Bordeaux Begles stun Sale Sharks with 14-17 victory at AJ Bell Stadium

Sale Sharks 14-17 Bordeaux Begles, AJ Bell Stadium
Scorecard

Sale Sharks suffered their maiden defeat in the ongoing European Rugby Challenge Cup after Bordeaux Begles went on to register a 14-17 victory at AJ Bell Stadium on Saturday.

Despite the defeat, Sale Sharks continue to top the Pool 3 with Bordeaux Begles getting their first win of the competition that puts them at third place.

Luke James gave a head start for Sale Sharks with a 13th minute try that was converted by Robert du Preez but the French side went on to level the scores before the break with hooker Florian Dufour dotting down in the 34th minute with Baptiste Serin slotting the extras.

Just as the first half was about to end, Sale Sharks suffered a setback with Alexandru Tarus sin-binned and their hopes were dented further with Tom Bristow red-carded on the other side of the break.

Dufour made full use of the numerical advantage with his second in the 46th minute and Serin kicked a conversion and a penalty to give the French side a 10-point lead.

Despite, being down by a player, Sale Sharks remained in contention through a Rob Webber try but could not get over the line as they succumbed to a three point defeat. Sale Sharks will face Connacht in the next round of the competition while Bordeaux take on Perpignan.