Glasgow score seven tries to beat Sale 47-27 in Champions Cup opener

Glasgow Warriors opened their Champions Cup campaign with a 47-27 victory over Sale Sharks at CorpAcq Stadium on Saturday, scoring seven tries and pulling clear in the closing stages. According to BBC Sport's match report, the visitors also earned the additional bonus point available under a new tournament rule for finishing with three more tries than their opponents.

Watch the highlights:

The match followed a minute's silence for former Sale lock Hyron Andrews, who died on Friday aged 31 at the Johannesburg Lions' team hotel before their fixture at La Rochelle. Andrews had played regularly for Sale last season. Sale director of rugby Alex Sanderson told BBC Radio 5 Live that players had supported one another after the news and that the club would help Andrews' family.

Sale made a strong start, with Ben Curry breaking away from a maul to score before Arron Reed finished a handling move out wide. Glasgow responded through a penalty try awarded for a maul infringement, which also brought a yellow card for Gus Warr. Tom Roebuck then joined him in the sin-bin after tripping Warriors captain Kyle Steyn, leaving the hosts with another disciplinary setback.

Steyn subsequently scored down the wing as Glasgow converted their numerical advantage into points. A George Ford penalty briefly restored Sale's lead, but Jamie Dobie's finish put the visitors back ahead. Glasgow reached half-time leading 21-15, having recovered from the home side's early tries and established the platform for a more decisive second-half performance.

Alex Craig scored from close range after the break, while Rekeiti Ma'asi-White replied for Sale following sustained pressure. Rory Darge added a Glasgow try from a maul before Joe Carpenter's one-handed offload created Reed's second score for the hosts. Sale remained competitive, but late tries from replacements Ollie Smith and Ottavio Tuipulotu took Glasgow's tally to seven against the Sharks' four, securing the extra bonus point.

Darge told BBC Radio 5 Live that Glasgow had challenged their pack against strong opposition and praised their set-piece performance. The result gives the Warriors a winning start after last season's campaign ended in a home quarter-final defeat by Toulon. Both sides resume Champions Cup action in December, when Glasgow host Pau and Sale travel to Dublin to face Leinster.