Saracens celebrated winning the European Cup for the first time after downing Racing 92 21-9 in a penalty shootout in Lyon, but not too hard because their players have their gaze on a double.
“It is awesome to be European champions,” said the England No8, Billy Vunipola, after his team became the first Premiership side to achieve the feat since Wasps in 2007. “It takes a massive amount to win this trophy but our minds are already on next week and the Premiership play‑offs. The final was a real arm wrestle and we made fewer mistakes than them. Owen Farrell held his nerve and our experience pulled us through.”
Saracens, who host Leicester in Saturday’s semi-final, lost the Heineken Cup final to Toulon two years ago. “We learned a lot from that defeat,” said the Saracens director of rugby, Mark McCall. “Toulon kept us at arm’s length and we did that today to Racing. Owen ran the game cleverly and smartly and it was a brilliant team effort. We showed how we have grown in two years and if we remain humble and hungry, more days like this lie ahead.”
Farrell scored all his side’s 21 points. “It was a slog all the way through the game with two good teams going for it in difficult conditions,” said Farrell. “We played some smart rugby and it got us through what was a massive occasion. I spoke to Dan Carter at the end and congratulated him on his outstanding performances this year.”
The Racing captain, Dimitri Szarzewski, said it was not a gamble to play a clearly unfit Carter. “He was not 100% but we though we could get 40 or 50 minutes from him to provide momentum. It was not a risk and we lost because we were not up to the challenge collectively. We were not dominated by Saracens but our discipline was not good enough.”
