Captain Jamie Mackintosh described it as 'the half from hell' as the Highlanders capitulated in the second spell to lose 14-21 to the Western Force at Carisbrook on Friday night.
The Highlanders, who led 14-3 at halftime, conceded 18 points in the last 16 minutes as the Force finished much the stronger.
The loss spelt the end of the Highlanders' playoff hopes and Mackintosh was bitterly disappointed as he reflected on their second consecutive home loss.
"It was the half from hell," he said. "We played some nice rugby in the first half but our game just fell to pieces really.
"We made some poor kicks, our scrum was under pressure and we couldn't get out of our own half. They were very good at counter-attacking and holding on to the ball for long phases.
"We were a bit individual at breakdowns instead of blowing over the rucks as we have been doing for most of the season.
"It was just frustrating. It was a big week for us - our last game at Carisbrook and the new playing strip and everything.
"All we can do now is get back to work and try to finish strongly. We've played some good rugby this season but the last two weeks have been disappointing."
The Highlanders held on to the ball for five or more phases only six times compared to 14 by the Force. And they missed 22 tackles, compared to nine by the Force.
It was the Force's fourth consecutive win over the Highlanders and they now have 32 points. The Highlanders, with their losing bonus point, moved to 45 but they are out of playoff contention barring a miracle.
Force captain Nathan Sharpe praised the defence and tenacity of his players.
"It probably took us 20 to 30 minutes to get into the game," he said. "There was quite a stiff breeze and we knew we had a really good chance of running them down in the second spell."
Sharpe also had a pointed response to the comments of Highlanders' coach Jamie Joseph, who was quoted as saying recently that conference games in Australia were 'schoolboy stuff' compared to New Zealand derbies.
"It was nice to come out here and not play schoolboys," he said. "The Highlanders are one of the best teams in the competition at the breakdown and we knew we had to play well in that area."
The Force turned down two easy penalty attempts in the second half and they maintained relentless pressure.
"We knew we had the pressure on them in the 22, we knew the scrum was going well and we wanted to capitalise on that.
"We achieved what we wanted to and it was a really gutsy team effort."
The Highlanders will play the Waratahs in Sydney next weekend while the Perth will fly home to Perth to play the Reds.