The English side were 22-6 and in complete command of the showpiece final in Cardiff before a resolute forward pack and an inspired Johnny Sexton helped Leinster score 27 unanswered points to lift a second European Cup.

And Heaslip – who won three European Cups with the Irish province – hailed the effort of the forward pack in one of the greatest Heineken Cup finals in the history of the competition.

“I think the nail in the coffin was the scrum around the halfway line and we get it to the back,” Heaslip said. “Bearing in mind we had been under pressure in the scrum and had given penalties away, you could feel the weight of the front five going forward and I keep it in.

“We kept moving forward and it creaks before a penalty and Johnny slots it over. I think we had scored 19 points unanswered at that stage and you could just see the game was done. It was all about how we controlled it from then.

“It was a pretty sweet moment because no one thought we could do it so when we actually did it, I think it was Cian Healy and we just went absolutely mental.”

Heaslip also described the match as one of his greatest moments in European competition due to the atmosphere and the resolve shown by his teammates.

“When I think of all the different moments we’ve had in the Heineken Champions Cup, it’s definitely up there. The Principality Stadium is a special place to play in, especially when its closed and the fans are on top of you.

“It’s probably one of the loudest places you can play in and unlike an international, a lot of Northampton and Leinster fans travelled so it was probably a 50:50 split which is quite rare.

“2009 was great because it was the first time but 2011 was different because we get to the final and at half time we could’ve said we have lost it but we didn’t.

“We stuck to our guns and we didn’t really know we had won it till the end, even though we were controlling it in the last five minutes.”

Keep an eye out for more Champions Rugby Show podcasts in the coming days - including one with Jamie Heaslip - and don’t forget to vote for the next Heineken Champions Cup Rewind tomorrow.

Former Leinster Rugby No.8 Jamie Heaslip said the Irish province’s dominant second half scrum was pivotal in their victory over Northampton Saints in the 2011 Heineken Cup final.