And then there were six. The 2015 regular season is done and dusted with just the Hurricanes, Waratahs, Stormers, Highlanders, Chiefs and Brumbies left fighting for Super Rugby glory. The play-off contenders had been locked in after Round 17, but only the Hurricanes could rest easy knowing they were safe in top spot.

As it turned out, the Waratahs produced a dominant second half to secure a week's rest for finishing second while the Highlanders won the right to host a home qualifying final - as will the Stormers - after they thumped the Blues on Friday night. The Brumbies' slip-up against a fine Crusaders outfit means they'll travel to Cape Town to face the Stormers.

Read on for a full review of Round 18 and watch video highlights of every game.

Blues 7-44 Highlanders

The Highlanders warmed up for their second straight playoffs appearance with an eye-catching 37-point victory over the hapless Blues at Eden Park on Friday. Coach Jamie Joseph will have been thrilled with the performance of both his backline and forward units as the Highlanders produced a fine team performance to round out a horror season for the Blues. Flanker John Hardie grabbed the first of the visitors' seven tries before Shaun Treeby and Elliot Dixon also crossed for first-half five pointers. Four more tries after the break ensured the Highlanders powered into the play-offs high on confidence; their victory meaning the Chiefs would have had to have matched their bonus-point win against the Chiefs to steal the home qualifying final - a mission that proved too great. The Highlanders will now host the Chiefs at Dunedin's Forsyth Barr Stadium on Saturday, having twice defeated Dave Rennie's side during the regular season. The Blues, meanwhile, will soon conclude an internal review; it's hard to see how Sir John Kirwan can keep his job as coach after the franchise's worst ever Super season.

Rebels 11-13 Force

Western Force may have salvaged a third win from an otherwise memorable season but it still wasn't enough to avoid the wooden spoon. Michael Foley's side did just enough to win a dour affair with the Rebels at AAMI Park on Friday, the boot of fly-half Zack Holmes proving the difference after the two sides scored a try apiece. The Force's five-pointer came courtesy of winger Luke Morahan after centre Marcel Brache picked off and intercept when the Rebels were pressing hard on attack midway through the second half. The Rebels responded through replacement Telusa Veainu - easily the most threatening player on the field - but Mike Harris was unable to land the touchline conversion and the Force managed to hold on for the final nine minutes. The two-point defeat left a bitter taste in the mouth for the Rebels who had otherwise enjoyed their best Super Rugby season yet. It was also the final match for skipper Scott Higginbotham, the back-rower will depart for Japan after the Test season and will be sorely missed in Melbourne.

Brumbies 24-37 Crusaders

The Crusaders produced a performance of finals-like poise, pace and power, and how they and their fans must lament their inconsistencies earlier in the season - and questionable refereeing against the Waratahs in Sydney - that left them to finish the campaign one point adrift of the sixth-placed Brumbies. Certainly this was a performance that suggested they - and the now-departing Dan Carter and Richie McCaw - would have represented a far bigger post-season threat than the Brumbies, who seem to have no attacking intent or weapons other than a rolling maul off a five-metre lineout. Brumbies captain Stephen Moore conceded his side were second best here, and he and the other Wallabies contenders in the Canberra side will surely have Nemani Nadolo-size-and-shape nightmares ahead of Australia's Rugby World Cup fixture against Fiji after the barnstorming winger bulldozed them on their right flank. Millions of words have been written and spoken about McCaw this season, and whether he deserves his spot in the All Blacks' World Cup squad; he was good and solid as ever, but lacked the impact of Matt Todd, the openside who wore No.6 here. Millions fewer words have been used about Todd and his hopes for a spot in the All Blacks' World Cup squad, but he produced another powerful performance - and another try, his fifth in five games - to illustrate the absolute depth of back-row talent in New Zealand; he would surely be a selection certainly for most every other Test team and Rugby World Cup squad yet few consider him even a possibility for the NZ squad.

