Scottish Rugby

Jack Herrall
BBC Sport Scotland

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Duncan Weir says Glasgow Warriors must handle the atmosphere at the Stade Mayol if Franco Smith's side are to show the "best version" of themselves against Toulon on Sunday.

Warriors opened their Champions Cup campaign with a bonus-point victory at home to Sale Sharks in Pool 4 last weekend, while Toulon claimed an impressive win over Stormers in South Africa.

"It's about just making sure that the best version of the Glasgow Warriors go out there," fly-half Weir said.

"Not getting [swept up in] the atmosphere too, it's an amazing place to play.

"I played there, I think it was in 2013 away at Toulon, it's such a cool environment with the little chant they do before the game and all the rest of it, so it will be about us and how good we are at implementing our gameplan on to them and just staying relaxed and really enjoying it as well.

"Our away form's been good, it's been really pleasing to see that and how it's come on, we've got that great win out in Cape Town as well against the Stormers."

On the challenge Toulon can pose for Glasgow, Weir added: "They've been in a good, rich vein of form this season as well, so we know it's going to be a hard challenge.

"They're obviously big men, similar to Sale, but they've got some superstars in there as well. It's going to be a good task to see where we can match up in this competition.

"We got a lot of credit for Saturday's performance, but it will be nice to test it against another really good side on Sunday."

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Scotland and Glasgow full-back Ollie Smith is poised to make his return after a year out when 'Emerging Scotland' face Italy this weekend.

The 24-year-old ruptured his knee ligaments during a Champions Cup pool-stage match away to Bayonne on 15 December last year but has not featured for his club since recovering.

Head coach Franco Smith has now released Smith to make his comeback for the Scotland Under-23 side when they play their Italian counterparts at Edinburgh's Hive Stadium on Saturday.

The match marks the first 'Emerging Scotland' fixture and forms part of the national academy pilot programme launched in September.

Smith travelled to the 2023 World Cup with Scotland as head coach Gregor Townsend's second-choice full-back, and he is now focused on working his way back into first-team contention before the Six Nations.

Emerging Scotland Squad:

Forwards: Jerry Blyth-Lafferty, Ollie Blyth-Lafferty, Rob Carmichael, Tom Currie, Mikey Jones, Liam McConnell, Euan McVie, Harri Morris (all Edinburgh); Macenzzie Duncan, Dan Halkon, Callum Norrie, Joe Roberts, Callum Smyth (all Glasgow Warriors); Rudi Brown (Vannes); Cairn Ramsay (Currie Chieftains); Rhys Tait (Doncaster Knights).

Backs: Jack Brown, Nairn Moncrieff, Conor McAlpine, Cammy Scott, Nathan Sweeney, Findlay Thomson, Lewis Wells (all Edinburgh); Amena Caqusau, Brent Jackson, Kerr Johnston, Ben Salmon, Matthew Urwin, Kerr Yule, Ollie Smith (all Glasgow Warriors); Sinjin Broad (Heriot's); Geordie Gwynn (Ealing Trailfinders).

Sandy Smith
Fan writer

In the wake of Edinburgh's defeat by Gloucester, social media comment would have you believe the club had disgraced itself at Kingsholm.

Apparently I was supposed to have felt insulted as a travelling fan. Any praise was apparently misguided.

The headline of course is that we lost and that can't be ignored. But in all the circumstances that surrounded this game my thought is I've rarely been prouder of the team, their effort, commitment and resilience.

Sean Everitt was entirely correct to go full tilt against Benetton. A loss there would have been catastrophic and that informed our team selection for the Gloucester match.

Look around the weekend's games, Edinburgh weren't the only side to travel lightly. Some of those fared a great deal worse than Edinburgh did.

We lost Ben Vellacott to injury in the warm-up. It was blowing a hoolie. Freddy Douglas picked up an injury around the 20-minute mark. There were also two yellow cards, the second of which was certainly debatable.

Even if we had travelled with a full-strength team we were facing a Gloucester side who had a very similar league record to ours, except they have scored more tries, so from where does the assertion come that we had some god-given right to win this game?

