England Women’s head coach Simon Middleton says Sale Sharks are ‘incredibly competitive’ in the Premier 15s after making their league debut this month.

Sharks formed a team in lockdown and joined the league after a re-tendering process in April.

Middleton said: "The key is to keep it in perspective, you’ve [Sharks] played two of the best teams in the league, champions two years on the trot and Loughborough who are right up there as one of the best sides. 

“What I have seen is incredibly competitive and what I saw [against Saracens] you probably created more opportunities than last week so clearly things have been working in training.”

And he added England’s preparation for their upcoming Grand Slam Six Nations decider match has been going well.

“It has been really good. We’ve had some really good camps, news from the grapevine is that we’ve picked up some injuries from a few players so we will have to have a look when we get into camp where we are with that.”

England will play Italy in their final 2020 Six Nations fixture on November 1.