“These guys who came in and played out of their skins to get us here – we were the lucky ones who came back and stole the limelight.

“We are indebted to the efforts of these lads and they deserve the plaudits every bit as much as us – if not more.”

Humphreys also insisted that the big travelling support had played their part in the success.

He said: “It seemed as if there were 10 times as many of them as home fans and they gave us strength when we needed it most.

“It was a tough old afternoon out there, in fact it was the sort of day that it was almost a disadvantage to have the ball!”

Captain Andy Ward added: “Our performance in the first half was fantastic and we won because we put points on the board when we had the chances.”

Coach Alan Solomons said: “I couldn’t be more proud of the lads because they were up against a very, very talented Edinburgh side who came back at us strongly.”

Frustrated Edinburgh skipper Todd Blackadder claimed his team blew their chances – by trying to play too much rugby.

The former All Blacks captain admitted that Ulster had “come up with the clever game” in wretched conditions at Murrayfield.

He declared: “Our first half was the worst 40 minutes we have had all season and it is a huge shame it happened on the big day.

“We put ourselves under pressure by trying to do too much, too quickly in weather that didn’t suit. The result was silly mistakes which gave them scoring opportunities.

“All credit to Ulster because they were clever in the way they wanted to play.”

Blackadder refused to be totally downhearted, however. He added: “I was proud of the way the guys responded after the interval. The effort was immense – but we were always playing catch-up and there was just too much to do.”