On Friday the Crusaders will play the Blues in Christchurch while the Chiefs will host the Brumbies on Saturday.
Here's what the coaches had to say.
Chiefs 19 Blues 20
Blues coach Vern Cotter
"There's a lot of satisfaction, tempered by the fact that it's one game. There's another one next week. It shows the boys were locked in and determined.
"Our defence has shown that the team hasn't ever lost faith in what we're doing. They've always rolled their sleeves up, and, if you look at the first half, we were building defence. In the first 10 minutes, we were surprised they were coming in direct, so as soon as they came off the line and we met them, that took away the advantage they were trying to create.
"In qualifying sixth, it is just running out for 80 minutes and enjoying part of it. It's a situation that brings the best out of us. We saw that tonight; the guys were locked in.
"It also means you've got pride in the team, pride in what we're doing.
"It's always an arm wrestle with the Chiefs; you can't play one form of play. In the second half, we had a bit more ball and managed to get in the half, and then, by creating pressure with carry and clean, we got a couple of penalties, which gave us field position.
"By taking the initiative it made the Chiefs adapt and they adapted by giving away a few penalties which helped us."
Looking to a Crusaders semifinal who haven't lost in 30 playoff games
"They're always going to lose one one day. We go through recovery and maintain cohesion and enjoyment because what I saw today was enjoyment. We have been together and creating, building something.
"The Crusaders are a tough team, and we know it will be tough to win down there.
Blues captain Patrick Tuipulotu
"We could feel there if we could get hold of the ball, especially by about 10 out, and keep running away, we could come up with the result. It was a determined effort. There was tight cohesion between us, and we felt it.
"In the first half we were tackling a lot on defence but we were able to knuckle down and get the ball in our hands in the second half. We went into the half thinking it was a tight contest but we still had work to do."
Chiefs coach Clayton McMillan
"That was a good old finals grind, and in the last 15-20 minutes, we struggled to exit on the back of a misfiring lineout and a few discipline issues, especially in the last little bit.
"It was a combination of a couple of things, but it was also because we were up against a desperate Blues side.
"We've always respected the Blues. They hadn't always been at their best, but you always had the sense they were going to do enough to get into sixth, and it just happened that we played them. The game was tight, and we got what we expected from finals rugby. I wasn't surprised by anything.
In the first half
"That sort of [defensive] effort can take its toll on the opposition, and we could have been more adventurous instead of trying to bang through the front door all the time. But we were accumulating some penalties, and eventually, they became a yellow card, so it was a bit of a double-edged sword. It would have been nicer to have scored some points in the first half.
"We were inaccurate in the last 15 minutes and open the door for the Blues to come back and they were good enough to do that. "
Chiefs captain Tupou Va'ai
"We talked about defence was going to win us games come the finals series and I felt we did a good job there. It was just a couple unlucky incidents from us not rolling away and we needed to continue tackling and not give them the chance to get over the line."
Crusaders 32 Reds 12
Crusaders coach Rob Penney
"It was a comprehensive display, and we've set ourselves up for another opportunity.
"We weren't perfect by any means, but we did lots of things well, and we applied pressure, and when we got into areas where we could capitalise with points, we usually came away with them.
"Every week's different, it's a great streak [30 wins], but it's in the past. We've got to think forward now.
"[Halfback Noah Hotham] He's got the sparkle in his eye again. He's a talented rugby player, and he's getting those little elements together at the right end of the campaign for us. Hopefully, that'll signal something he can push onto in the future.
"[Second five-eighths and captain David Havili and lock Scott Barrett] They are very much leading by example men, and that's what you would have seen tonight.
"The energy and physicality around all the work they did is a massive part of the game and some subtle skillsets, particularly Scooter [Barrett] around our lineout calling and dominating in the air, and Davey with some of his deft touches.
"That's why they are really good All Blacks because they're so capable.
"What you're seeing is a transition from roundrobin play to finals footy and the level of mental preparation and intensity that comes with that is something the boys have to take a lot of credit for. It was awesome to see them prepare this week."
Reds coach Les Kiss
"When they got the scrum on top, they leveraged that pressure well and punished us when they could. We couldn't respond. We tried, but the boys are not quitters. We tried to find a way through that pressure but couldn't quite get it going. I'm proud of what they kept trying to do, even though it put us on the back foot a few times.
"Full credit to the Crusaders for what they did. They're hard to beat here. We've beaten them once in 26 years, so it's tough.
"The set-piece dominance gave them that edge and a chance to build the platform at home. The ball bounced here or there, and we didn't quite get traction in the areas we thought we could fight back into the game. That was challenging for us.
"When we got it right, we got down [to their line] and got points. That's the first maul try the Crusaders have yielded this year, so that shows the intent of the boys.
"This is a point that we've stopped at each year and we've got to be able to find a way to get through to that next level."
Brumbies 35 Hurricanes 28
Brumbies coach Steve Larkham
"There's a big challenge in front of us coming up against the Chiefs in Hamilton. We've been in this situation multiple times but are happy to have won that game.
"It was one of our better performances. Our forwards were outstanding in the first half, with some pick-and-go stuff and a couple of maul tries, which saps a lot of energy out of the forwards. They backed it up with some pick-and-go, and then, in the second half, we opened the Hurricanes up in different ways.
"We're not experts in winning finals, but having a good set-piece goes a long way to winning finals games.
"Our scrum was outstanding. Our lineout let us down a little and put us under the pump with turnover ball."
Hurricanes coach Clark Laidlaw
"It's pretty raw; we're disappointed to go out. Six or seven weeks ago, we were in a bit of a hole when we rocked in here and started the good period of our season. But when you come here for a playoff game, you know how good the Brumbies are, so well done to them.
"They have done the things they are good at around the breakdown and in the lineout, and we gave them too much access. We didn't bank our points well enough. Until the end, I felt we had enough to dig ourselves out of it, but it was not to be.
"One of the exciting [parts of the season] is the depth we've built with five or six guys missing again tonight. We're good enough to win playoff games, and today sums up the competition. We're on the wrong side of it, but you watch the Blues sneak in, and the Brumbies are now into the semifinals. It is a competition that keeps giving.
"If I'm looking for positives, then the depth we're building, we've done a good job for next season and beyond.
"[The Brumbies] They were good at the breakdown. They pushed it there and got some reward for slowing our ball at times. But other times, we still managed to get on the front foot.
Hurricanes captain Du'Plessis Kirifi
"We're disappointed about how we played tonight because it didn't reflect how we prepared and have been going over the last few weeks.
"You want to remember what this feels like so, hopefully, it doesn't happen again. At a certain stage you've got to pick each other up and move on, and whatever that looks like for us as individuals and as a team we'll walk towards that over the next couple of days."