Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the English Premiership Rugby match.
The second semi-final of the English Premiership promises to be more evenly contested than the first. Neither Leicester Tigers nor Sale Sharks have claimed any silverware this season, but both have displayed consistency throughout the campaign, justifying their place in the knockout stage.
Leicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers finished second in the standings, 11 points behind Bath Rugby, who had pulled ahead early in the season. They achieved their minimum target—securing home advantage for the opening play-off round. But can Leicester Tigers truly rely on the atmosphere at Mattioli Woods Welford Road? The squad lost just four of their 14 regular-season matches, with three of those defeats occurring in the first half of the campaign. Since then, they have fallen only once in their final seven matches.
Sale Sharks
Sale Sharks came dangerously close to missing out on the play-offs altogether. Two-thirds of the way through the regular season, they sat sixth in the standings and were only kept in contention by the tight nature of the league. After the schedule break, Sale Sharks won six of their last seven games. Their only loss during that stretch came away to Leicester Tigers (34:44). In the other three away matches during that run, Sale Sharks emerged victorious.
Leicester Tigers vs Sale Sharks Prediction
However, those road wins came largely against struggling opposition—two were against the bottom sides in the league: Exeter Chiefs and Newcastle Falcons. Right now, Leicester Tigers are at least on par with Sale Sharks, with the added bonus of international pedigree brought by head coach Michael Cheika. The combination of home-field advantage and a talent-rich squad—featuring two-time World Cup-winning fly-half Handré Pollard—should be sufficient to see Leicester Tigers into the final.
