Saracens hooker John Smit believes the Heineken Cup defeat to Toulon swung on a crucial period in the second half when the Men in Black failed to take advantage of two try-scoring chances and playing with an extra man.
Toulon's Danie Rossouw was sin-binned for a high tackle on Mako Vunipola as Sarries carved out two golden opportunities to cross the line.
But forward passes from first Owen Farrell and then Joel Tomkins saw the chances go begging and Smit believes that spell was the turning point in the contest.
"We had two chances to score tries and I think a try at those two crucial times would have given us a bit more momentum - it was a game that ebbed and flowed," Smit said.
"It started with them having the physical advantage and then we crept into it towards the end of the first half.
"Another five minutes in the first 40 might have helped us a bit but we missed our chances, that was our time.
When asked if it was important for Sarries to take advantage of Roussouw's dismissal Smit said: "It always is, when you see that one man deficit you've got to make hay.
"Even if you don't score points you've got to keep them in their half, you've got to make them work harder so when the man comes back they've had to work a lot harder than they probably would have.
"So tactically I suppose they spent that ten minutes playing very cleverly."
Smit will leave Saracens at the end of the season to become chief executive of the Sharks.
While the World Cup winning South African admits it's a shame he couldn't end his Sarries career with a Heineken Cup final, he insists he has will look back on this season with fond memories.
"There's no fairy tales in this game," he said. "I've had some amazing moments in my career and I've had some sad ones.
"As disappointing as this is, it's been an incredibly enjoyable season - many times I've played in teams where seasons come down to play-off games and we've lost and it felt like such a waste.
"But this hasn't been a waste, these guys have got a lot to play for in the Premiership plus it's been an incredible journey.
"There's been some great memories, I know this is a bad one of losing but I've had a really good time, I've enjoyed being part of this team so it doesn't feel like the end of the world."
Saracens now turn their full attention to the league campaign where they play Bath at home on Saturday.
With a home semi-final already guaranteed, Smit says there's still a lot to play for.
"There's no excuse for us not to kick on in the Premiership," he said.
"We had a squad that could contend for both and now we've got to get ourselves focused on the Premiership, it's three big games to make sure we can make something of what's been a phenomenal season for us so far."
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