Exeter Chiefs had to dig deep to see off a determined Sale Sharks side and clinch a 22-20 win at the AJ Bell Stadium in Heineken Champions Cup Pool 2 on Sunday afternoon.

It was a great start for the hosts who got close to the try line before Exeter conceded the penalty in front of the posts, allowing Rob du Preez to nudge Sale ahead on 10 minutes.

Some superb play from Stuart Hogg helped Exeter go ahead for the first time four minutes later. He jinked between two Sale players, sprinted clear of Chris Ashton who made an excellent tackle to stop the try.

However, the tackle of Tom Curry wasn’t as good and gave Mathieu Raynal no choice but to award a penalty try.

Two minutes later, Hogg was able to again work the space and slotted a ball between two Sale players before collecting his own kick and scoring his first try for the English club.

In a thrilling opening 20 minutes, Akker van der Merwe got on the scoresheet next for the hosts after a top class charge down from Bryn Evans, allowing the former to score near the posts.

Luke Cowan-Dickie and Van der Merwe traded further tries before the half-hour mark to leave Exeter 22-13 ahead at the interval.

The only points of the second half came from Sale as they dominated proceedings, with Jono Ross finally powering over with five minutes to play but they couldn’t force another opportunity as Exeter clung on for a crucial away success.

The two sides will clash again next Sunday at Sandy Park from 13:00 GMT.