Sam Dugdale will start ahead of Tom Curry, who is listed for sale on Saturday. Photo: David Rogers/Getty Images
As Alex Sanderson said this week, Sale Sharks are “enjoying the fact that no one really rates us”, from their lack of representation in the teams of the season to the fact that Football The rugby union did not include the club in a hastily edited ticket ad for the Gallagher Premiership final.
If Sale is the most underrated of the Premier League semi-finalists, then flanker Sam Dugdale is the most underrated player, at least outside the Carrington training ground. “Sam Dugdale epitomizes our team,” said Sanderson, Sale’s director of rugby. “He's not the most popular of players, he's not the biggest and he doesn't have a lot of Hollywood moments, but he has a lot of moments that matter in matches. He was part of every team in all our matches. He personifies us.”
Dugdale will therefore start in the back row for the semi-final away to Bath on Saturday ahead of the returning Tom Curry, who had to settle for a place on the bench in his first appearance since the World Cup. It is a reward not only for Dugdale's outstanding form, which saw him win man of the match awards in their recent wins over Saracens and Harlequins, but also for his tenacity in returning after being released by a Sale academy player.
💬 “It's us against the world – that's when we're at our best – the underdog mentality.”
Sam Dugdale speaks after securing a place in the play-off semi-final with @SaleSharksRugby 🏉#GallagherPrem pic.twitter.com/xxvXxx com/iLsFannPSx
— Rugby on TNT Sports (@rugbyontnt), May 18, 2024
Dugdale still remembers the phone call telling him he would not be returning to the academy. “I was a little bit like, 'Damn, what do I do now?' Dugdale told Telegraph Sport. “I got a call and then I called a friend (Joe) and asked if I had a chance to work with him and he said, 'You can start tomorrow.' So I was released on Sunday and started work on Monday. If I did nothing, I would be a pit of misery. I need to stay active, keep moving forward.”
So the next day he started working for C&C Supplies, a building materials supply company near Preston, driving forklifts and filling one-ton bags with sand and bark. The hours were incredibly long and his rugby training was limited to sessions with Field on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. “You really enjoy it when it's your only rugby,” says Dugdale. “You really want to do this. It kept my drive going.”
But a few months later, in October 2020, I got another phone call, this time from an unknown number. Sale were dealing with a Covid-19 outbreak and then manager Steve Diamond was desperate to find enough players to make the match against Worcester. “I thought it was a prank because I didn’t recognize the number,” Dugdale says. “I called Arron (Reid) and asked him what Dimes' number was and he said, 'Oh my gosh, that's his number.'
'I'd Rather Do This Than Be in Construction'
Even though the game was ultimately called off, Dugdale was back on the scene with a renewed determination not to be forced out. “It was a blessing in disguise to be released and given a second chance,” Dugdale says. “A lot of people who get released never get that opportunity. You don't take anything for granted. When you're in the hole on the field, you think, 'I'd rather be doing this than being in construction.'”
As Sanderson suggested, Dugdale is not the biggest or strongest defender, but the 24-year-old is determined he will never be surpassed. “Gapping is the one area where they [Sale's back-row teammates] are probably a little better than me because they have more control on the ball,” Dugdale says. “So it's a question of what can I do to prevent every breakdown like at WrestleMania and slow down their ball so our defense can prepare. This is something I've been working on all season, just to make myself sick. I never want an opponent to rest.”
This is reflected in the statistics provided by Opta, which show that Dugdale has made the most tackles per 80 minutes (17.5) and has the second highest number of tackles won after “Harlequins”. ' Will Evans. He also ranks in the top five for ruck hits, dominant tackles and jackals. He happily calls himself a “workhorse.”
However, with the Curry twins and a host of South African defenders competing for places, Dugdale had to wait to make his breakthrough, having made only a handful of starts in the previous two seasons. Tom Curry's long layoff gave him that opportunity and he hasn't looked back.
“I need to empty myself to make sure I'm playing in the jersey”
“Alex said when they’re in good form I’m the one who goes on the bench or in the reserves,” said Dugdale. “Now he’s saying I’m doing it right and it’s a headache for them. That’s all I can do. They’re big names. If I can keep up with them then I’m doing well.
“I’ve got to empty myself to be back in the shirt next week. Every game is like a final for me. With the competition like this you have to play hard week in, week out to keep the shirt.”
Dugdale is now preparing to play in a semi-final for the first time and Joe, a building site owner, will be heading to the treatment centre to support him. Against Bath’s star-studded back row, Dugdale, like Sanderson, is happy to operate in the shadows.
“It suits me very well,” said Dugdale. “They’re big names. They're in the spotlight, and I go back to my job, like I do week in and week out, which no one really sees. You don't see the work rate until you get the stats.
“I think a lot of people wrote us off when we were eighth. I don't think people believe in us now. We're at our best when we're written off.”
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