Chiefs 16
Hurricanes 8
The middle-aged bloke chatting to his mate as he walked up the stairs at Waikato Stadium summed up the sentiment in Hamilton rather succinctly following Saturday night's victory over the Hurricanes.
He didn't, he said, care what can politely be termed as a rodent's backside that the match hadn't been much of a spectacle.
What he and the other 24,999 spectators at the game most certainly did care about was that the Chiefs are now just one game away from hosting a Super rugby semifinal for the first time.
That game, against the Brumbies on Friday night in Hamilton, will have no shortage of import for both sides after the Brumbies recorded a bonus-point victory over the Blues in Canberra. Four points adrift of the Chiefs but level on 37 with the fourth-placed Crusaders, the Brumbies need to thrash the Chiefs and claim a four-try bonus point to leapfrog them on the ladder and guarantee their own semifinal berth.
The Chiefs need a single bonus point to confirm a playoff spot. In a neat coincidence, it is the same scenario they faced against the same opponent in the final round of 2004 - the year of their only playoff appearance.
That year the Chiefs limped to a 12-15 defeat in Hamilton and were duly bundled out in a rematch in Canberra the following week.
Stephen Donald, the key figure in Saturday's victory with all 18 Chiefs' points, said the team was determined not to adopt such a meek approach this time around.
"I wasn't a part of that team but I think they needed one point to make the semis and they just played for a within seven [points] loss," he said.
"But right from the outset we said we wanted to dent this competition and once we get to the finals we are going to give it a bit of a shake."
Yet to prove he has what it takes as an international, Donald is unquestionably effective at this level.
With his forwards just about gaining parity, Donald possessed the polish to earn his side a vital, if uncharacteristic win.
His steady boot - and the errant one of opposite Willie Ripia who missed with four of five shots at goal - meant the Chiefs started the second half leading by a point despite conceding an early try to David Smith.
Riding a fast, fluent start to a second half, it was Donald who produced the decisive piece of skill, jinking his way to the line for a converted try that was to prove the last score of the match.
"I snuck through and [Hurricanes fullback] Cory [Jane] fell for the worst step in rugby, but I'll take it," he said.
"It was bloody satisfying. The Hurricanes are a team that have always beaten us up and made us look pretty stupid.
"With what was riding on it, it was a very satisfying victory."
The eight-point buffer allowed Donald to peg the Hurricanes back in the corners, a tactic that ultimately proved successful despite the Chiefs tiring in the final 10 minutes.
The Hurricanes have pulled off several dramatic late comebacks this season and another looked likely when standout back Ma'a Nonu sent Conrad Smith racing into the 22.
But Smith chose the wrong option in passing to David Smith when Nonu was open on the inside. The pass went to ground and with it went the Hurricanes' last hope.
"If they'd have scored it would have been a pretty panicky last five minutes," Donald said. "But you've got to admire the guts of the boys. We were certainly blowing and they kept fronting up."
Donald made no apology for the ugly spectacle in conditions far from conducive to running rugby.
"It is going to be like that for the next month in New Zealand, it is going to be greasy. The dry tracks in South Africa are a distant memory. So we are going to have to produce more of that if we are going to carry on in this comp."
Amid the euphoria of such a crucial result, there was one concerning sight - Richard Kahui limping down the tunnel to conduct his media duties. Coach Ian Foster, who fronted the press conference with the sort of moustache only a man who had lost a bet would consider, wasn't overly concerned about the lower leg injury suffered by his key centre. Had he seen Kahui's limp shortly after, he might have been.
