Glasgow Warriors saw their dream of advancing to the Investec Champions Cup semi-finals slip away as they suffered a narrow 22-19 loss to RC Toulon at Scotstoun. Despite entering the match as favorites, thanks to their strong home record and Toulon's domestic struggles, Glasgow found themselves edged out by the three-time European champions. The defeat came after a tumultuous match that saw four tries to three in favor of Toulon, setting them up for a last-four clash against Leinster or Sale.
Glasgow was forced into a late change when Max Williamson was ruled out, with Macenzzie Duncan stepping in off the bench. The home side initially took the lead after a cautious start, with Toulon accumulating penalties in their own 22, allowing Warriors to capitalize. Alex Samuel secured the lineout, passing to Ben Afshar, whose internal pass sent Stafford McDowall over for the first try.
However, Toulon quickly countered when Ben White's long pass found Jeremy Sinzelle, who then moved the ball to Gael Drean for the score. A trademark run by Kyle Steyn pushed Glasgow back into Toulon territory, but after several pick-and-go attempts, Sione Tuipulotu was held just shy of the line. Following a warning for ill-discipline, Junior Kpoku was yellow-carded, and Glasgow swiftly took advantage of the extra man. McDowall picked out Ollie Smith with a brilliant pass, allowing the winger to score.
The hosts soon found themselves on the back foot, with Jean-Baptiste Gros creeping over for a converted try that tied the scoreboard at 12-12. Toulon then took the lead for the first time when Melvyn Jaminet passed wide to Drean, who used his pace to score his second try. Glasgow regained the lead in the second half, with the lineout maul appearing to drift into touch before Gregor Hiddleston broke off to stretch for the line. Toulon enjoyed a period of pressure near the Glasgow line but was met with firm defense before finally winning a penalty to ease the danger.
They eventually broke through when Nacho Brex found a gap and powered to the line. Warriors had one last push to get back in front but were forced into a turnover, sealing Toulon's win. In another match, Leinster Rugby secured their place in the Investec Champions Cup semi-finals with a 43-13 trouncing of Sale Sharks, setting up a meeting with Toulon.
Leinster started perfectly, with hooker Dan Sheehan crashing over for a try and Harry Byrne adding the conversion. Sale reduced the deficit with a George Ford penalty but were down to 14 men after Dan du Preez was yellow-carded for a deliberate knock-on. Full-back Hugo Keenan stretched Leinster's lead with a second try after the restart, and despite a second Ford penalty, Leinster's advantage grew with tries from Ryan Baird, Rieko Ioane, and Tommy O'Brien, all converted by Byrne.
Sale's Alex Willis touched down in the corner, with Ford converting, but a Byrne penalty and a converted Jamie Osborne try sealed Leinster's convincing win.