London--Gloucester overcame the sending off of centre Bill Meakes to beat Edinburgh 19-13 in the European Challenge Cup final at The Stoop on Friday.
The Cherry and Whites were in command at 19-6 up in the 64th minute when French referee Jerome Garces, dismissed Meakes after replays showed he had caught Sam Beard with a high, off the ball, tackle.
Gloucester were briefly down to 13 men, with Ross Moriarty already in the sin-bin, and Edinburgh, laying siege to the English club's line, saw Scotland hooker Ross Ford plunge under the posts for a converted try.
But Gloucester, with Scotland scrum-half and former Edinburgh favourite Greig Laidlaw kicking 14 points, in addition to skipper Billy Twelvetrees's try, held on.
Gloucester's victory gave them their first trophy since the 2011 Anglo-Welsh Cup and was their second Challenge Cup success after they beat London Irish in another Stoop final eight years ago.
Gloucester's win ended Edinburgh's bid to become the first Scottish club to win a European trophy.
The result left Edinburgh boss Alan Solomons, once former Ireland fly-half Humphreys' coach at Ulster, thinking of what might have been.
Gloucester are now set to go into a play-off with a Celtic League side next month, possibly against Edinburgh, with the winners of that game facing the seventh-placed French Top 14 club for a spot in next season's elite European Champions Cup.
Edinburgh, who thrashed Newport Gwent Dragons 45-16 in the semi-final, took an early lead when scrum-half Sam Hidalgo-Clyne, vying to take the Scotland No 9 shirt off Laidlaw, kicked a penalty before his Gloucester counterpart responded in kind.
The only try of the first half came in the 11th minute.
AFP
