'We slammed the door' - Dowson salutes Saints as they secure semi-final spot

The black, green and gold had been pegged back late in the first half on Saturday night as the Bulls came back to six points behind at the break, having earlier gone 28-10 down.

But Saints snuffed out any hope the South African side had, scoring a total of nine tries as they secured a 59-22 success and a spot in the final four, where they will meet Leinster at Croke Park on the first weekend of May.

"It's an incredibly exciting opportunity and with the way we played in the second half, it was fully deserved," Dowson said.

"We were a bit in and out in the first half and in the second 20 minutes of that we were a bit sloppy. That was kind of the message that came out of that, the players felt a bit flat during that period and they came back into it.

"We slammed the door in the second half and we got a lot of our game on the pitch, playing in the right areas.

"We were frustrated because regardless of whichever team the Bulls pick, they're dangerous, and we gave them so many opportunities in our 22. They converted them and it became a six-point game where it didn't really feel like it needed to be.

"It was frustrating and what we're really trying to achieve is pushing to that next level. We saw that much more in the second half.

"It spoke volumes about where the group is at because we don't need to shout at half-time. The players know when it's not quite right, and in the second half the way they came out spoke volumes in terms of where they're at."

Leinster cruised past La Rochelle earlier in the day to book their home country semi-final clash.

And Dowson said: "Luds (Lewis Ludlam) said in the circle after this game that we've created an opportunity to play against one of the best sides in Europe over the last decade in Leinster and that's what we want to enjoy and test ourselves with.

"We know it's going to be a huge challenge so we've definitely got to go and enjoy that.

"We've clearly got to keep our eyes on where we're at for next week (when Saints host Leicester Tigers) so we've got to enjoy tonight but know that this run is brutal and we've got to prepare appropriately."