THERE'S AN honesty about the way Munster play rugby, never more so than in their beloved Heineken Cup, and it's the same in the immediate aftermath of a match. On Saturday they didn't crow; they weren't remotely snug; just oozing contentment at a job well done and looking forward to the partying ahead, knowing that and the European Cup had been earned the hard way.

That it was the three-time winners Toulouse, for whom they oozed respect, made that sense of a job well done even more real.

Amid the chatting and the banter, Ronan O'Gara expressed the mood: "The big thing ringing in my head is that we had to go out and earn it. That's what Paulie (O'Connell) was saying, and never a truer word was spoken. It was very apt in the performance."

Two years ago, before the win over Biarritz, John Kelly told his team-mates there was nowhere he'd rather be than in that huddle, among those people. One imagines the post-match dressing-room on Saturday was better still.

"We always said that any Munster dressing-room is a special place to be and it is now," said Kidney, though he'd scarcely had much time to be there. "A lot of things had to be put away in the locker for today's game.

"I remember Mick Galwey saying eight years ago that maybe you had to lose one to win one. We had to lose two to win two, and maybe some of the lessons that were learned in those times had to be put to fruition this time, and we'd like to thank all those guys over the last 10, 12 years, but really over 100 years of Munster rugby, that have helped us to learn the lessons that have put us in this very privileged position today."

This present Munster group are, he said, the beneficiaries of not only history and a sense of heritage and place but of the work done at clubs and underage.

Nor, typically, would Kidney countenance discussing his own personal emotions at the era-ending departure of himself as head coach, Jim Williams as forwards coach and Anthony Foley and Shaun Payne as players.

"That's not for now," he said.

True to an approach that steadfastly put his upcoming tenure as Ireland coach to the background pending the conclusion of this latest Munster odyssey, he added: "One of the things I personally learned from the last time is that we were so busy in the aftermath of it, you just sort of kept working.

"I'm just going to enjoy this one. This is special now. How often does this come around? To come around once is a dream, to come around twice? I think the trick now is to enjoy it for a month, two months, until pre-season comes around again. But I think the first thing to do is enjoy it first and then get back on the horse and see what happens next year."

O'Gara spoke of the relative comfort he felt, even with only a three-point lead, thanks to the awesome work of the pack.

"There was one time (we were) roaring trying to get the ball, because they were trying to keep it for seven minutes," he said chuckling, as did O'Connell alongside him. "They're good, but I think we might review that.

"It's a great day for me, for Munster, and Paul's gesture for me to pick up the cup at the end speaks volumes for the man. I'm overwhelmed by his unselfishness. It's the greatest day I've ever had for Munster." And, to emphasise the point, he whispered to O'Connell, simply, "Thank you."

O'Connell revealed there had been an incident in training during the week when someone forced the pass. Players talked about it and Kidney emphasised the importance of patience: "Patience and possession then became our mantra during the week."

While they would like to have been more expansive in the last 20 minutes, the closeness of the score and the failure to get the killer try obliged them to cut their cloth.

"We were patient when we had the ball and we just killed them. It's very hard for a team to attack if they don't have the ball. We kept the ball for long phases and it's very, very wearing on players' legs defending for that long."

Acknowledging there may have been times when they could have let the backs have it, O'Connell said, "We were just working our socks off as forwards. I think people will look at it and say it wasn't the fanciest of finals. But for pure attrition, workrate and heart, I think it was right up there."

Revealing what admittedly was a palpable "positivity" among the Munster players, O'Connell said: "Some times we can bitch with each other out on the pitch - unbelievably sometimes - and be best friends coming off it, but there was none of that today. Everyone, no matter what decision you made, it was backed 100 per cent.

"The back row, the front row was absolutely outstanding and at half-time we said to ourselves 'the scrum is winning this match for us'. That's what the forwards said anyway - I don't know what the backs said," he quipped. "It was a great performance all round, backs as well."

Kidney reacted a little indignantly when Guy Noves's gripe about the officiating was put to him: "I seriously think you're questioning the referee's professionalism there. I think you could argue the other way. In the first two or three minutes we had a couple of penalties against us, maybe because he knew what to watch for. We've been in finals before and lost them and we didn't say anything about referees. We just need to let them get on with their jobs."

That Noves also said Munster were deserving winners was no more than he expected. "Guy Noves is a man I would look up to. It has been one of my wishes maybe to go over to Toulouse to see how he has them organised because the way they play with flair and passion for one another is everything that I would like to try and bring into a side.

"I wouldn't have expected anything less from the man and I thank him for it because that's the sportsman he is and that's what today is, a sporting occasion."

This win marked a changing of the guard: Kidney and Williams moving on, Foley and Payne (vital contributors to the bare-knuckle ride that was the group campaign) retiring along with Kelly.

Not that O'Connell expected or wanted to see the last of Kidney. "Hopefully if he picks us (for Ireland) it's not a send-off, and we'll have him for another while yet," he smiled.

"Axel and Jimmy (Williams) and Deccie, they didn't want it mentioned about them leaving, and it's a great credit to them. But you see Axel walking around 10 minutes before kick-off in a suit and it's a strange, strange feeling for a lot of guys - for me anyway.

"He just looks after us; he's like our babysitter or whatever. It's a strange feeling when he isn't there on the field. You realise you have to go out and do it on your own.

"But I think it was in the back of everyone's minds. I think everyone's delighted to see Deccie getting what he deserves, and Axel and Jimmy getting what they deserve. They've given a lot, Shaun Payne and these guys, there's a lot of guys finishing up.

"I think when you come here you end up putting in a lot more than maybe some people bargained for. You end up living it, and it's good reward for these guys finishing up."

Pride the emotion as Williams packs his bags

JIM WILLIAMS is returning home to become forwards coach to the Australian national team. He explains in his own words about the emotions he felt in the Millennium stadium.

"Was I emotional? Yes, certainly. It was going to be difficult running into the last two weeks to keep that emotion in check. It definitely came out a little bit today. My feeling now is just one of relief (that we have won). I'm very proud of the boys.

"It was always going to be a challenge for me to forget about my own situation.

"It's been nearly seven years so it's not a case of coming in for a season and leaving. These people are a part of my life and it was always going to be difficult (to deal with leaving).

"I have had two kids here and my wife, myself and the kids have enjoyed Ireland immensely so it wasn't going to be a case of just getting up and going. It is difficult and there are a couple of days to go yet. I will be emotional a few times yet.

"In the context of the match, I am very proud of the boys for the way they held onto the ball, their intensity, which was upped from the start of the match, and the fact we didn't really lose a grip on the match.

"It wasn't a pretty game but it was always going to have that test match intensity. We didn't want to give Toulouse the chance to use the attacking players they have, (Cédric) Heymans and guys like that.

"As far as the pick-and-jam end is concerned, being a forward I definitely enjoyed it. It's a very difficult thing to do against Toulouse but it was good the way we held onto the ball, frustrated them. Brilliant occasion and just so proud of the players."

- JOHN O'SULLIVAN