Munster held off a monumental effort from outsiders Saracens to reach their fourth European Cup rugby final with a nail-biting 18-16 victory at Coventry's Ricoh Arena.

Saracens, in the knockout stages for the first time, led with an early Kameli Ratuvou try but Munster, champions in 2006 and appearing in their seventh semi-final in nine years, led 15-7 at halftime after tries from Ronan O'Gara and Alan Quinlan.

The boot of Glen Jackson twice edged the London side back within two points but a flurry of yellow cards robbed them of their momentum and the vastly experienced Irish province held out in a nervous finale.

Munster will face three-times champions Toulouse in the May 24 final at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium, where they beat Biarritz in the 2006 final. The French side beat London Irish 21-15 in the other semi-final at Twickenham on Saturday.

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