We gave a starting debut to Douglas and off-the-bench debuts to Liam McConnell, Connor Mcalpine and Rob Carmichael, who all advanced their individual causes.

With all that callow youth stepping up we were in the game throughout, which the stats bear out for anyone who took the time to seek them out before making ill-judged commentary.

A quick word regarding Magnus Bradbury. In the wake of Vellacott's injury he stepped up to the captaincy and did an excellent job of marshalling his troops. It was almost like he'd done it before. Next year?

A little perspective. This time last year in the same competition we had zero points and still managed to get out of the group so we are ahead of the game.

I won't be surprised if we are back at full strength against Bayonne at the Hive next week. I suspect only a 10-try win to nil would be enough to satisfy some though.

Sandy Smith can be found at The Burgh Watch, external

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Assistant coach Nigel Carolan believes Glasgow Warriors are no longer "underdogs" as they prepare for their Champions Cup trip to Toulon.

Warriors opened their campaign with a bonus-point victory against Sale Sharks on Saturday.

Carolan says he hopes the nature of the win left Glasgow fans "flabbergasted by how ambitions we are".

"We talked a good game and it was important for us to back that up with a performance," the 49-year-old said prior to Sunday's match with Toulon.

"If we can bring some of that panache to Toulon on Sunday, I think it's a true reflection of how we want to try and play the game. I think that's where most questions will be answered.

"Hopefully [the win on Saturday] left a lot of our fans flabbergasted by how ambitions we are, how brave we are and how accurate we can be.

"Our expectations are high. Unfortunately we crashed out in the last 16 last year. From that, we went on to win the URC and that's certainly created a lot of belief in our squad.

"We've been regarded as the underdog, but we've proven now we can beat anybody. We don't see ourselves as the underdog anymore and I think that has flipped on its head."

Glasgow and Edinburgh had contrasting fortunes in their European openers, now we are offering you the chance to throw questions at our rugby writers Tom English and Andy Burke.

Send them in via this link, external and they will be answered on this page later in the week.

George O'Neill
BBC Sport Scotland

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The most individual action in one half ever?

George Horne delivered a magnificent first-half performance, scoring a hat-trick before the interval while also being sin-binned for attempting to halt a Sale maul.

Surely there can't have been many instances of a player scoring a hat-trick in one half when they only played 30 minutes of it?

His second try was a thing of beauty, tip-toeing down the sideline to gather his own grubber kick before dotting down in the corner under pressure from the scrambling Sale defence.

The scrum-half was at his electric best and finished the match with 21 points. He is a central figure for Franco Smith's side.

Glasgow forwards immense

While Horne stole the headlines for his try-scoring exploits, this was a performance built on a wonderful display from the Warriors' forward pack.

There appeared to be multiple Rory Darges on the pitch, such was the body of work the Scotland flanker got through, and Jamie Bhatti's assist for Horne's third try will live long in the memory.

Glasgow were solid at both scrum and lineout and dominated the breakdown, both hampering Sale's attack and fuelling Glasgow's attack.

Zero rucks lost, 13 turnovers and a 100% maul success rate are all statistics that illustrate the forwards' influence.

Warriors serious contenders in Europe

Glasgow have now won their last 11 home matches in all competitions, stretching back to a defeat by Northampton Saints in December last year.

Toulon, Sharks and Stormers have all lost at fortress Scotstoun in 2024, and this was another demonstration of Smith's side's strength in front of their own fans.

With a URC title in the cabinet and the memories of away wins against Munster and then the league final in Pretoria, Warriors have proven their ability to beat top-class teams time and time again.

No team in the Champions Cup would be pleased to see themselves drawn against Glasgow. Although there are sterner tests than Sale to come, they will fancy their chances of a serious run in Europe.

It would be a disappointment if they do not get beyond the quarter-finals - their previous best finish.

George O'Neill
BBC Sport Scotland

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Bradbury takes on leadership role

Club co-captain Ben Vellacott was due to lead Edinburgh at a blustery Kingsholm but pulled out just before kick-off with an injury.

