EUROPEAN CHALLENGE CUP ROUND UP

Sale Sharks will face Agen in the last eight after the French side, Heineken Cup competitors last season, squeezed past Viadana over the two legs.

The Italian outfit beat Agen 22-17 at Stadio Luigi Zaffanella with Casper Steyn baggin 17 of their posts.

However it was not enough to overturn the deficit from their first-leg defeat with Pepito Elhorga and Sylvain Mirande getting the crucial tries to keep Agen in touch.

The Sharks progressed to the European Challenge Cup final eight after beating Narbonne 25-10 at Edgeley Park.

After a 33-15 win in France, the Sharks scored tries through centre Chris Mayor, wing Steve Hanley and French flanker Sebastien Chabal.

American fly-half Mike Hercus converted two and added two penalties as Sale eased into the last eight. Progressing with a 4-0 win on match points.

Zurich Premiership side Saracens stormed into the European Challenge Cup quarter-finals with a 52-6 mauling of Rugby Parma at Vicarage Road on Sunday.

Saracens ran in eight tries to avenge their one-point loss to the Italian club in the first leg last weekend, with fly-half Nicky Little adding six conversions.

The home frontrow had a field day, with props Nick Lloyd and Kevin Yates and hooker Matt Cairns all getting among the try-scoring action. Parma's only points came from two penalty goals by former Llanelli fullback Roland de Marigny.

Saracens will meet French side Brive in the two-leg quarter-finals in the first two weekends of January.

London Irish failed by three points to advance in the competition after winning only 19-16 at home to Pau.

The Exiles needed a six-point victory to remove the first-leg deficit, but fell short in a game dominated by the boot. London Irish kicker Mark Mapletoft bagged 14 points to complement backrower Phil Murphy's try, while Pau fly-half Ludovic Mercier kept his side in touch with 11 points - including what turned out to be a crucial dropped goal.

Pau play fellow French side Clermont-Auvergne in the quarter-finals after Clermont beat Borders 34-23 at Netherdale.

Borders faced a near-impossible task of overturning a 30-point first-leg deficit, and so it proved as Clermont led 17-7 at halftime and doubled their score in the second half - despite the Scottish side clawing their way back to 23-24 at one stage.

BUt Clermont scored four tries and Hernon Senillosa added 14 points with the boot as the French club cruised into the quarter-finals.