Bryan Redpath, the manager of the Aviva Premiership side the Sale Sharks has sounded out a warning to the senior members of his side ahead of the start of the new domestic rugby season in England.
According to Redpath, the senior players in his side must lift their games if they want to be a part of the long term plans of the manager or face the axe. The side from Salford has failed to reach the lofty heights that they scaled back in the 2005/2006 season when they lifted the prestigious Aviva Premiership title, or the Guinness Premiership, as it was known at that time.
And Redpath, who took over the position of the Director of Rugby at The Sharks in June 2012, having played 5 years for the club in the early 2000s, is looking to return the club to its lost days of glory. Although the Sale Sharks have qualified for the Heineken Cup for the season, Redpath believes that this is the least the club should be doing year in, year out in order to carry on and progress.
The post season has been a busy time for The Sharks with new recruits in the form of Danny Cipriani as well as Richie Gray, and the club has a wealth of talent in the junior sections as well. Moreover, the club bid goodbye to their iconic Edgeley Park stadium after a 9 year long stay to move across town to the new Salford City Stadium after a ground sharing agreement was reached with the Salford City Reds.
And Redpath wants the new stadium to usher in a new era of success for the club, to be able to compete regularly with the likes of the Leicester Tigers and create his own niche at the Sale Sharks.