Without Grant Gilchrist in the squad, it was interesting to see Magnus Bradbury take on the captaincy.

It showed how highly Edinburgh think of the number eight, who returned to the capital in the summer after a two-year spell with Bristol Bears.

Gloucester dominated throughout and should have won by a greater margin, but Bradbury led a weak Edinburgh side admirably in tough conditions.

Rotation allows minutes for youngsters

Edinburgh's selection of a second-string outfit suggested they either aren't prioritising the Challenge Cup this season, or simply do not have the resources to do so.

Despite the narrow margin of defeat, they never threatened to win the game and struggled for possession and territory.

And yet, Sean Everitt's squad rotation allowed several youngsters to get valuable minutes in senior rugby.

Freddy Douglas was forced off injured in the first half but was replaced by Scotland Under-20s captain Liam McConnell.

There were also second-half debuts for giant lock Rob Carmichael and scrum-half Conor McAlpine, who trained with Scotland A during the autumn.

A transition season?

Edinburgh desperately need impetus and new blood from somewhere. Those young players could provide it, but it won't happen immediately.

They need time to adapt to top-level club rugby, and Everitt might use this season as an ideal opportunity to do so.

Realistically, Edinburgh are not contenders to win the URC. While they will play their strongest team where possible in their push for a top-eight finish, there will be more opportunities for Douglas, McConnell et al.

Short-term sacrifice for long-term progress could be the way forward for Edinburgh.

We asked for your views on Glasgow Warriors' 38-19 win over Sale Sharks and Edinburgh's 15-10 defeat against Gloucester in the Champions Cup.

Here's what some of you said:

Glasgow Warriors

Stuart: Fantastic start to the Champions Cup. Expected more resistance from Sale, but our lads stood up well. We even scored a try when the team was down to 14. Toulon will be a big challenge, but Warriors will not be scared.

Anthony: I was at the match and Warriors played some scintillating attacking rugby, particularly in the first half. Warriors back three are all comfortable under the high ball and challenge well. Warriors defence really stepped up in the second half to keep Sale out.

David: Glasgow thoroughly deserved their win over Sale, who they beat in every phase of the game. A good start to the Champions Cup campaign.

Allan: A stunning attacking performance in the first half and a stunning defensive performance in the second half. The best European start for the Warriors in years, let's hope it continues. Great performances all over the park, with George Horne as the standout.

Kenny: An excellent all-round performance from Warriors who made the most of a strong following. Contained Sale for the most part in a gutsy second half. Our defence was immense and our tries well taken.

Edinburgh

Charlie: Clearly not taking this competition seriously even though it's probably the only chance of winning anything this year. A lacklustre performance by a team that would have benefited from the addition of a few regular first-choice players. I turned up hoping to see a sprinkling of Scottish stars but left very disappointed.

Simon: I know a defeat is a bit frustrating and our attack is still not clicking, but good positives around the young lads making debuts and proving to be capable, so maybe the future is looking bright.

Stair: Good performance from the second string. Gloucester were beatable and a full strength Edinburgh would surely have put them to the sword. I hope we turn out the first team next Friday or I fear an annihilation and another weary trudge home from the Hive.

Stan: Why has the Edinburgh coach decided to play without his two outstanding international wingers?

Andrew: An encouraging performance from a young and inexperienced Edinburgh team fighting back with a last-minute bonus-point penalty. Valuable game time for the wider squad. The coaches regularly get plenty of criticism. They deserve credit for last night, as do the players. It wasn't the away win but can be a much-needed building block to future ones.

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Glasgow captain Sione Tuipulotu told Premier Sports: "Sale are a very physical side and we knew we wouldn't be able to go wide if we didn't go forward first.

"There were so many contributors and that's what makes us dangerous.

"I looked everyone in the eye this week and said I really do believe we can win [the Champions Cup].

"It's important we keep stacking up the wins. Franco [Smith's] always saying we don't have to lose to learn."

Did you take in Glasgow Warriors' Champions Cup win over Sale Sharks or were you following from home?

Have your say on the match., external

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Glasgow head coach Franco Smith tells Premier Sports: "The effort was fantastic.

