Sanderson insists PREM standards are rising but tells Borthwick to do his part

Sale Sharks director of rugby Alex Sanderson has pushed back against criticism of the Gallagher Premiership, arguing that the league’s standard and intensity have risen, even as English clubs and the national side continue to lag behind their French and Irish rivals.

Speaking ahead of the new Premiership season, Sanderson acknowledged the gap that has opened up between English rugby and the top table of European competition over the past decade, but refused to accept that the domestic league alone is to blame. England’s last Six Nations title arrived in 2020, the same year Exeter Chiefs became the last English winners of the Champions Cup. Since then, all six European champions have come from France, with Leinster reaching five finals, while France have claimed three of the past Six Nations titles — including the last two — and Ireland have won two more.

For Sanderson, part of the problem lies not in the quality of players the Premiership produces, but in how matches are officiated and whether that environment mirrors the demands of Test rugby. “That’s one factor with international rugby — the speed’s quicker than the PREM and the physicality is more intense,” he said. “Then there’s the nature and the style and the strategy. That comes down in part to how it’s refereed, so we had a conversation around the kind of product that we want to put out there and the nuances and interpretations of the Laws and whether we can align that with an international referee.”

The Sale director was equally clear that responsibility does not rest solely with the clubs. Pointing to England head coach Steve Borthwick and his backroom staff, Sanderson argued that extracting the best from an experienced squad is a coaching challenge as much as a league one. “That’s not on us, that’s on Steve and his group,” he said. “He’s got quite an experienced group there. You have to shape your strategy for the group you have and who you’re playing against. I think we’re providing a good platform; there are good enough players who are good enough to do a job and pull together.”

The comments reflect a broader tension in English rugby between club and country, with the Top 14’s well-documented financial advantage allowing French clubs to attract elite talent from across the world. Whether the Premiership’s increasingly high-scoring style translates into the structured, attritional demands of European knockout rugby and Test matches remains a live debate — one Sanderson is clearly unwilling to let rest entirely at the league’s door.