For NZ Warriors coach Nathan Brown, his players, and the team's fans, Friday's capitulation against Canberra Raiders was another unwelcome case of deja vu.
After a superb start which saw them leading 16-0 after just 25 minutes, the Warriors failed to score another point, as the Raiders roared back into the game to claim a 28-16 win and pull the plug on any hope of a playoffs berth.
Brown pointed to the loss of Chad Townsend to a shoulder injury in the 48th minute as a key turning point in the contest.
"The way we managed the second half - we didn't do very well," Brown said.
"Our kicking game fell apart. If we did get a kick away, we gave away a penalty."
Locked at 16-16 heading into the dying stages of the game, the Warriors again failed to find a way to engineer points and put the game to bed, lacking leadership and direction down the stretch.
"Canberra had all the ascendancy and then, as has been the case this year, with three or four minutes to go the scores were level and we have a shot at field goal - and we never seem to be able to get it.
"It doesn't matter who has a shot or from where. It probably wasn't the right play because we were 40 [metres] out.
"An experienced team probably would've just put the ball high into the corner and tried to defend the next set.
"We've got a bit of work to do yet. Not commitment-wise, we've got just a bit of work to do in key parts of games."
The Warriors have now lost seven games by six points or less this season. They've successfully converted just one of their nine field goal attempts.
Brown identified poor option-taking and indiscipline as the deciding factors in Friday's defeat.
"We've had a lot of goes at close games this year. I think that was our fifth shot at a field goal with a few minutes to go and the scores were level and it would've put us up, but we've missed," he said.
"It's something we've certainly worked hard at but we're certainly not quite getting it right … The way we managed the second half was horrible from our point of view.
"Whether it be giving away [ill] discipline on kick-chase tackles, whether it be kick selection, whether it be passing the ball.
"Last tackle when we finally got back down there, our dummy-half threw it to a front-rower on the last tackle.
"There are a million things we could have done a little bit better to give ourselves a better chance."
The Warriors will play their final game of the season against Gold Coast Titans next Sunday.
