Vickery said his side did not deserve to win

The Cherry and Whites finished the season 15 points clear at the top of the league but Wasps finished the season as champions after winning the play-off 39-3 at Twickenham.

The new system has been heavily criticised in some quarters, and Wasps undoubtedly looked sharper than their rivals, who had not played a match for three weeks.

But Gloucester captain Phil Vickery said: "We knew at the start of the season what the format was in terms of the league, and we didn't finish the job off.

"If you play the way we played in this game then you don't deserve to win.

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"Our preparation was good and the enthusiasm was good, but it still happened, and I can't put my finger on it."

Defeat was particularly difficult for Gloucester coach Nigel Melville to take as he left Wasps to join the Cherry and Whites at the end of last season.

"It was a terrible game for us - we lost a final, and they won the trophy," he admitted.

Match report: Gloucester 3-39 Wasps

"We performed below the standards that we set for ourselves and people can make whatever they like of it, but we just did not play.

"We are upset about the performance - it was a massive disappointment."

"I don't make the rules. We worked hard to finish 15 points clear, but on the day, we didn't perform.

"We will go away, look at it and learn from it."