The ACT Brumbies might have been left reeling from their 33-31 loss to the Crusaders - but Tom Wright has admitted the side can't dwell on what could have been, as they turn their attention to taking down a white-hot Hurricanes side.
The Canberra side fought back from a first half deficit against the Crusaders to hold a slim lead going into the closing stages, before a controversial apparent knock-on saw the Crusaders reclaim the lead with a late try.
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While Wright admitted the result hurt at the time, space over the weekend and the Monday review has given them pause to process the loss.
"We had the weekend to sit back and watch a little bit of footy unfold, pick up our bottom lip after potentially being hard done by," Wright said to Rugby.com.au on Monday afternoon.
"But the sun still rose, the show must go on.
"We know the path that's been laid down in front of us now, the ball is in our court in terms of how far we want to run with it.
"The opportunity is slightly changed, considering we didn't win the game on the weekend. But there's still an opportunity there for us, right? So we're really excited about that."
A tendency to bounce back strongly has become a trait of the Brumbies throughout the 2025 season - with the Blues in Auckland, the Force in Perth, and the Waratahs at home proving notable examples.
Wright has taken a bigger picture look at their season despite the loss, that the work put in has yielded silver linings overall.
"I think I've found naturally in terms of after a win or a loss, that Monday morning mood will obviously come off the back of that result. This morning was nothing too dissimilar," Wright added.
"Obviously, a little bit of a lot of disappointment walking around, guys with their bottom lips a little bit down in the dumps.
"But, then comes the opportunity around looking at our preview and guys getting really excited by the weekend being behind us and the next opportunity being the Canes.
"We did enough work early on in the year in terms of winning and getting a good ladder position. That meant that we get a home game this week as opposed to travelling. The silver lining there is that we get another home game at least this week."
The Brumbies will have a tough task taking down a red-hot Hurricanes side on a five match winning streak - which started after the Wellington side broke an eight year drought in Canberra earlier this year.
While the Canes might arguably be considered the in-form team coming into finals, Wright knows from experience it won't take much for the Brumbies to bounce back.
"What we've learned through the year is that when we get our game on, we found a real sweet spot at the moment in our game," Wright admitted.
"Particularly when we've got the footy around our strengths and where we like to go in certain parts of the field. We're really confident in that sense.
"Our physicality let us down on the weekend and we were really, really quick to own that this morning as a playing group against the Crusaders.
"That'll be something that we definitely need to front up on Saturday evening. Understanding [the Hurricanes'] big ball-carrying back row - they're very, very aggressive at breakdown time, with and without the ball."
Wright has had several run-ins with many of the 'Canes stars at both Super Rugby and international level, but there is one particular player he is keen to go up against this weekend - Ruben Love.
"It's been cool to see him, as a friend, come back on the scene and have a better run with his injuries," Wright added.
"[He] has a really good work ethic - in the off-season he brought himself over to Australia and did some sprint training that he's not shied away from talking about. I think the competitive nature and whether the position he's playing, either 10 or 15, that match-up will be cool and it'll be cool to chew the fat after the game."
One thing that does work in the Brumbies favour is that history puts them in strong stead - having previously faced the Hurricanes in finals footy on two separate occasions for two wins.
While finals footy adds extra pressure, Wright admits the pragmatic approach works best in finals scenarios.
"It can potentially tense up a little bit, right?" Wright admitted.
"Are you hesitating or are you just going with your natural instinct? Are you just doing what's worked throughout the season- and banking on that, because that's what we've done as a team.
"We know it works for us.
"Even external factors I've learned over the years, friends and family, a little bit more interest comes into it because they know it's finals football. It's about finalising that early and not letting it affect your preparation.
"Even on preparation, just going with what works. You don't need to reinvent the wheel just because it is a do or die game."
