Not even a 44-point win was enough of a percentage boost to see Riverina qualify for the Laurie Daley Cup finals.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Riverina finished their season with a commanding 54-10 win over Monaro at Leeton on Sunday, but just missed a top two finish.
Coach James Smart was impressed by the side's attitude throughout.
"It is just a case of what could of been when you look at the way we played on the weekend," Smart said.
"It was a nice way to finish.
"We spoke before the game that we wanted to see us play the footy we know we could and to the boys credit they probably also felt it was going to be a pretty hard task to chase down the for and against but they stuck to the task all game and it was nice to sit back and watch the way they played."
Riverina's Andrew Johns Cup side made it three wins on the trot to finish their year to also finish third in the southern pool.
After two heavy losses to start the season, coach Ben Mott has been thrilled with their resilience to score a 26-18 win.
"It was a very good way to finish," Mott said.
"Three out of five is probably not quite as good as we hoped but it is not too bad."
Junee's Kye Wight crossed for another important double in the win.
The finals of the competition are yet to be locked in after NSW Rugby League postponed all rugby league competitions until at least May.
READ MORE