Anthony Watson returns from 13 month injury nightmare for Bath’s must-win Premiership clash with Sale

Anthony Watson will end his 13-month injury nightmare this Friday after being named at full-back for Bath's trip to Sale Sharks.

The British and Irish Lions back has not played a minute of rugby since England’s Six Nations defeat by Ireland in March 2018, ruptured his Achilles tendon in his left ankle in the 24-15 St Patrick’s Day defeat at Twickenham.

Hopes of a return earlier this season failed to materialise when Watson discovered that the initial surgery procedure had seen the tendon fail to knit, which led to the 25-year-old undergoing a second operation and enduring another eight months on the sidelines.

But more than a year on from his initial injury, Watson will wear the Bath jersey for the first time since 20 January 2018 when the West Country side look to keep their top-four hopes alive at the AJ Bell Stadium against Sale.

Both Sale and Bath still harbour hopes of reaching the post-season semi-finals, rivalling Harlequins, Wasps and Northampton Saints who sit above them in the Premiership table in fourth, fifth and sixth respectively. Bath are only five points off Quins, but more importantly find themselves in seventh and outside of the Heineken Champions Cup-qualifying positions, which remains the priority this season.

Victory for either Bath or Sale will keep the victors in the hunt for the top four and all but end the defeated side’s semi-final ambitions, placing a huge importance on the Friday night clash.

Watson’s return is the only change made to the starting line-up that suffered a 27-23 defeat against Gloucester two weeks’ ago as outgoing director of rugby Todd Blackaddder, who last week announced he will leave the club at the end of the season a year earlier than planned to coach in Japan, sticks with what is close to his strongest possible line-up.

The New Zealander also makes two changes among the replacements with England wing Semesa Rokoduguni returning from injury and Levi Douglas added as forward cover, with the pair preferred to Miles Reid and Max Clark.

Sale meanwhile will look to build on a the near-miss against La Rochelle last weekend in what has been a good week for the club, despite the Heineken Challenge Cup semi-final defeat. Having selected an unchanged line-up from the trip to the Stade Marcel Deflandre, director of rugby Steve Diamond can look forward to the prospect of South Africa international lock Lood de Jager joining the ranks next season, with the 6ft 9in goliath agreeing a three-year contract from next season.

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“I am extremely pleased to secure the services Lood for the 2019/20 season,” Diamond said. “He is a world class line-out operator with lots of experience at the highest level and offers a huge physical presence around the pitch. Lood’s signing is a statement of intent in our endeavour to become a force in the Gallagher Premiership and Europe over the next three years.”

In Friday’s other encounter, Northampton have made two changes for the trip to relegation-favourites Newcastle Falcons, with former England centre and rugby league-bound Luther Burrell and Tom Collins returning to the back line. However, round 20 has come too soon for England co-captain Dylan Hartley to return from the knee injury that has sidelined him since December, though director of rugby Chris Boyd is confident that the hooker will return before the end of the season.

Newcastle also make two changes, with Fijian Nemani Nagusa returning at No 8 as Mark Wilson is needed to cover the injured John Hardie at openside flanker, while Callum Chick rotates into the starting XV in place of Gary Graham. With Newcastle seven points adrift at the bottom of the table, defeat against Saints and a Worcester victory over Gloucester on Sunday would confirm the Falcons’ relegation to the Championship next season with two games to spare.

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Sale Sharks: Luke James; Denny Solomona, Sam James, James O’Connor, Chris Ashton; AJ MacGinty, Faf De Klerk; Ross Harrison, Rob Webber, Will-Griff John; Josh Beaumont, James Phillips; Ben Curry, Tom Curry, Jono Ross.

Replacements: Curtis Langdon, Valery Moroz, Joe Jones, Matt Postlethwaite, Josh Strauss, Will Cliff, Cameron Redpath, Arron Reed.

Bath: Anthony Watson; Joe Cokanasiga, Jonathan Joseph, Jamie Roberts, Ruaridh McConnochie; Freddie Burns, Kahn Fotuali’I; Beno Obano, Tom Dunn, Max Lahiff; Dave Attwood, Charlie Ewels; Tom Ellis, Sam Underhill, Zach Mercer.

Replacements: Jack Walker, Jacques van Rooyen, Anthony Perenise, Levi Douglas, Elliott Stooke, Will Chudley, Rhys Priestland, Semesa Rokoduguni.

Newcastle Falcons: Simon Hammersley; Vereniki Goneva, Chris Harris, Josh Matavesi, Sinoti Sinoti; Toby Flood, Sonatane Takulua; Logovi’i Mulipola, George McGuigan, Rodney Ah You; Calum Green, Andrew Davidson; Callum Chick, Mark Wilson, Nemani Nagusa.

Replacements: Kyle Cooper, Sam Lockwood, Trevor Davison, Sean Robinson, Gary Graham, Michael Young, Tim Swiel, Johnny Williams.

Northampton Saints: Ahsee Tuala; Tom Collins, Rory Hutchinson, Luther Burrell, Taqele Naiyaravoro; Dan Biggar, Cobus Reinach; Francois van Wyk, Reece Marshall, Paul Hill; Api Ratuniyarawa, Courtney Lawes; Jamie Gibson, Tom Wood, Teimana Harrison.

Replacements: Samson Ma’asi, Alex Waller, Ben Franks, Alex Coles, Devante Onojaife, Alex Mitchell, James Grayson, Andrew Kellaway.