Simaima Taufa pulled into Canberra Airport on Friday morning wishing it had gone another way.
Just as Tamika Upton and Georgia Hale count down the hours until they lead their teams into an NRLW grand final, the Canberra Raiders skipper was dropping off co-captain Zahara Temara before she boards a flight home.
Because there will be no fairytale for the Raiders in their first season, no game at Stadium Australia on the first Sunday in October like Taufa experienced with Parramatta last year.