Glasgow Warriors Beat Sale Sharks 26-21 in Champions Cup

Glasgow Warriors launched their Investec Champions Cup campaign with a hard-fought bonus-point victory, overcoming an early deficit to defeat Sale Sharks 26-21 at CorpAcq Stadium in Salford on Friday night.

The visitors trailed 14-0 inside the first 20 minutes but mounted a resolute comeback, scoring four tries to secure the maximum points haul. Sale, buoyed by the wind at their backs, struck first in the second minute when captain Ernst van Rhyn powered over from close range following a lineout, with Rob du Preez adding the conversion. The home side extended their lead on the 20-minute mark after an early injury to center Rekeiti Maasi-White forced 19-year-old Ollie Davies into action for his Champions Cup debut. Davies capitalized immediately, finishing a break initiated by Arron Reed to score his try, again converted by du Preez.

Glasgow, facing into the swirling wind and rain, gradually found their rhythm through set-piece play. They reduced the gap on the half-hour mark when hooker Gregor Hiddleston touched down from a driving maul off a lineout, though Adam Hastings missed the wide conversion. The momentum shifted further in the closing stages of the first half, with...