another disconcerting blast of northern exposure last night as they slipped to their second defeat in three Zurich Premiership games against last season's runners-up.
The Sharks, showing as much regard for reputations as Leeds did on the opening day, were good value for their win and there will be no more spectacular individual try by a lock-forward this winter than the astonishing second-off effort from Chris Jones which killed off the Tigers at the start of the final quarter.
Picking up a loose ball just inside his own half, the athletic 22-year-old stampeded 50 metres past half Leicester's pack and a desparing Austin Healey to score under the posts. Clive Woodward, who had spent part of his day in a clear-the-air meeting with Richards after this week's contentious two-day England squad session, will have enjoyed the sight rather more than the Tigers' contingent.
Leicester's starting XV contained only four of their 10 England squad members and Richards' decision to leave the combined forward might of Ben Kay, Neil Back, Graham Rowntree and Dorian West on the bench could scarcely have been more pointed.
The irrepressible Healey was at least to be found in his now-customary position of fly-half but very little he tried remotely came off. Leicester were duly unable to make any sort of consistent progress.
Tim Stimpson did at least secure himself the honour of becoming the first man to score 1,000 Premiership points with a simple eighth-minute penalty but the home side responded with three of their own through Charlie Hodgson and might have had at least two tries had first Jason Robinson and then Dan Harris held on to defence-splitting passes.
Martin Johnson was also fortunate that no official spotted a flurry of punches between the England captain and the chunky Harris and the Sharks' determination to bounce back from their dismal second half at Gloucester last weekend was further rewarded by Hodgson's fourth well-judged penalty in injury-time which sent them in 12-6 ahead.
Optimism increased further within three minutes of the restart when Harris superbly sidestepped Healey and Stimpson and, despite stumbling, freed the ball for the replacement scrum-half Nick Walshe to touch down.
Had Andy Titterell not been yellow-carded for excessive footwork on Martin Corry, prompting the referee Tony Spreadbury to reverse his original penalty call, Sharks might have stretched further away but Leicester, nothing if not tenacious, were back in touch at 19-16 thanks to a sharp converted try from Ellis and a drop-goal from Healey.
But this was ultimately not enough for Leicester, with Jones' coup de grace and Hodgson's fifth penalty safeguarding Sale's 100% home record so far.
Sale: Robinson; Cueto, Baxendell, Harris (Deane, 55), Hanley; Hodgson, Redpath (capt; Walshe, 30); Thorp (Yates, 59), Titterrell, Stewart, Jones, Lines, Sanderson, Pinkerton, Anglesea.
Scorers: Tries : Walshe, Jones. Cons: Hodgson 2. Pens : Hodgson 5. Yellow card : Titterell, 46
Leicester: Stimpson; Booth, Gelderbloom, Naufahu (Hipkiss, 77), Tuilagi; Healey, Ellis (Tierney, 59); Freshwater (Rowntree, 50), Chuter, Tournaire, M Johnson (capt), Deacon, Short, Kronfeld, Corry.
Scorers: Try : Ellis. Con : Stimpson. Pens: Stimpson 2. Drop-goal: Healey.
Yellow card : Corry, 46
Referee: T Spreadbury (Somerset).
Att : 5,678.
