Stade Français captain Sergio Parisse is bursting with pride after his team were crowned European Rugby Challenge Cup winners.
Parisse won the man-of-the-match award as his side secured a 25-17 victory over Gloucester at Murrayfield on Friday.
Parisse chipped in with a crucial try before the half-time break and showed great leadership throughout.
It is Stade Français’ first ever European trophy in the club’s long history. This makes the win all the more special for
Parisse who has been on the losing side four times in major European finals.
The Iconic Italian number eight told EPC Rugby: “There is a lot of pride. The first thing that comes to my mind is how proud I am of the team. “We really wanted to show our solidarity as a group and that we deserved something from this season.
“We wanted to win the title. We may not have played our best game of the season, but we were still good.”
Gloucester went into an early 10-point lead through Jonny May’s opportunistic intercept try but a Parisse fivepointer levelled things just before the sides went into the break.
Stade Français asserted their dominance in the second half with tries from centres Jonathan Danty and Geoffrey Doumayrou. Ross Moriarty scored a late consolation try for the English side but by then it was a little too late.
“Right now we just want to celebrate this together. We deserve it,” said Parrise.
“We don’t realise what we’ve achieved, we will realise that later.
“We know we are European champions for the first time in the history of the club.
“Our players are really proud to have made a new chapter in our history. We will enjoy this title.”
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