For a side riding a nine-game winning streak going into the NSW Cup grand final last Sunday, the Newcastle Knights' loss to the Penrith Panthers had a certain sting.
Experienced forward Clint Newton lamented the result and rued the missed opportunity.
“It’s a very disappointing loss and we didn’t give ourselves a chance really,” he said following Sunday’s 42-12 loss.
“In grand finals and big games, it’s how you apply pressure and how you absorb it, and we did neither.
“It was disappointing because we’ve played really well up until that point.
“It’s just one of those ones you have to learn from and there are a few guys in there that deserve better than that.
“There’s no do-overs, but that’s life so blokes have got to live with that.
“It’s one of those ones that you’ll look back on, I know I will, it will be the one that got away.
"You don’t get many opportunities to play in grand finals no matter what grade you play.”
Halfback Michael Dobson was a late withdrawal after injuring his foot in the preliminary final, forcing a last minute shuffle, which included Tyler Randell playing in the halves.
“I thought Tyler played extremely well and thought he did everything we could," Newton praised.
"I just thought again, we didn’t apply enough pressure, especially when got down their end and we didn’t get a whole opportunity.
“They are things you have to learn from.
“They say you have to lose one to win one.
“There’s a number of guys here that will hopefully get an opportunity at some point."
With the NSW Cup season wrapping up, the 33-year-old looks forward to a break before the seasoned veteran faces up for his 15th pre-season in November.
“The beauty about being an older player, you know what to expect, but at the same time, our staff are incredibly intelligent with how they manage certain players,” he said.
“I’m sure I’ll have to do some sweating out there.
“I’ll have a couple of weeks off then will start doing some things, as they say, a rolling stone gathers no moss and that’s the same with my joints.”
