PARIS: Holders Saracens are through to the European Champions Cup quarter-finals after Wasps thrashed Ulster 26-7 on Sunday.
French pair La Rochelle and Racing 92 also progressed with wins against Harlequins and Leicester respectively.
Ulster came into the weekend as one of three Irish sides topping their group but their crushing defeat at free-scoring Wasps meant they dropped to third in Pool 1.
La Rochelle beat Harlequins 16-7 to top that stanza and despite moving up to second, Wasps are almost certain to miss out following the final match of the group stages between Munster and Castres.
Saracens had been in desperate waters following back-to-back defeats to Clermont and a draw at Ospreys but they hammered Northampton 62-14 on Saturday and that was enough to see them squeak into the knock-out stages, where they will almost certainly face a trip to dominant Leinster.
The Irish outfit completed a perfect pool stage campaign with a 23-14 victory at Montpellier on Saturday, but despite finishing with the best record they won’t be relishing the prospect of a last eight clash with the champions.
Ulster looked set to make it a perfect pool stage from the Irish but ran into an inspired Wasps who claimed a bonus point thanks to tries from Guy Thompson, Tom Cruise, South African full-back Willie Le Roux and Jake Cooper-Woolley, Danny Cipriani going three from four with the conversions.
Ulster’s reply from Sean Reidy was scant consolation.
There defeat ended the unlikely prospect of no English side making it into the quarter-finals, which would have been the case had they won – and that just two years after five Premiership sides made it into the last eight.
La Rochelle scored tries from Pierre Aguillon and Kini Murimurivalu in the first half to take control against Quins, who ruined Wasps’ hopes with a last gasp winning try last week.
La Rochelle will likely face a trip to Munster or Scarlets in the quarters.
Finalists two years ago, Racing earnt their berth by hanging on to beat Leicester 23-20 in the snowy English midlands.
The Parisian club, needing to win to ensure a place in the last eight, scored two tries in the first 12 minutes against a team that was already eliminated.
Yet Leicester responded to the early scores by Henry Chavancy and Maxime Machenaud with a display of pride. George Ford kicked three penalties before Brendon O’Connor scored a try early in the second half.
A draw or a loss for Racing would have meant Munster would win the pool before their delayed game with Castres kicked off, and Saracens who finished in Pool 2, would have been assured of a last-eight place as one of the three best runners up.
Twice in the last 15 minutes, Ford converted penalties to level the score, twice Machenaud restored the French lead.
In the dying seconds, Leicester won a penalty five metres from the line. The Tigers decided they would rather gamble on scoring a try to win rather than kicking a penalty for a draw.
Racing’s defence held firm.
“We knew it was on the line,” Racing’s Irish lock forward Donnacha Ryan said. “We showed great determination in the end.” — AFP