This is not pingpong says Saint-Andre
Mon, 06 Oct 2008 15:08
Phillipe Saint-Andre insists he did the right thing by resting some of his stars players for Sale's EDF Energy Cup clash with the Cardiff Blues on Saturday.
With a Heineken Cup clash with ASM Clermont Auvergne lying just ahead the former French international opted to give the likes of Luke McAlister, Dwayne Peel and Sebastian Chabal the weekend off and subsequently saw his side go down 18-17 to a last minute Richard Mustoe try.
Saint-Andre though maintains that ultimately it will prove to be the best decision and, given the physical nature of the sport, he could not rightly have expected his stars to play so many games in such a short space of time.
“We are disappointed to lose because we had control of the game. I am proud of the players but it’s been a bad week.
“We’ve had three games in eight days and I have to look after the safety of the players. We are playing rugby, not football or pingpong.
"We've got two big matches ahead against Clermont and Munster."
