Premiership: Sale Sharks 58-25 Worcester Warriors

Denny Solomona went in at the corner for his 12th try of the season, but he is only now joint Premiership top scorer

Sale kept up their hopes of a top-four Premiership finish as they ran in eight tries to swamp Worcester.

First-half tries from Ben Curry, Faf de Klerk, Marland Yarde and Denny Solomona opened up a 29-6 interval lead.

Mike Haley, Josh Strauss, Byron McGuigan and James O'Connor all crossed after the break to rack up Sale's highest league score of the season.

Warriors did score three second-half tries, two for stand-in full-back Josh Adams and one for Jackson Willison.

New Wales international wing Adams's brace now gives him 16 tries this season - 12 of them in the Premiership, to go level with Solomona as joint top scorer.

But their heaviest defeat of the campaign, and third in a row, leaves them now only 10 points clear of bottom club London Irish, who picked up two bonus points in their narrow home defeat by Gloucester.

Sale, whose biggest win of the season was the matching eight-try 57-10 win at home to Gloucester in September, move up two places to sixth, ahead of Bath and Leicester, who play Wasps on Sunday.

Sharks maintain hold on Warriors

The Sharks have a great record against Worcester, having lost just once to the Warriors in their last 13 meetings in all competitions - and this one looked on the cards from the moment that they went two tries to nil up in only the seventh minute.

After flanker Curry and de Klerk had both crossed and the returning AJ MacGinty had added the first of those conversions and then a penalty too, Sale led 15-0.

Two Jamie Shillcock penalties got Warriors back in it, but Yarde went over in the corner before Strauss fed Solomona for their bonus-point try three minutes before the break.

Adams, switched to full-back as Chris Pennell was injured, then got on the scoresheet with the first of his two tries, when he intercepted de Klerk's pass. But three tries in 14 minutes from Haley, Strauss and McGuigan settled any doubt about the outcome.

A second try from Adams was followed by the last of Sale's eight tries with three minutes left, a close-range score from O'Connor. But, although Warriors did score again through Willison and even briefly sniffed a try-bonus fourth, it was another day to forget.

Especially for England and Lions centre Ben Te'o, who returned from Six Nations international duty for his first appearance since October - and has not appeared on a winning Warriors team in the Premiership in over 11 months.

Sale director of rugby Steve Diamond:

"We were dominant in every area. What we did really well was get the ball out to the wings, create quick ball and they couldn't live with the shape. We've got a fit team, a set of backs that know how to play and we can put goals over.

"The rudiments of a good team are there. But I don't think we're ready to compete against the top-four sides. We'll see where we go but I don't think we're good enough to challenge teams like Wasps, Exeter, Leicester just yet.

"We'll work hard next week and see whether we can get a bonus-point loss or something like that in the next game.

"I can't sit here and say we can beat sides like Wasps, who year in, year out give us a good hiding. Exeter did the same and Leicester did the same. Newcastle away? We know they're a formidable outfit, so this could be our last win of the season."

Warriors director of rugby Alan Solomons:

"First of all, well done to Sale. They played really well.

"They dominated the collisions. They were well on top of us in that regard.

"We just weren't good enough and Sale were much better than us. We didn't play well.

"We've got to regroup, train hard and prepare well for Newcastle."

Sale Sharks: Haley; Solomona, Addison (capt), S James, Yarde; MacGinty, De Klerk; Harrison, Webber, John; Evans, Ostrikov; Ross, B Curry, Strauss.

Replacements: Jones, Flynn, Tarus, Beaumont, T Curry, Cliff, O'Connor, McGuigan.

Worcester Warriors: Adams; Heem, Te'o, Willison, Hammond; Shillcock, Arr; Waller, Singleton, Schonert, Barry, Spencer, Denton, Faosiliva, van Velze (capt).

Replacements: Haupt, Bower, Milasinovich, Kitchener, Cox, Dowsett, Olver, Howe.

Sin bin: Barry (21)