Tim Rodber took one look at the gleaming Heineken Cup - Northampton's first major prize in 120 years - and declared: "I don't think I will ever top this".
Rodber, the longest-serving Northampton player on duty in a tension-filled Twickenham final, played his heart out as the Saints defied fatigue and injury setbacks to prevail after an 80th-minute penalty miss by crestfallen Munster out-half Ronan O'Gara.
The new European champions can confidently expect to hit a £1-million jackpot in spin-offs from their nerve-tingling triumph.
But for Saints veteran Rodber, who joined the club as a teenager 11 years ago, his post-match memories will always remain priceless.
"To play for England and the Lions is fantastic, but to do something with people you train with every day represents the highlight of my career," he said.
"When I joined Northampton we were bottom of the Second Division - 11 years later, we are European champions.
"This means so much to the players and fans. We'd experienced defeat in a Twickenham final against Wasps two weeks ago in the Tetley's Bitter Cup and we didn't want to go through it again.
"We have competed on three fronts all year and we've fallen over in the last few weeks. We wanted to win all three trophies but we've ended up collecting the biggest one.
"If we had lost then I would have been staring at the dressing-room wall wondering what I had to do to win something," he added.
"Because we had played so many games people expected us to be a bit sluggish mentally - but we were really there today."
It was a lung-busting show of commitment and determination from Saints' experienced forward warriors - Rodber, prop Garry Pagel and workaholic flanker Don Mackinnon all dragging aching limbs into one bone-crunching collision after the next.
Then, of course, there was Pat Lam, Northampton's inspirational captain whose injured shoulder never once hampered a remarkable contribution to the cause.
"Pat Lam is the best leader for this team, and I didn't feel sore about it at all.
"Pat is a very uplifting guy and has the ability to say and do things which are exactly right.
"He is a Christian, and at the end of the game we all got in a huddle and said a prayer. It was a great bonding experience; then some of the younger players started singing songs about being champions - I didn't know the words!" said Rodber.
For Lam, Northampton's victory completed an unforgettable week - two major individual awards, the birth of his fourth child and finally the Heineken Cup.
He had vowed to play through the pain barrier, promising his team-mates a big performance - and how he delivered the goods.
"I had my prize on Wednesday with the birth of my baby boy, and today's win was for the whole club. I promised the guys a big game - in my mind, I kept telling myself that my shoulder didn't hurt," said Lam.
