Harlequins' Zurich Premiership survival bid ended in failure at The Stoop on Saturday as the Twickenham club were relegated from the top flight for the first time in 18 years of competitive rugby.

Mark Evans' side were edged out by the narrowest of margins in a nerve-shredding clash and would have escaped with victory had fly-half Jeremy Staunton landed a kickable 80th-minute penalty.

It was a bitter pill for Quins fans to swallow following a courageous performance from their side against an error-prone Sale outfit, but they could have few complaints given the club's performance this season.

They saved the best until last, however, crossing through Staunton, James Hayter and Gavin Duffy in a display which had Sale on the back foot for long periods.

But the Sharks held on with Steve Hanley and Mark Cueto touching down and the boot of Charlie Hodgson doing the rest to steal the Stockport-based club a spot in the end-of-season play-offs.

Quins have endured a shocking season with their six victories all arriving during international weekends when opposition sides were deprived of their best players, but they made the best possible start.

Excellent work at the line-out saw quick ball released wide where Staunton was able to power through a tackle from Robert Todd and crash over with just three minutes on the clock.

Tony Diprose was prominent in the build up to the try and a bullocking run from the number eight helped Quins into a promising position shortly after, but a knock on allowed Sale to escape.

They produced another attacking line-out in the 13th minute and drove over from five metres out with referee Dave Pearson referring the decision to the fourth official who ruled hooker James Hayter had grounded the ball.

Staunton missed the conversion this time but Quins were soon back on the offensive, although when this attack was halted a lengthy brawl broke out with Pearson opting to give the Sharks a penalty.

The home side had controlled the tempo of the match for the first 20 minutes and reaped the rewards, but the first time Sale were able to maintain possession for any length of time they ripped Quins to shreds.

Full-back Mark Cueto was heavily involved by jinking into a dangerous position before the ball was recycled and shipped left to second row Fernandez Lobbe who soaked up a tackle and fed Jason Robinson on the loop.

The England star, switching from full-back to centre with Jos Baxendell dropping out of the side before the match, then fed Steve Hanley who slipped over for his ninth try of the season.

Charlie Hodgson slotted the conversion and the a penalty to slash Quins' lead to just two points while Staunton missed a three-pointer as Sale retained the initiative.

An injury-time rally saw Quins threaten once again as they pounded away at the visitors' line and won a scrum, only for their set-piece to buckle Sale's heavier pack made its presence felt.

But there was still time for them to add a third try in the 45th minute. George Harder made the initial break with the Samoan winger craftily offloading in a Robinson tackle to Gavin Duffy who raced home.

Hodgson landed his second penalty in the 46th minute as Sale edged the opening exchanges of the second half but a 30-metre rolling maul from a Diprose-taken line-out saw Quins rumble into an ominous position.

The Sharks could not halt their momentum through legal means so conceded a simple penalty which Staunton rifled between the uprights to provide Quins with some valuable breathing space.

Sale were performing well below poor, dropping simple passes and conceding a hatful of penalties which put them under frequent pressure. Even their vaunted back three were frequently taking the wrong option.

Quins were being hammered in the scrums but bizarrely it was Sale who fell foul of Pearson's whistle with one set of scrums seeing the home side come under tremendous pressure - until they were let off with an ill-deserved free-kick.

Hodgson slashed the deficit with another penalty and the England fly-half then fired a 72nd-minute miss pass to Cueto who escaped tackles from Duffy and Will Greenwood before touching down under the posts.

Hodgson converted to set up a dramatic finale and the tension became unbearable in the 80th minute when substitute Stuart Turner conceded a penalty within Staunton's range - but the fly-half nudged it wide.

Quins tried desperately to get within range of a drop goal in the last throws of the match but Sale held on to consign their opponents to relegation.