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Lions contender Prendergast fires Leinster to Champions Cup quarters / Photo: © AFP/File
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Lions contender Prendergast fires Leinster to Champions Cup quarters
Ireland fly-half Sam Prendergast scored 11 points as Leinster cruised past Harlequins 62-0 on Saturday to join Northampton, Toulon and Castres in the Champions Cup last eight.
Prendergast's influential contribution in Dublin included a first-half try, one of nine touchdowns by the Irish province, as the four-time winners reached the quarters for a ninth straight season.
In next weekend's knockout they will face Glasgow or Leicester, who meet later on Saturday.
The game in front of 55,000 people at Croke Park, the spiritual home of Gaelic sport in Dublin, was tipped as a battle between the fly-halves.
Prendergast and Quins' England playmaker Marcus Smith are both on course for spots in the British and Irish Lions squad this summer.
Prendergast claimed the upper hand in the debate by half-time however, helping his province to a 19-0 lead, which included a 14th minute touchdown from short range.
The 22-year-old's influence continued after the break, and he showed his class with a delicate out-the-door pass in the build-up to Dan Sheehan's try as Quins suffered their heaviest-ever Champions Cup loss.
Elsewhere, 14-man Castres edged Treviso 39-37 to set-up a tie with English side Northampton, the 2000 winners, who hammered Clermont 46-24 on Friday.
Replacement scrum-half Jeremy Fernandez converted his own try with eight seconds left to send the French club into the quarters for the first time since 2002 after centre Adrien Seguret was sent off on 42 minutes.
- Isa hat-trick -
Earlier, Argentina No.8 Facundo Isa scored three times on his 150th club appearance as Toulon fought back to hammer a much-changed Saracens 72-42.
Isa claimed his hat-trick in a 24-minute spell either side of the break after three-time former champions Sarries had built a 22-point lead in blazing sunshine on the French Riviera.
France full-back Melvyn Jaminet scored 32 points, including two of 10 Toulon tries, in his first Champions Cup game since finishing his lengthy ban for making racist marks on social media last July.
"I think it's the first time I've scored a hat-trick," Isa told BeIn Sports.
"We reacted well, lifted ourselves up.
"Now we want to go the whole way," the 31-year-old added.
Toulon, also champions on three occasions, will host holders Toulouse or Sale, who meet on Sunday, in the last eight.
The 114 points scored by the sides was the second highest in the tournament's history, only beaten by the 124 scored by Toulouse and Ebbw Vale in 1998.
The weekend's highlight, though, will be a Ronan O'Gara derby as the La Rochelle director of rugby welcomes his former province Munster to western France later on Saturday.
More than 2,000 fans have travelled from Ireland from the game as O'Gara eyes a first win in all competitions since January.
Top seeds from the pool stage Bordeaux-Begles hosting 1999 winners Ulster is the other last 16 tie of the weekend for a place against O'Gara's current or previous outfit.
V. Duarte--JDB
