Edinburgh did the double over Castres with victory at Murrayfield yet are still realistically unlikely to reach the quarter-finals and are set to finish third in a tough group with Leinster and Wasps.

But despite there being little in the way of tangible rewards riding on the game, Andy Robinson's side produced a fine performance to sweep aside the French outfit 32-14.

Cairns said: “We talked about the importance of winning this game beforehand because finishing in third place in the group affects seeding points and could affect us in later years.

“It was a massive game for us. Sometimes these games prove to be nothing games, but I don’t think it was like that at all.

“Everyone put a lot into it. I thought our attack was brilliant and we looked like we could score every time we touched the ball. It was exciting rugby and we hope the supporters enjoyed it as well because that is the brand of rugby we want to play every week.”