Chalmers wants cup final deal
Match-winner Craig Chalmers will enter new contract talks with Harlequins to enable him to play in the European Shield final.
Chalmers scored all Harlequins' points in his side's 17-12 victory over Newcastle.
He got his chance in the absence of regular Paul Burke with a broken hand but is out of contract at the end of the month.
"I'm a free agent after April 30 but I have enjoyed my time at Quins and hopefully I will get a chance to finish it off," he said.
"I'm glad to be part of the squad, it's been good fun, and I was glad to get a startz. I was worried about the kicks I missed but fortunately I got a second wind."
Chalmers missed with his first two kicks at goal but put over a drop goal at the start of the second half to tie the scores at 6-6 and supported a break by Will Greenwood to grab the only try of the match on 43 minutes.
He then watched the normally reliable Jonny Wilkinson miss two crucial penalties before landing two of his to secure a victory that keeps alive Harlequins' prospects of qualifying for next season's Heineken Cup.
"Craig is a big-match player with a big-match temperament, said Harlequins chief executive and coach Mark Evans.
"When you have played as many big matches as he has, when it comes to semi-finals, the likelihood is that he will produce the goods."
Evans said the win was no consolation for his side's heartbreaking defeat by Newcastle in the Tetley's Bitter Cup final but enabled the club to reach its target, set following the departure of coach Zinzan Brooke at the turn of the year.
"I don't think we will ever get over the cup final defeat," he said. "To get to two finals in a season is a fantastic achievement.
"This is a secondary competition but, with the likes of Brive and Newcastle, it's a tough one to win and I take a lot of pride in us becoming the first English team to reach the final. That was one of the targets when we re-grouped in January."
