The tournament rules were in place from the start of the year but given the highest-seed losing to the lowest seed in Super Rugby finals is so rare, fans – and even some officials – were still caught by surprise by the fine print. The lowest-ranked team in Super Rugby finals had only ever beaten the minor premiers twice before in 30 years – when Super Rugby only had a four-team play-offs series, and Queensland lost semi-finals in 1996 (Natal) and 1998 (Crusaders). Super Rugby Pacific chief executive Jack Mesley said he was aware of the criticism, and it would be factored into a post-season review. “We will definitely do a review. Clearly with the in-practice versus on-paper, you always learn things, and by seeing people’s response to it,” Mesley said. “Part of that review will be us looking at how complicated was the structure? There was also discussion last week around the scheduling, and can we do it in a way that makes the most of every match?