Brian Kennedy cuts short ski trip to help stop Sale's plunge downhill

The Sale owner, Brian Kennedy, has cut short his skiing holiday in the United States to return to Manchester and address a decline that has seen the Sharks, the Premiership champions four years ago, slide to one place off the bottom of the table, above Leeds on try count only. Sale's 47-3 defeat at Gloucester on Saturday was their fifth in six Premiership matches. They entertain title-chasing Northampton on Sunday and five of their final eight fixtures are against teams in the top half of the table. The Sharks, one of the Premiership clubs hit hardest by the economic downturn, lost a number of high-profile players at the end of last season, including Luke McAlister, Sébastien Chabal and Sébastien Bruno, while their England and Lions prop, Andrew Sheridan, has not played since suffering a shoulder injury last October and is unlikely to feature again this campaign. Kennedy's early return is an indication of how seriously he views the plight Sale are in. "My players are on the floor but I am confident we can turn this round," said Sale's director of rugby, Kingsley Jones, who took over from Philippe Saint-André last summer. "My job is not easy in conditions like this and it is about how we get back to where we need to be. It is not as if we have not been in this position before. "We've got a massive game against Northampton on Sunday. We really need to gain some confidence now and make sure we put things right. Last week [after the home defeat by Leeds], I was upset. This week I'm concerned a little bit more and it is going to be a tough week for us." "We're not alone in worrying. Four other Premiership clubs will be very concerned right now but I believe we'll be okay. We've got eight games left and, while none of them is a given, I wouldn't swap our fixtures with any other team." The England lock Simon Shaw, meanwhile, faces an anxious wait to discover the severity of the shoulder injury he suffered during Saturday's Six Nations defeat by Ireland. Shaw saw a specialist today and the results of the review and a scan of his left acromio-clavicular joint will be discussed by the England and Wasps medical team tomorrow. The England management confirmed that the full-back Delon Armitage suffered rib cartilage damage early in the second half but there is no immediate timescale for his return either. With Shaw and Armitage sidelined, the Leicester lock Louis Deacon and Northampton full-back Ben Foden will join England's training camp at Pennyhill Park tomorrow. Wales have released the scrum-half, Dwayne Peel, and the prop, Eifion Lewis Roberts, for Sale's clash against Northampton. The lock, Deiniol Jones, and the hooker, Gareth Williams, have been ruled out of next week's match against Ireland in Dublin through injury.