That way the team could have watched the playoffs comfortable in the knowledge it was just not quite good enough.
It will not have that luxury now. The 65-64 win against the Melbourne Vixens in Invercargill on Saturday was clear evidence just how good this side is when it plays is best netball.
Sadly, for the Steel, it left its run too late. During the past month the franchise has looked every bit a playoff team but a slow start and stumbling effort at home against the Mystics in round six and the Pulse in round seven sealed the Steel's fate.
But coach Janine Southby was pleased with the way her side rallied deep in the season and believes the franchise is well-placed for next year's campaign.
''It is unfortunate that we have saved our best for last,'' Southby said.
''But regardless of where we finish on the ladder, the product we put out there was impressive and they have played that way in the last couple of weeks. From a coaching perspective, that has been the most satisfying thing.
''We could have been a real force in the post-season stuff but the reality is we are not there.''
Southby's attention will turn to securing the core of this year's side for the 2015 campaign. Star shooter Jhaniele Fowler-Reid is the only player contracted next season.
She signed a two-year deal at the end of last season. The Jamaican international sprained her left knee in the 64-60 win against the Tactix in Dunedin last Sunday and made a tentative start against the Vixens.
She appeared as if she was favouring one leg and made some uncharacteristic handling errors. The Vixens piled on six unanswered goals to shoot out to a 6-1 lead.
The Steel clawed its way back into the quarter with the captain Jodi Brown making a lot of the play. Wing attack Shannon Francois was part of an outstanding effort by the Steel midcourt trio and made some telling touches to help swing the momentum.
Southby resisted the temptation to replace Fowler-Reid at the break and her decision was quickly vindicated.
Fowler-Reid's confidence returned and suddenly she was getting further off the floor and hauling in passes which would sail over the head of any other player in the competition.
The Vixens were rattled and made a series of turnovers as the Steel scored seven goals in a row. The Vixen spent the remainder of the quarter nibbling away at the deficit and went into the halftime break trailing 29-28.
Geva Mentor had a strong opening half but struggled in the third quarter to make much impression on the towering Fowler-Reid. The Steel put on 21 goals in the period, which was a huge effort against the best defensive unit in the tournament.
The Vixens scored the last two goals to prune the margin to five goals with 15 minutes remaining.
The Steel had done a marvelous job of protecting its possession and scoring off turnovers. Defender Phoenix Karaka had a strong game, getting deflection after deflection. Her team-mates where often on hand to scoop up possession after she got her mitts to the ball.
All the Vixens could do was chip away. They closed the gap to two goals when Fowler-Reid made a rare miss. Then Phillipa Finch made a fumble but Karaka used her away hand to win possession back for the Steel from the next play.
But having emerged as the hero, she overcooked a pass which flew over Francois' head. The Vixen converted the turnover and then scored off their own centre pass to level the score 64-64 with 23 seconds remaining.
The Steel got the ball back and worked it into Fowler-Reid, who drilled the match winner with about four seconds to spare.
In other matches over the weekend, the Adelaide Thunderbirds beat the Mainland Tactix 66-49 to condemn the Tactix to their fourth wooden spoon in five years and the Northern Mystics upset the New South Wales Swifts 55-53.
ANZ Championship
The scores
Steel 65
Jhaniele Fowler-Reid 44 from 48, Jodi Brown 21/29
Vixens 64
Tegan Caldwell 34/39, Catherine Cox 17/19, Karyn Bailey 13/13
Quarter scores: 13-14, 29-28, 50-45.
