Marcus Smith led Harlequins to a large slice of history as the London outfit won a European Cup knockout tie for the first time.
The Premiership side have continued to come up short in Europe's top tier, despite winning the Challenge Cup several times, but righted those wrongs with a 28-24 victory over Glasgow Warriors on what was a damp April night in south west London.
The Scots headed south of the border with some stellar form behind them, winning five on the bounce, and showed promise from the third minute, when they first took the lead. They also responded with two quick second-half tries to level having been 21-7 behind at the interval.
Smith crossed for one of their three first-half tries, sidestepping before crossing the whitewash, and provided a classy chip kick to assist Andre Esterhuizen's opening score. He was also instrumental in Cadan Murley's try.
Smith, buoyed by his impressive contributions in the Six Nations, had a moment to forget in Europe two years ago when he missed a routine 77th minute conversion against Montpellier. His kick was the difference in a high-scoring encounter and ensured Quins' wait for European progression went on.
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The mercurial fly-half has never allowed such moments to suppress his brilliance. The Stoop have been entertained by his quality on a weekly basis since he burst onto the scene and Smith was needed to be his team's difference maker in what was a seesaw encounter in the English capital.
Even more so when George Horne's penalty put the Scot's three points ahead - a lead they retained going into the final ten minutes. Joe Marler's yellow card for a high shot placed further emphasis on the hosts' ability to manage the game and hold out when the visitors came with their own wave of attack.
The Premiership outfit rewrote their own history with the knockout winQuins underlined their European credentials with a statement win over French side Racing 92 in the opening round of the competition back in December. A run in the Champions Cup in the only unticked box for a group of players who claimed Premiership glory in 2021.
Replacement hooker Sam Riley came off the bench to crash over at the back of a driving maul on 75 minutes, putting Quins back into the lead. Smith hammered over the conversion to give his side a four-point buffer going into the final moments. Glasgow were presented with a chance to quieten the Stoop - but it was Quins' defence that eventually won the day with a clash against either Bordeaux or Saracens to come.
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