LOUIS Lynagh had World Cup winning father Michael in tears as he emulated the Wallaby great by becoming a Twickenham hero himself.
The brilliant 20-year-old wing flew over for two late tries in front of his dad to help Harlequins lift the Premiership title for only the second time in their history.
As fly-half Marcus Smith kicked the decisive conversion, it sparked wild celebrations among the Quins players, staff and fans who had witnessed an amazing rugby spectacle.
Thirty years after Michael inspired Australia to World Cup Final victory and break English hearts, this time his son wrote his name in the rugby history books in one of the best finals of all time.
The 40-38 victory in a pulsating, breath-taking contest left England and Lions prop Joe Marler admitting: “It’s insane… it’s crazy.”
And Louis, 20, admitted: “I have only ever wanted to make my dad proud. He is my biggest fan and so are the rest of my family. Apparently he was in tears at the end but he won’t cry in front of me. He has helped me so much and I owe him so much.
“I don’t have the words at the moment. It is unbelievable because six months ago I didn’t think we would be here. But to help this club win it a second time is unreal. To win it just across the road from where we play is special. I hope there will be more to come.”
Quins and Chiefs shared eleven tries in an 80- minute points-fest which had the 10,000 fans allowed in making as much noise as 40,000!
They had trailed by five points with just five minutes left and looked down but Lynagh came to the rescue and they finished with the trophy.
Marler insisted: “Two times Premiership champions sounds better than one-time! It feels even better this time as I took everything in today. I can remember all that went on here but I can’t from 2012. It’s another level and I am so grateful.
“This group of boys have grown stronger and stronger together. The love for each other is so incredible. It’s insane and crazy but also wonderful. It will take a while to really sink in and realise what we’ve achieved here.”
Quins general manager Billy Millard admitted: “I feared that last weekend’s win over Bristol had taken too much out of them. But it just shows you how much character and spirit there is amongst this group of guys. Full credit to them…unbelievable!
“We controlled the emotion well. Exeter are an amazing team and it was just hanging in there. I was here with Louis yesterday and he said ‘I am going to score in this corner’.
“Marler stood up at halftime and he said ‘just chill out, we have got a long way to go’. We have given them more ownership and they have brought into it.
“The coaches are all real smart rugby brains and the chemistry in that group is brilliant. Danny and Marcus lead the way and everyone follows.”
Scrum-half Care said: “Without Saracens in it we said this is the year for us to win it….and we have! Hopefully we put a smile on lots of peoples’ faces.”
Quins had led 19-14 at half-time with a penalty try and scores from Wilco Louw and Alex Dombrandt while Jonny Gray and Alec Hepburn crossed for Chiefs. Andre Esterhuizen grabbed an early second half try before Ollie Devoto grabbed a try and Sam Simmonds made it 21 tries for his incredible season.
But Lynagh sprinted over twice to become the man of the moment and Stuart Hogg’s late effort was not enough to save Chiefs.
Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter conceded: “Quite frankly we were not good enough. We came into the game the best defensive team in the Premiership but conceded 40 points.
“It’s not about the losers it’s about the winners, and Quins’ emotion showed on the field and they deserved their win. We’ve had these games where we’ve allowed teams to get ahead of us but managed to grind out wins. Today we couldn’t do that. We have opportunities to win and be better but great credit to Quins for finishing it off.”
Exeter’s England hooker Luke Cowan-Dickie gave Warren Gatland another injury worry as he sustained a head injury midway through the second half when he was accidentally struck by Dino Lamb-Cona’s knee. He will have to go through concussion protocols before being available for the Lions.ins
From GARY FITZGERALD at Twickenham
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