Sale Sharks produced a confident and eye-catching performance in France as they earned a 35-14 bonus-point victory over Clermont in the Champions Cup.
The visitors made the perfect start when Tom O’Flaherty scored inside the opening minutes, catching the home side off guard. Sale continued to play with pace and purpose, making the most of their chances whenever they entered Clermont territory.
Marius Louw added a second try after a sharp break from scrum-half Raffi Quirke, before Arron Reed finished off another strong move to give Sale a commanding 20-7 lead at half-time.
Clermont showed more fight after the break and briefly reduced the gap when Lucas Zamora crossed the line. Sale also faced a challenging moment when Reed was shown a yellow card, but the English side stayed calm and well organised.
Once back to full strength, Sale took control again. Joe Bedlow marked his Champions Cup debut with a well-taken try, and Alex Wills sealed the result late on to secure the all-important bonus point.
The win is a huge boost for Sale after losing their opening pool match and keeps their hopes of reaching the knockout stages firmly alive. With a tough final group game still to come, this performance will give the squad plenty of confidence moving forward.
For Clermont, the defeat leaves their qualification chances hanging in the balance and puts added pressure on their remaining fixtures.