You have to win about 70% of your games to be in the hunt for a semifinal.
Compare this with the NRL where the Warriors are in play-off contention despite having a losing record.
So the Highlanders really had to play above themselves to have any shot of being in the upper reaches of the table.
But perhaps that is why this year was so disappointing.
There were just not enough players who played above themselves.
After all, the majority of the players had two years to find their feet at this level and this year was supposed to be one where that maturity produced wins.
But it did not happen.
Why?
The players were just not quite good enough to consistently play well week in, week out.
And there were just too many sloppy errors on the field.
Easy things were made to look difficult.
Knock-ons were too numerous, the passing was inaccurate at times, and too many times kick-offs were poorly received.
Good sides do the easy things without a second glance.
Many times the Highlanders would muck up a lineout or throw an ordinary pass.
Selections were also questionable at times, starting with when the team was picked.
Is James Paterson any better than Karne Hesketh?Bronson Murray, a better alternative than say, Sam Hibbard?
Mathew Berquist instead of Glenn Dickson or Chris Noakes?
Then through the season: what happened to Jayden Hayward?
Should Joe Tuineau have got a crack?
What about using Ben Smith further in as he was starved of ball at times on the wing?
Was Jason Shoemark effective at second five-eighth?
Things out of their control did not help either.
The draw was tough so winning one of the first two matches against the Crusaders then the Blues was an absolute must.
But they did not and were always struggling from then on.
Injuries were also tough to take but were always going to happen.
The side was down to the bare bones at times, and the loss of players such as Tom Donnelly and Jamie Mackintosh were big blows.
The team had few stars so to lose a couple of key components of the engine room was hard to overcome.
No 8 Nasi Manu played seven minutes against the Crusaders, injured his knee and was never sighted again, hurting his hamstring on the way back from his knee injury.
Michael Hobbs exploded out of the blocks but then went off the boil after an indiscretion in Cape Town - staying out too late - and then got injured, first badly bruising his thigh and then getting a nasty cut to his hand.
Much has been said about the lack of a class first five-eighth and that became more evident as the season went on.
But the biggest problem for the Highlanders is the overall lack of depth in New Zealand rugby.
In the 2010 New Zealand rugby almanack there is a list of 325 New Zealanders plying their trade overseas.
Most are past their best but some are not, and are still good enough to be playing in New Zealand.
They should be filling spots which are now being taken by players who are not good enough or not ready to be playing Super rugby.
The Highlanders had a fair few of those.
One who has spurned the chance to play overseas and was first-rate for the Highlanders this year was hooker Jason Rutledge.
At 32 he was a revelation at hooker, making heaps of metres on the charge.
Also impressive up front were loose forwards Alando Soakai and Adam Thomson, while lock Josh Bekhuis was a model of consistency.
Captain Jimmy Cowan improved as the season went on, while fullback Israel Dagg is a rare talent.
People question whether Cowan should be captain but there is no alternative.
But where to from here?This is professional sport where the buck stops with the coach, so Glenn Moore is on borrowed time.
But would anyone else do any better, or even want the job?It is vital that Otago performs well this year, as does Southland.
The Highlanders need to keep hold of their best talent, find a quality first five-eighth, and just get an attitude that will not accept losses.
Rutledge showed this year it is not all about gyms and academies to be a good player.
It comes from within.
Next year, the Highlanders must find that steel and produce it in bulk.