"It's early, it's the first game - it's good to see the guys pitching up tonight, but we have to stay realistic. Toulon will be tough. There's a lot of bridges still to be crossed. We won't get ahead of ourselves.

"[George Horne] is an exciting player, creative and he gets himself in try-scoring positions."

Edinburgh fans, what did you make of your side's performance in their Challenge Cup defeat by Gloucester?

Have your say on the match., external

Kenny Crawford
BBC Sport Scotland

Glasgow Warriors head coach Franco Smith is welcoming the chance for his side to be "measured against the best" when they launch their Champions Cup campaign at home to Sale Sharks on Saturday.

Smith has named a strong side for the match at Scotstoun, welcoming back captain Sione Tuipulotu, in addition to the likes of Huw Jones, Zander Fagerson and Rory Darge.

Sale and URC champions Glasgow are in Pool 4 of the competition with Harlequins, Racing 92, Stormers and Toulon.

"It's a great competition to be part of and it comes at the right time of the year," Smith told BBC Scotland.

"It's also exciting to play against players from the Premiership and French competition to make sure we keep on learning, get better and we want to be measured against the best."

Sale sit sixth in the English Premiership and have named England flanker Tom Curry in their starting line-up, as well as Scotland internationals Gus Warr and Arron Reed.

"Every time you play a team you're not used to playing that often in your environment or competition, it makes it a different challenge," Smith added.

"They've got a huge pack of forwards, they've got good line speed on the defence, a good kicking game and are a bunch of physical players both sides of the ball, so it's going to be a big challenge."

Glasgow take a break from the URC, in which they are second to Leinster after five wins from seven outings, and Smith believes it is crucial for his team to improve beyond their league triumph last season.

"It's important for us to keep setting the standards and keep improving on what we've done before, from a statistical perspective but also from a mentality and physical approach," the South African said.

"To be competitive in this sport now, you need to be on it every week, stick to our process and concentrate on what we can do well, be the best we can be and there's no better place to measure it than this competition."

BBC Scotland's chief sportswriter Tom English has been answering your Scottish rugby questions.

Steven asked: How far off do you think Edinburgh are from clicking into a consistent team? It seems motivation is possibly an issue with their best performances being when against a wall?

Tom answered: They're three points off fourth place in the URC but only four points off 12th place. Will they move up the table from here or down the table? My honest answer is that I don't know. Edinburgh should be in the top eight every season. Their squad and their budget demand it. But I can't trust them.

They do things on the pitch that only very good teams do, but then they do other things that very good teams would never do. They're just maddening.

Consistency? I think they're totally capable of stringing wins together and powering into the URC play-offs while doing something in Europe, but I'll only believe it when I see it. I won't make any predictions for Edinburgh.

Alan asked: Do Glasgow have the squad to go far in this year's Champions Cup? After their URC title win, do they have the winning mentality to challenge Leinster and the powerful French teams?

Tom answered: It's not just Leinster and the big French teams they have to contend with in Europe, it's also the big beasts in South Africa. The Sharks squad is unreal. If they click then I can see them going very close to winning it.

There are tiers in Europe. Toulouse, La Rochelle and Leinster would be tier one. Glasgow would be in tier two. I expect them to go well this year on both fronts. They're already in good position in the URC.

Glasgow at their best would give anybody a game. And if that game happens to be in Glasgow then you'd almost make them favourites, even against the biggest hitters.

They're incredibly physical and incredibly resilient. They have a magnificent backline and they're in the 'dark horse' category in terms of winning the Champions Cup. No other team - Toulouse included - is going to want to play a fired-up Glasgow.

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Glasgow Warriors head coach Franco Smith has made eight changes from the side that beat Scarlets in the URC last time out, welcoming back seven Scotland internationals for their Champions Cup opener against Sale Sharks on Saturday.

The front row is all change from the rotated line-up last Friday, as Jamie Bhatti and Zander Fagerson pack down either side of hooker Gregor Hiddleston.

Jare Oguntibeju keeps his place after making his debut against Scarlets, with Scott Cummings joining him in the second row.

