Premiership: Sale Sharks 6-10 Exeter Chiefs

Lachie Turner has been capped 15 times by Australia

Exeter Chiefs moved top of the Premiership with a battling win at Sale Sharks thanks to Lachie Turner's try.

The teams went in level at the break, with Faf de Klerk's penalty cancelling out Gareth Steenson's kick for Exeter.

The visitors took the lead after the restart when Turner dived in before De Klerk reduced the arrears with a fine effort from distance.

Stuart Townsend was shown a late yellow for Exeter and Sale applied pressure but could not make the extra man count.

The match lacked prolonged spells of excitement and flowing rugby but, despite facing a late scare, Exeter fought their way to a fifth league win of the season from their opening seven games.

Both sides missed kickable chances to take a half-time lead from the tee, but the Chiefs dominated the majority of the territory up until Townsend's late yellow for tackling with his feet off the ground.

Sale went close in the closing stages through Denny Solomona but they could not get over the line to avoid a fifth defeat of the campaign.

Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter:

"It was just about the points today. It feels a little odd to not talk about performance but we didn't discuss the performance in the changing room.

"Most of them are going on a 10-day break now. The last couple of weeks have, in particular, been a real emotional battle for us and we saw the dregs of that today.

"There was no way it was a vintage Exeter performance. Obviously, Sale have contributed to that as well but I actually thought there was only 10 or 15 minutes in the second half where we looked like the Exeter I watch on a regular basis."

Sale: Addison (capt); Solomona, James, Jennings, McGuigan; O'Connor, de Klerk; Harrison, Webber, John, Evans, Ostrikov, Ross, T Curry, Strauss.

Replacements: Jones, Flynn, Aulika, Nott, Ioane, Neild, Cliff, Haley.

Exeter: Dollman; Turner, Slade, Whitten, Short; Steenson, White; Rimmer, Yeandle (capt), Williams, Lees, Atkins, Armand, Simmonds, Waldrom.

Replacements: Taione, Hepburn, Francis, Hill, Skinner, Townsend, Hendrickson, O'Flaherty.