Cokanasiga double helps Bath beat Sale 36-28 and climb to fourth

Bath ended a three-match winless run across all competitions by beating Sale 36-28 at the Recreation Ground, with Joe Cokanasiga scoring two of their five tries. According to BBC Sport's match report, the victory lifted Bath to fourth ahead of the international break, while Sale's third defeat of the campaign left them eighth.

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Henry Arundell made an immediate impact on his first Premiership appearance of the season, scoring inside three minutes after breaking through near halfway. His return from injury, alongside that of Tom de Glanville, gave Bath two early scoring threats. Both crossed before the interval as the home side established a 19-7 half-time advantage.

Sale had opportunities to build a stronger response to Arundell's opener but struggled to convert their visits to Bath's 22 into points. Asher Opoku-Fordjour lost possession close to the line and Joe Carpenter could not hold a long pass with space ahead of him. Nathan Jibulu eventually brought the visitors level with a try from a maul, before De Glanville restored Bath's lead after a line-out move.

Cokanasiga's first try followed an Arundell catch near halfway and quick passing through the backline, with De Glanville helping create the finishing opportunity. The winger struck again just after the restart, gathering Finn Russell's cross-field kick, beating Alex Lozowski and reaching the line despite a tackle. That fourth Bath try secured the hosts' bonus point and extended their control of the match.

Tom O'Flaherty kept Sale in contention with a diving finish in the corner, but Russell's penalty pushed Bath's advantage to 15 points. Replacement Louis Hennessey then scored only a minute after coming on, chasing Bernard van der Linde's grubber kick. Russell finished with four conversions and a penalty, contributing 11 points to Bath's total as the hosts collected the maximum five league points.

Sale nevertheless finished with two tries in the last 10 minutes. Luke Cowan-Dickie forced his way over before Elia Canakaivata added the visitors' fourth try in the final minute, earning a bonus point from an otherwise disappointing afternoon. George Ford converted all four Sale tries, but the late recovery was not enough to overturn Bath's lead.