Edwil van der Merwe thinks he's crashed over for Sharks, but Ollie Smith appeared to have held him up.

On-field decision is no try, but the officials are double checking...

Glasgow are piling pressure on a stretched Sharks defensive line before coughing up a sloppy penalty.

Sharks go quickly and march their way downfield - end-to-end stuff.

A nice kick out wide from Dan Lancaster to Ollie Smith, but the winger can't take it cleanly.

Glasgow had a penalty advantage to fall back on though and Lancaster kicks to the corner.

Andy Burke
BBC Sport Scotland at Scotstoun

After he missed a huge chunk of last season through injury, Glasgow fans would have been looking forward to seeing Jack Dempsey back in action this evening.

Unfortunately he has had to pull out injured just before kick-off, so Matt Fagerson takes the number eight jersey.

George Horne spots space in behind the Sharks back three and drops a delightful box kick into it.

It rolls end over end into touch for a 50-22 and Glasgow have the lineout.

It's a fast and aggressive start from the South African visitors, who make their way to the edge of Glasgow's 22 with several powerful carries.

However, Kerr Yule does well in defence and Glasgow win a breakdown penalty.

Away we go in Glasgow's West End...

Here come the players.

Kick-off isn't far away.

Let's get a gauge of how optimistic all you Glasgow fans are before the new season.

Thumbs up if you're anticipating another season of success under Franco Smith, thumbs down if you're a wee bit apprehensive.

Andy Burke
BBC Sport Scotland

Glasgow have been a consistent presence at the top end of the table under Franco Smith's astute management, but there is a sense of expectations being managed at Scotstoun.

Some key players have moved on, including Tom Jordan, Sebastian Cancelierre and Henco Venter.

These guys will leave a big hole and Huw Jones may not be seen in a Warriors jersey this side of Christmas after undergoing Achilles surgery.

Zander Fagerson, who would have joined Jones on the British and Irish Lions tour in the summer were it not for injury, is also working his way back to fitness.

Gaps will need to be plugged in the side by some inexperienced players, but the hope for Glasgow is they have retained enough quality in their ranks to maintain the standards they have set in previous seasons.

A fast start at home to the Sharks on Friday would help build momentum, but whether Warriors have the strength in depth to still be going strong at the business end of the campaign is the big question.

Glasgow went into last season's URC as defending champions and finished the regular season fourth in the table after winning 11 of their 18 matches.

They would go on to lose in the semi-finals away to eventual winners Leinster.

Sharks meanwhile came third, but also lost at the semi-final stage, beaten by Bulls.

Tom English
BBC Scotland chief sports writer

Despite the loss of Tom Jordan, Henco Venter and Seb Cancelliere, Glasgow are in a pretty good place.

They got top four and a semi-final spot last season even though they didn't get a whole lot of URC games out of some of their biggest names - the Fagerson brothers, Jack Dempsey, Huw Jones, Sione Tuipulotu and others.

If they can get their heavy hitters on to the pitch a bit more often while utilising their array of younger players then they're going to be in business again. Franco Smith has a deep and impressive squad.

Predicted finish: Top four, for sure. A losing semi-finalist again would be my guess, but if they can finish top two and guarantee themselves home advantage in the quarter-final and semi-final then a final is likely. Leinster remain their bogey team - and the clear favourites for the title.

Player to watch: Anything is possible when Tuipulotu is on the pitch. He's the man who makes them tick.

Breakout star: There's a lot of talk about Fergus Watson, a full-back-come-wing. He showed up really well in a pre-season friendly against Northampton. With Cancelliere away, Watson might get a healthy amount of game-time.

Fly-half Dan Lancaster and centre Kerr Yule will make their Glasgow Warriors debuts in Friday's URC opener against Sharks.

Lancaster, 24, joined Glasgow from Racing 92 in the summer, while 19-year-old Yule is an academy graduate.

Outside centre Stafford McDowall captains Warriors, with regular skipper Kyle Steyn not involved because of a hand injury.

Recent signing Charlie Savala as well as Zander Fagerson, Huw Jones, Nathan McBeth, Sione and Tavi Tuipulotu and Sione Vailanu also miss out.

Versatile Scotland back Adam Hastings is among the replacements.

Image source, SNS

Glasgow Warriors: Josh McKay, Kyle Rowe, Stafford McDowall (capt), Kerr Yule, Ollie Smith, Dan Lancaster, George Horne; Jamie Bhatti, Jonny Matthews, Fin Richardson, Jare Orguntibeju, Alex Samuel, Matt Fagerson, Rory Darge, Jack Dempsey.

Replacements: Gregor Hiddleston, Rory Sutherland, Sam Talakal, Scott Cummings, Gregor Brown, Euan Ferrie, Jamie Dobie, Adam Hastings.

Sharks: Yaw Penxe, Edwil van der Merwe, Lukhanyo Am, Francois Venter, Christie Grobbelaar, Jaden Henrikse, Ross Braude; Simphiwe Matanzima, Fez Mbatha, Ruan Dreyer, Deon Slabbert, Marvin Orie, Phepsi Buthelezi, Manu Tshituka, Vincent Tshituka.

Replacements: Eduan Swart, Dian Bleuler, Lee-Marvin Mazibuko, Bathobele Hlekani, Nick Hatton, Jean Smith, Jurenzo Julius, Hakeem Kunene.

Image source, SNS

The United Rugby Championship returns this evening and we've got a mouth-watering clash for you.

Glasgow Warriors host Sharks under the lights at Scotstoun, with kick-off 30 minutes away.

Let's get right to it.