Double champions Leicester reached the European Cup rugby quarter-finals on Saturday despite a 15-9 defeat to the Ospreys who now face a nervous wait before learning their destiny.

The Tigers, winners in 2001 and 2002, picked up a crucial losing bonus point to make sure of top spot in Pool Three with 21 points.

Ospreys dominated the tense Liberty Stadium encounter but their stylish, fast-breaking backs were unable to break through the unyielding Leicester defence which stood firm even when they were reduced to 14 men late in the first half.

Their future in this season's competition will be decided on Sunday when Pools Two and Five are decided where four teams - Leinster, Wasps, Bath and Toulouse - are still in contention.

Ospreys' Welsh stand-off James Hook kicked five penalties with Leicester replying with three kicks of their own from Derick Hougaard.

Harlequins, who made sure of their quarter-final place last week, clinched a bonus-point 29-24 victory over the Scarlets to guarantee a home tie in the last eight.

Dean Richards' team scored four tries thanks to Chris Robshaw, George Robson, James Percival and Tom Williams with the Welshmen crossing three times after the break through Morgan Stoddart, Matthew Rees and Gavin Evans.

The Scarlets finished bottom of Pool Four. In the group's other match on Saturday, Stade Francais saw off Ulster 24-19, but both sides had already been eliminated from contention.

In Pool One, Sale, whose coach Philippe Saint-Andre is expected to be named as manager of Toulon on Monday, ended Clermont's slim chances of qualifying as a best runner-up with a 26-17 win.

Oriol Ripol's early try put Sale in charge early on before Fijian winger Napolioni Nalaga scored twice to put the French on top. The English side hit back after the break with Welsh international Dwayne Peel and David Tait securing the points.

Pool One leaders and defending champions Munster's clash at Montauban was postponed due to storms in south-west France and will now take place on Sunday.

Munster, who have already reached the last eight for an 11th successive season, are hoping to secure a home tie in the quarter-finals with a bonus-point win.

On Friday, Cardiff Blues made it a perfect six wins out of six with a nine-try, 62-20 demolition of Calvisano to grab top seeding and a home clash in the quarter-finals.

In the night's other Pool 6 tie, Gloucester's slim hopes of claiming a place in the last eight as a best runner-up ended in a demoralising 24-10 defeat by Biarritz who are also eliminated.

Cardiff, who made sure of top spot last week with a come-from-behind 16-12 win at Gloucester, despite playing most of the match with 14 men, were unstoppable against their awkward Italian opponents.

Gareth Thomas (2), T Rhys Thomas (2), Ben Blair, Xavier Rush, Leigh Halfpenny, Martyn Williams and Maama Molitika all scored as Cardiff became only the sixth team in European Cup history to win all their group games.

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