The Steel had hoped to crack the top four this season and showed it was more than capable of achieving that goal with a strong finish to the campaign. Netball writer Adrian Seconi reviews a season which promised so much but delivered too late.
'If only' is a terrible regret to carry around with you during the off-season.
But that is the burden this Steel team will have to bear.
The team had targeted a return to the playoffs, and demonstrated how threatening it would have been with wins against the Magic and the Vixens in the last four weeks.
The Steel was undefeated in May but March was very forgettable.
The Steel netted three consecutive losses before it played anything like it was capable of.
A dramatic 66-65 win against the Fever in Dunedin was the first indication the Steel had more to come.
It followed that win with a breakthrough victory against the Thunderbirds in Adelaide.
It was the Steel's first ANZ Championship win in Australia and brought an end to a run of 16 consecutive defeats across the ditch.
But that win was a false dawn.
The defending champion was a team on the slide and the Steel also had a dip ahead.
Its season hinged on home games against the Mystics on April 6 and the Pulse on April 14.
The Steel lost both and, for all practical purposes, its campaign ended right then.
The humiliating defeat to the Swifts in round nine pretty much made it official.
The Steel had nothing left to play for but pride and that is when the team both started to shine and begin in earnest to regret those wasted opportunities.
A payback win against the Mystics in Auckland and a stunning 62-57 win against the Magic revealed the Steel's true potential.
A gutsy 64-60 win against the Tactix in round 13 showed the Steel could win when star shooter Fowler-Reid was not on the court.
But the best was saved for last.
The Steel strung together its most complete performance to beat the top-of-the-table Vixens 65-64 in Invercargill.
The win was perhaps a bittersweet experience for the fans.
It illustrated how good the Steel can be when playing its best netball.
It was also a reminder of what had gone wrong earlier in the campaign.
The first point to make here is the Steel began the season under-cooked.
Several key personnel were missing during the pre-season because of national commitments.
But the biggest setback was to the fitness of Fowler-Reid.
She was battling back from pneumonia and it was revealed she had a heart condition which meant her health had to be carefully managed during the first couple of weeks.
It was perhaps a month before the towering Jamaican international was springing from the floor and hauling in passes like she had done so masterfully the previous year.
Without Fowler-Reid operating at 100%, the Steel's potent attack was less of the extraordinary and more of the ordinary.
The other major area which held the Steel back was its defence.
The franchise had made it clear it needed to recruit a marquee defender but came up empty.
Erena Mikaere was the only new addition.
At 1.93m, the long-limbed former Magic bench player made some impact but spend most of the season watching from the sideline, as Rachel Rasmussen, Phoenix Karaka and Storm Purvis were preferred.
Rasmussen was fortunate to hold down her starting spot as long as she did, especially after Karaka and Purvis had done such a marvellous job in the win against the Thunderbirds.
It was not until round 11 that coach Janine Southby finally settled on Karaka and Purvis as the starting defensive combination.
It took her too long to see what a lot of fans had recognised early on - that Rasmussen was not the player in 2014 she was in 2013.
There are some good signs for the future, though. Wing attack Shannon Francois has developed into a class player while Jodi Brown is a fabulous playmaker and the perfect foil for Fowler-Reid.
Wendy Frew turned back the clock with some energetic performances.Ditto Phillipa Finch.
Purvis and Karaka have the potential to be a really strong defensive combination and Mikaere is a solid option against taller shooters.
The ace, though, is Fowler-Reid. She is the best shooter in the competition and has already signed for 2015.
Steel season
at a glance
Record
Played 13, won 7, lost 6
Placing: Fifth.
Goals scored: 792.
Goals conceded: 809.
L Firebirds 60-44, L Pulse 67-56, L Magic 61-57, W Fever 66-65, W Thunderbirds 61-59, L Mystics 67-61, L Pulse 62-54, W Tactix 77-61, L Swifts 65-52, W Mystics 73-61, W Magic 62-57, W Tactix 64-60, W Vixens 65-64
Shooting
• Jhaniele Fowler-Reid 532/567 (93.8%)
• Jodi Brown 216/276 (78.3%)
• Te Paea Selby Rickit 44/55 (80%)
Seconi's awards
MVP: Who else but Jhaniele Fowler-Reid? The Jamaican international scored 134 fewer goals this season but she is still an absolute match-winner.
Honourable mention: Wing attack Shannon Francois made enormous improvements this season and was part of a well-drilled Steel attack end which had no equal.
Best performance: The dramatic 65-64 win against the Vixens had everything.
Worst performance: In a rancid opening quarter the Steel was outscored 20-10 by the Swifts in Sydney.
Questions for 2015
1) We asked this last year but can anyone recommend a tall defender who would be willing to shift south?
2) Has the psychological barrier been broken with the win in Adelaide this season?
3) Will Robyn Broughton have to retire before the Steel can finally beat the Pulse again?
