The head coach was on the touchline when referee Roy Maybank awarded an 89th minute penalty try following persistent Sale infringements at a series of driven line-outs.
Ludovic Mercier's conversion sealed a 21-18 triumph and Ryan said: "We have had a rough ride at Kingsholm and sometimes you forget how to win.
"Sometimes you need something to break for you and now it has, hopefully we can flood through the hole. We obviously have lots of things to work on - Sale were slicker and sharper than us - but we have to be happy because it's a great result.
"When it came down to it, we had more raw power up front and that proved decisive. At the end when we needed to combine power and precision, I thought the line-out was excellent."
Of the penalty try, Ryan added: "I don't think you should have to go to the well five times to get one reward. There were two yellow cards and it seemed pretty obvious what was going on.
"In my opinion, I thought the referee could have given it sooner."
The victory is the perfect tonic ahead of Gloucester's trip to Guinness Premiership leaders Bristol on Sunday. Sale were forceful up front thanks to the outstanding efforts of Sebastien Chabal and Jason White and controlled behind the scrum, where Charlie Hodgson displayed his very special talents in atrocious conditions.
Sale went 5-0 ahead when they stole possession after a Mercier knock-on. Andy Titterrell and White carried possession forward, Jason Robinson added support to the attack and Chabal showed terrific ball skills to slam home from close range.
Mercier landed two penalties but Sale produced a move of genuine class from a set-scrum six minutes before the break to re-establish their lead. Scrum-half Valentin Courrent linked with Chabal and he sent Mark Cueto blasting away past Rob Thirlby and James Forrester to score.
It took Gloucester eight minutes into the second half to cut the gap to a point when Haydn Thomas and James Forrester sustained an attack and hooker OIivier Azam crashed through Sale's defence to score from close range.
But it looked as though Sale's mastery of the conditions would hold sway with two crucial Daniel Larrechea penalties that stretched their lead to 18-11. However, Mercier ensured a grandstand finish with a successful three points after 66 minutes before the hair-raising finale in stoppage time.
"I am sure when we sit down and look at the video there will be things we have to improve but the win is a massive bonus and I know we can get better," Ryan added.
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