Tigers had not won a game in the last three years of the tournament but came through the qualifiers at Northampton and then made it all the way to the final at the Recreation Ground on Friday evening.
Opening with a 35-12 win over Worcester Warriors, considered to be among the favourites for the title, Tigers then beat Harlequins with a last-second score to progress to the final.
Tigers trailed Quins 17-5 entering the final minute but a score from Rhodri Davies got them back into the game, then they won the restart and Academy player David Williams ran in for another try, with the conversion clinching a two-point win.
Sadly, an early 17-point deficit proved too much to claw back in the final against Gloucester though Tigers closed to 17-24 by the final whistle.
But Murphy, with Brett Deacon as his assistant, could not hide his delight at the performance of a young squad over two weekends.
“I’m very proud of the guys,” he said. “We talked about being the underdogs here but the boys did a great job to reach the final.
"To lose by one score is tough, but Gloucester played well and they deserved it. They had a big, physical side and we missed a few tackles which cost us in the end.”
But it was not just the players who said they gained from the experience.
Murphy said: “The sevens game has changed a lot since the last time I played 10 or 12 years ago but I have learned a lot over these two weeks.
"It is also the first time I’ve had to take charge of the management side and I hope I have learned from that too. It’s been a great experience for me.”