Matt Fagerson and Rory Darge return as Glasgow's flankers, and Henco Venter is retained at number eight.

In the backs, George Horne starts at scrum-half, Tom Jordan shifts from inside-centre to fly-half to accommodate Adam Hasting's absence, while centres Sione Tuipulotu and Huw Jones both come into the team.

The back three is unchanged, with Josh McKay at full-back, and Kyle Rowe and Sebastian Cancelliere as the wingers.

Glasgow will also take on Toulon, Racing 92 and Harlequins in Pool 4 of the Champions Cup.

"Being consistent in the Champions Cup is a big objective for this group," Smith said.

"We look forward to the challenge of competing with the best in Europe.

"We know we will need to be at our best tomorrow night, and we look forward to getting our campaign under way."

Glasgow XV to face Sale: McKay, Cancelliere, Jones, Tuipulotu, Rowe, Jordan, Horne; Bhatti, Hiddleston, Z Fagerson, Oguntibeju, Cummings, M Fagerson, Darge, Venter.

Replacements: Matthews, Sutherland, Talakai, Samuel, Miller, Mann, Dobie, Weir.

BBC Scotland's chief sportswriter Tom English has been answering your Scottish rugby questions.

Ali asked: Bit of talk on the Rugby Union weekly podcast regarding coaching pathways. Pete Murchie, Peter Horne and Fraser Brown are recent examples of those being pushed for coaching positions, but all within Scotland. Do you think they would benefit from opportunities outwith Scotland to progress like Ronan O'Gara did. Scottish links in Japan and New Zealand that could be used?

Tom answered: That's the route Greig Laidlaw is going down and I've no doubt his time in Japan is going to make him a better coach, just as O'Gara's time in New Zealand and now France will make him a future Test coach with one of the big hitters. O'Gara could have had one of those jobs already, to be honest,

O'Gara is a big name, though. Doors opened for him. The same with Laidlaw, who is massively respected in Japan from his playing days with Scotland.

Coaching abroad, in the right environment, can only be a hugely beneficial thing, but getting a foot in the door isn't easy.

Mark asked: What does Johnny Matthews have to do to play in the Six Nations? Why doesn't Gregor Townsend fancy the best hooker in the country?

Tom answered: He can't do a whole lot more to stake his claim. His performances for Glasgow have been consistently good and he's a URC winner. Maybe he lacks a bit of power and dynamism at Test level.

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Edinburgh head coach Sean Everitt has made eight changes to the side that beat Benetton in the URC last weekend for Friday's Challenge Cup trip to Gloucester.

Ross McCann and Nathan Sweeney replace Scotland duo Darcy Graham and Duhan van der Merwe as the capital side's wingers, and Ben Vellacott is preferred to Ali Price at scrum-half against his former club.

In the forwards, lock Sam Skinner makes his first start of the season after undergoing knee surgery in the summer, and there is a first senior start for flanker Freddy Douglas after the 19-year-old made his club debut against Benetton.

Boan Venter and Paddy Harrison come into the front row for Pierre Schoeman and Ewan Ashman, while Tom Dodd joins Douglas and Magnus Bradbury in the back row. Jamie Ritchie (rested) and Ben Muncaster (illness) both miss out.

Youngsters Rob Carmichael and Liam McConnell could both make their club debuts off the bench.

"It's an exciting opportunity for a lot of guys," Everitt said. "We have a couple of experienced guys making their comeback from injury combined with some younger players coming in for the match, which is great to see."

"Gloucester have been playing some really exciting rugby and it promises to be a great night."

Edinburgh XV to face Gloucester: Goosen, McCann, Currie, Tuipulotu, Sweeney, Thompson, Vellacott (c); Venter, Harrison, Hill, Sykes, Skinner, Dodd, Douglas, Bradbury.

Replacements: Cherry, Jones, Rae, Carmichael, McConnell, Shiel, Healy, Lang.

Former Glasgow and Scotland hooker Fraser Brown chats to Tom English about why Edinburgh need to go all out for Challenge Cup success this season and whether Warriors can make "big plays" simultaneously in Europe and the URC.

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