1) Leicester in their element when winning is everything
While Exeter and Saracens had to look at what was happening elsewhere, Leicester knew that victory would take them to the play-offs in third place. The Premiership’s method of separating teams level on points is based first on the number of matches won and the Tigers had an advantage of one over their rivals going into the final round. If they had all been level on victories, points difference would have been the next factor, and it was used to divide Sarries and the Chiefs, and the Tigers, courtesy of some heavy defeats earlier in the season, would have come fifth under it, finishing with a difference of about 200 fewer than the other two. An alternative system would have been to turn it into a mini-league, counting only the matches involving the three sides. Leicester won two (a double over Exeter), drew one and lost one; the Chiefs won two (doubling Saracens) and lost two; Sarries had the one victory and a draw. Leicester and Exeter would have had 10 points each and, with the number of victories the same, the Chiefs would have prevailed on points difference. A reason for making games won the first deciding factor is to give winning precedence over the accumulation of bonus points. Leicester are more adept at the former than the latter which is why, in Saturday’s play-off, they will back themselves. There are no bonus points on offer; the result is everything. Paul Rees
• Match report: Leicester 22-14 Northampton
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2) Competition is getting more fierce
Exeter, Saracens and Leicester all finished on 68 points but, in the end, the Chiefs were the ones left snookered despite racking up seven tries against Sale. They scored 70 tries in the regular season compared with Leicester’s 37 and, of their eight defeats, seven were by seven points or fewer. Ultimately the killer stat was tries conceded: Tigers and Sarries boasted the two tightest defensive records in the league. If Exeter can turn even a couple of those narrow defeats into victories next season they can expect to be strong top four contenders in 12 months’ time. The Sharks have also enjoyed a more than respectable campaign and, in the shape of Josh Beaumont, have a genuine England squad prospect. The bad news is that the competition grows ever tighter and finishing above clubs such as Harlequins and Gloucester, as they did this season, is not destined to get any easier. Robert Kitson
• Match report: Exeter 44-16 Sale
3) Carefree Bath make most of Gloucester’s other priorities
There were two schools of thought about the play-offs on view at the Rec on Saturday. Bath, already guaranteed a home semi-final in the Premiership, chose to go in at near full strength. Gloucester, whose route to the 20th and final Champions Cup place involves play-offs against the best non-qualified side in the Guinness Pro12 and then the seventh side in the French Top 14, put out a squad with eight from their academy. The result wasn’t as one-sided as it could have been but had Bath been slightly less end-of-term in their approach the winning margin would have been much more than 20 points. Not that the sell-out Rec minded. They await something much more pragmatic against Leicester next Saturday, while Gloucester think about Sunday and Connacht. Mike Averis
• Match report: Bath 50-30 Gloucester
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4) Life’s a beach for weary Haskell
The World Cup may be only four months away but it is rest time for England’s top players and judging by the after-match comments of the Wasps captain, James Haskell, the break comes not a moment too soon. “At times we were brilliant and at times we looked like we were already one foot on the beach,” he said after admitting he was “out on my feet” after a late Irish try by Andy Short had drawn a helter-skelter contest. Haskell, who is set to be named in England’s World Cup training squad on Wednesday, is looking forward to a break before preparations for the tournament start in earnest. He is in need of a beach somewhere after playing 19 games in all competitions for Wasps this season alongside his England commitments. “It’s always very difficult when the end of season is round the corner, you’ve played a lot of rugby. Guys are out on their feet.” While Haskell takes a break, his colleague Joe Launchbury may be asked to play later this month in the Barbarians-England XV match in an effort to give him more match time after his return from a neck injury. Haskell added: “Joe would like to keep going but for the rest of us, I am in need of some downtime.” Rob Wildman
• Match report: London Irish 40-40 Wasps
5) London Welsh must now focus on organic growth
We thought they might have avoided the ignominy but the traditional last-quarter collapse of London Welsh meant their points against for the season soared past the 1,000 mark and the previous record, held by West Hartlepool. The Exiles finish the season with 1,021 points conceded over 22 matches, seeing off the 1,007 shipped by the north-east side in the 1998-99 season. In those days there were 14 teams in the Premiership, so that tally was racked up over four more matches. It closes the coffin on Welsh’s second stint in the Premiership. And so bad has it been that the Premiership suits recently mooted an end to promotion and relegation without the idea being laughed out of town. Off the field, where the real problems have always lain, London Welsh were never ready for Premiership rugby, this time or last. The Kassam Stadium, in theory a perfectly pleasant ground, echoed again on Saturday to the sound of a couple of thousand away fans. If there’s one thing we’ve learned from the London Welsh experience, it’s that those much-maligned minimum standards criteria were not quite such a ridiculous concept after all. Clubs such as Exeter and Worcester spent years gathering credible packages for the Premiership; London Welsh’s application to the inspectorate three years ago was last minute and on the hoof. The good news, though, is that there may yet be life at the Kassam. Wasps have now left the area and if London Welsh can attract any floating voters in the Thames Valley they could grow into an attractive proposition. It’ll take a few years. And those years need to be spent in the Championship. Michael Aylwin
• Match report: London Welsh 17-68 Saracens
6) Change is afoot at Harlequins but it may be too late for Care and co
As is so often the case, Conor O’Shea’s post-match comments rang true after Harlequins’ 12th league defeat of a listless campaign: “We draw a line under the season.” The dazzle that made Quins such popular Premiership winners in 2012 has faded, Nick Evans is looking jaded and some of their England internationals may pay the price when the World Cup training squad is announced on Wednesday. Reinforcements are on the way, however. Adam Jones and James Horwill will beef up a tight five that has too often been bullied this season, while the prospect of Danny Care capitalising on the front-foot ball afforded to him by Jamie Roberts is mouth-watering and at his best there are few more lethal finishers than Tim Visser. Still, when Wednesday’s 45-man England squad is whittled down to 31, Care, Marland Yarde and Nick Easter may find Harlequins’ eighth-place finish costs them – it is their lowest since 2010, when O’Shea arrived with just a handful of games to go and with Bloodgate still looming large. Which brings us on to the upwardly mobile Newcastle and Dean Richards, who celebrated a first league win over his former side since his ignominious exit, and in some style. A mention, too, for the Falcons wing Zach Kibirige, who came through the second half unscathed 13 months after breaking his leg and damaging ankle ligaments on his Premiership debut, having just starred for England Under-20s in the Six Nations. It would be somewhat fanciful to describe Kibirige as a possible England bolter if not for his horrific injury but let’s not forget there is life after the World Cup and, following his successful return, he will now be counting down the days with glee. Gerard Meagher
• Match report: Newcastle 37-21 Harlequins