Chiefs 13-21 Hurricanes

The Hurricanes were thoroughly convincing without the injured Beauden Barrett and rested key players Ma'a Nonu, James Broadhurst and Ardie Savea, to show their bid to claim a maiden Super Rugby title will not be derailed easily. Most impressive was the calm and patient matter in which they worked their way back into the game after the Chiefs, with a 50km/h wind at their back, had claimed a 13-0 advantage. They needed the referee's help to get on the scoreboard, with a penalty try after Tom Marshall was adjudged to have shoulder-charged Julian Savea when the Hurricanes wing spilled the ball over the tryline, but they paid a full dividend on the fortune. Marshall was sin-binned and the Chiefs disputed the try, believing Savea had lost control of the ball before contact (replays seen by Chris Pollock seemed to show everyone but the referee, including the TMO, that the Chiefs had a case), but one felt the Canes were in control thereafter. Conrad Smith crossed within three minutes, the Hurricanes led at the break, and they never threatened to loosen their grip in the second half. The Chiefs now travel to Dunedin to face the Highlanders, but they can head south with a measure of confidence given the performance of their set-pieces and the successful return of Sonny Bill Williams - although it has to be seen whether Marty McKenzie keeps the No.10 jumper from his brother Damian in the injury-enforced absence of All Blacks playmaker Aaron Cruden.

Waratahs 31-5 Reds

The Waratahs put the Reds to the sword after a quite miserable opening 50 minutes, scoring 28 points in 20 minutes to take the scoreline from a fairly uncomfortable 3-0 to 31-0 before Quade Cooper scored a consolation three minutes from full-time. The result secures the Tahs a week off and a home final, and they will believe they are on track for a second successive final if not Australia's first back-to-back titles if they can reproduce the strong and direct running and committed team defence they rediscovered in that 20-minute scoring spree. They will also be pleased in the extreme with their strong returns from the bench - especially from Hugh Roach and try scorers Brendan McKibbin and Dean Mumm on his first Super Rugby appearance in three years after returning from Exeter Chiefs; rugby now is a 23-man game, and the Tahs' impact off the bench last season was key to their victorious campaign. Bernard Foley was also particularly strong for the Tahs, with a direct hand in two tries and kicking flawlessly to land a comfortable verdict over Cooper in Wallabies discussions. Cooper tried but was ineffective - the try, apart. Indeed, the Reds can take little solace from their performance - they have now lost four on end to the Tahs, at a cumulative margin of 120-18 - and this result will surely only add fuel to the funeral pyre that will be their end-of-season review. Reds captain James Slipper not for the first time this season lamented that his team emerged from oranges "a little bit soft" - which says little for, and everything about, the culture in the sheds right now.

Bulls 29-42 Cheetahs

The Cheetahs have ended their season on a high with their first Super Rugby win in Pretoria. Although the points made no difference to their place in the end, the Cheetahs made easy work of the Bulls to cross the line six times, while the Bulls suffered their fifth consecutive loss. The Cheetahs recovered after conceding an early try to score four, secure a bonus point and lead 28-10 by half-time, before Bulls skipper and No.8 Pierre Spies close dthe gap quickly after the break in his final Super Rugby match. Any hope of a-come-from-behind victory in front of their home crowd was quickly dashed minutes later however as Cheetahs replacement Oupa Mohoje burst down the middle. The visitors seemed to be prepared to run the ball from anywhere and took on the Bulls defence, with centre Rayno Benjamin scoring in the corner for their final try of the match. It was the perfect farewell for Cheetahs scrum-half Sarel Pretorius who moves to Welsh side Newport Dragons next season, but there was no fairytale ending for Spies or Japan-bound Francois Hougaard.

Sharks 34-12 Stormers

The Sharks have bid an emotional farewell to stalwarts and brothers Bismarck and Jannie du Plessis with a strong win over the South African Conference champions in Durban. Although the win did nothing for their ranking, the victory was the perfect farewell for two of the side's best players. Sensing they were going to finish the round matches third on the ladder, the Stormers put out a mostly second-string side, and the Sharks took control early with 70% of possession in the first half. They were first to score a try with Lionel Cronje lucky to get his hand down on a rolling ball over the Stormers' line before the defence. It remained tight heading into the second half with the Sharks up 13-9, but that quickly turned around with the Sharks scoring four tries, including one to Bismarck du Plessis. The night got worse for the Stormers with debutant Robert du Preez yellow carded for a horrible spear tackle that saw the Sharks player land on his head; du Preez was later cited and is likely to miss the Stormers' play-off match next week. A late try to Odwa Ndungane added to the humiliation for the Stormers, who will have to bounce back quickly to take on the Brumbies in Cape Town next week.