Sharks boss backing Charlie

Sale director of rugby Philippe Saint-Andre defended his decision not to start with Charlie Hodgson against Munster.

Saint-Andre expects fly-half to have a fantastic season

Sale director of rugby Philippe Saint-Andre defended his decision not to start with Charlie Hodgson against Munster. The former England fly-half was overlooked for the second successive match as Richard Wigglesworth retained the No 10 shirt following last weekend's win at Clermont Auvergne. But Hodgson entered the fray shortly after half-time with his side 13-6 behind and engineered an impressive comeback which drew his side level at 16-16, only for a late try from David Wallace to give Munster victory. Saint-Andre said: "Munster deserved the win because they were better than us. "It's always easy to speak about decisions after the game than before the game. "Last week Wigglesworth did very well against Clermont Auvergne and that team deserved another chance against Munster. "I make the decisions - sometimes they are right and sometimes they are wrong. "But Charlie is a fantastic player and in the five seasons that I've been here he has played all the time. "Today when he came on he showed what he is capable of and he tried to create a lot of things around him. "Charlie is an intelligent guy and a hard worker. I'm sure he will be fantastic for us this year. "Munster came to do a job on us and they did, especially in the first half." The defending champions look to be building up an impressive head of steam but coach Tony McGahan insisted: "There are areas for improvement because things are far from over. "Clermont are going to be looking to bounce back and they're a top side. "But this was another chapter in Munster's history and full credit to the players because they were outstanding today."