Leinster Head Coach Leo Cullen was a relieved man at the end of Leinster's 15-12 win over Racing 92 in the Champions Cup final in Bilbao on Saturday.
The Irish side struggled to find their rhythm throughout the match and only took the lead in the dying minutes but Cullen paid tribute to his players for hanging on in and scrapping until the very end.
"It was mixed - there was parts of it where you're tearing your hair out," he told Off the Ball's Dave McIntyre after the match. "Racing made life very difficult so we got the job done - it wasn't pretty but sometimes that's what you need to win tournaments.
"We just tried to stay the course - stay in the game, stay in the game - so we had some opportunities and we just needed to stay composed and we had a lot of the attack I thought in the game but Racing just played a very smart game and they were very difficult to play against so it took a while to break them down.
"I think if maybe we got our noses in front a bit earlier maybe they would have had to chase the game and then suddenly it's s slightly different game but anyway, job done and we're delighted!
"I'm delighted with the players - they showed great desire and they really want this so it was nice to get over the line," he added.
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