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Sale Sharks 25 Bath 23

Jenny Dixon
18/ 4/2007

JASON Robinson's glittering club rugby career boasted a fairytale ending, with Sharks' departing captain scoring a last gasp try to give his struggling side their first win in ten matches, against Bath.

A master of the big occasion, Robinson left it until the dying seconds before blazing across the whitewash and sending the Edgeley Park crowd into raptures.

Sharks' hero missed the conversion but nobody minded - the celebrations already in full swing.

Moments earlier the scenario had looked so different.

Bath, appropriately the side that gave Robinson his first taste of rugby union, led 23-18 and threatened to dampen the climax of Robinson's astonishingly successful career.

Bath opened the scoring with a penalty from Olly Barkley.

Sharks countered quickly and within a minute flanker Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe scored a try, benefiting from a break by the formidable Sebastien Chabal, which was taken on by Chris Mayor.

It was the first time in four home matches that a Sharks player had breached their opponents' defence and scored.

Flyhalf Lee Thomas converted and subsequently added two penalties, but Barkley reduced Sharks' half-time lead to 13-9.

In the second-half Bath scored two tries, by Nick Walshe and David Barnes, to leave the home side trailing 23-13.

The sin-binning of Bath substitute Eloita Fuimaono-Sapolu finally gave Sharks the space they required to score more points.

Premiership debutant Selorm Kuadey was put through by his rugby hero Robinson, indicative of a shift in times at Edgeley Park.

Then, with five seconds remaining, came the moment Sharks fans were waiting for.

Robinson, who was cheered every time he touched the ball, raced in to score - proving that retirement comes well before he is past his best.

In their triumph against Bath, Sale showed signs of recovery albeit far too late to salvage anything from this season.

But this match was about one man and, judging by the standing ovation Robinson received at the end of the game, his 15-years of wrong-footing defences in both league and union will not be quickly forgotten by fans at Edgeley Park.