Following two rounds of the NZ conference, ODT Online rugby contributor Jeff Cheshire looked at what we've learned.
There were questions asked prior to the season as to how the Chiefs would fare in a mission to defend their title.
Some key player losses and a handful of injuries have resulted in the outfit taking the field in the first two rounds this year looking very different to that we saw in 2012.
They have answered their critics though, putting on two displays of outstanding rugby. Their offloading skills are the best in the competition and they choose the right times to execute too, meaning defences have problems containing them.
Up front they have a hard working tight five, led by the ever-present Brodie Retallick who was as good as any player in the competition in this past round. This allows their looseforward trio to range and makes them threats running, while it also gives a lethal backline space to run.
A very well drilled team and a very fit team, they look set to wear teams down with a fast-paced running game and pile up the points in the last 20 minutes.
Experience is not everything
Sometimes a team plays its best when it is at its lowest point. Players in a team with no expectations will often go out and play as though they have nothing to lose, throw the ball around and look to play an expansive, unstructured game.
For an example, look no further than the Blues in the first two weeks of Super 15. They are a very young team coming off the worst season in their history. There was little to no expectation that they would perform. And consequently they have looked to play a more natural game and use all the flair and skill they possess - a way in which youth can prevail over experience.
They look to be a team that is just having fun playing, and what a difference that has made.
The Crusaders are slow starters
Not necessarily something we learnt, but something to keep in mind. It is hardly news that the Crusaders are slow starters in Super Rugby. How many times have they dropped one of more of their first few games before going on to make the top four, and in some cases win the whole thing?
They did not fire in their season opener against the Blues. They looked weak in places on defence and struggling to get anything going on attack. Of course much credit has to go to the Blues, but do not write off the Crusaders based on this performance.
In the first half they showed us how clinical they can be. There were only four times they even looked like scoring in the half, and they scored four times. It was this that ensured they went to the break just eight points down, despite having played virtually none of the rugby and having three tries scored against them. They remained in touch under all sorts of pressure, the mark of a good team.
Although they let the Blues get away in the second half, they showed enough to suggest they will be in the mix as the season progresses. Write them off at your peril.
The Hurricanes are vulnerable in the tight
The Hurricanes have one of the most dangerous backlines in the competition, with the likes of Julian Savea, Conrad Smith, Beauden Barrett and Andre Taylor. In the loose they are very good too, with Victor Vito the leader of a group that also includes three other highly underrated players, as well as promising up and comers.
But as the old saying goes, you can have all the backs you want, the best flankers in the world, but you will struggle to get the best out of them without a good tight five.
The Reds got the better of the Hurricanes in this department in the weekend, particularly early where the Hurricanes couldn't get anything going and found themselves trailing. They struggled defending the rolling maul from the Reds lineout, and the Reds also got the better of the breakdowns.
At times the Hurricanes were their own worst enemies, dropping too much ball which prevented them getting any flow. But that's more likely when the tight five is not setting a strong platform.
Ultimately it was a game they could have won, but they simply squandered too many chances.
The new TMO protocols are having an impact
It seems like we have been calling out for the TMO to have more power for years. Finally the calls have been answered and the TMO can now go back two phases to rule on whether or not a try has been scored, rather than just rule on what has happened over the line.
Already there have been two instances where games were effectively decided by this.
The first came in the Crusaders-Blues game, where Israel Dagg was pulled up for a double movement late in the game. Previously this would have been a try as there was nothing wrong with the grounding. It would have brought the Crusaders right back into the game and changed the way the last ten minutes were played out.
A few hours later we saw another instance, where Conrad Smith of the Hurricanes was denied a try in the dying minutes due to a knock on earlier in the passage. The try was handy to the posts and the Hurricanes almost certainly would have walked away winners had the new TMO protocols not been in place.
Both decisions will be somewhat controversial, but both ensured the right results were achieved.
