That best sums up Steel coach Robyn Broughton's thoughts about her side's 45-43 win against the Central Pulse in Porirua on Saturday.
Some may have seen the shaky win as a great escape but the experienced coach considered it more of a "stepping stone".
"It is something we can build on," Broughton said.
While pleased her side had opened its account after back-to-back losses, Broughton knows there is a lot of work ahead.
But the Steel finally showed some of the character which has helped it make the play-offs for the last two seasons.
"I thought we let a lot of opportunities go but, in saying that, we never gave up and I always thought, eventually, we would wear them down and we did. But it did come a bit late, really."
The visitors maintained a small lead for the majority of the match but slipped behind by four goals midway through the fourth quarter.
Shooter Caitlin Thwaites missed two crucial shots which proved costly and allowed the Steel to trim the margin.
Steel defender Leana de Bruin made some telling intercepts and grabbed several critical rebounds.
With her side trailing by one, the South African-born goal keep used her height to pull down yet another rebound.
The Steel swept up the court and converted the turnover and then took the lead with 4min remaining.
The Pulse was forced into playing catch-up netball while the Steel did a good job running the clock down to secure the win.
A better side than the Pulse might have closed the game out and left the Steel winless after three matches.
But, with the match hanging in the balance, the tenacious Steel of old returned and found a way to win.
"I wasn't panicking and thinking, 'Oh my God, fancy losing this'," Broughton said.
"But we conceded more turnovers than we should have, again. We'd win the ball and then throw it away. It was silly stuff. We have to learn to hold on to possession.
"Once you've got the ball, at this level, you can't be doing anything risky with it."
The back three for the Steel were quite magnificent.
De Bruin was outstanding, getting her hands on anything which came within range.
Her combination with Te Huinga Reo Selby-Rickit continues to improve and former Silver Ferns defender Sheryl Scanlan had a good game at wing defence.
Scanlan has been struggling with a foot injury and a calf strain kept her on the sideline for most of last season.
But she did some good work on defence before she was replaced by Erika Burgess with 10 minutes remaining.
Liana Leota and Wendy Frew were busy but the Steel continue to lose a lot of ball in the attacking end.
The shooters need to do more work off the ball and get into better positions.
Leota has a fantastic pass but its is wasted when it has to be thrown backwards.
Ultimately, though, the Steel's pairing of Daneka Wipiiti and Paula Griffin were superior to the trio the Pulse used.
Wipiiti landed 29 of her 35 attempts and Griffin scored 16 from 21 attempts.
Thwaites' 29 from 36 was very respectable but she missed the shots that counted.
Amber Bellringer did some fabulous work around the court but 13 from 22 is not good enough at club level, let alone ANZ Championship games.
In other matches, the Queensland Firebirds dispatched the Adelaide Thunderbirds 64-41 at the Brisbane Convention Centre on Saturday and the Melbourne Vixens beat the New South Wales Swifts 49-45 in Sydney yesterday.
ANZ Championship:
The scores
Southern Steel - 45
Daneka Wipiiti 29 from 35, Paula Griffin 16/21
Central Pulse - 43
Caitlin Thwaites 29/36, Amber Bellringer 13/22, Te Amo Amaru-Tibble 1/3
Quarter 10-10, halftime 24-23, third quarter 34-35
