A calamitous second half ruined any chance the Southern Steel had of hosting the minor semifinal and instead it will travel to Auckland to play the Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic.
The combined Otago-Southland team slumped to a 55-38 loss to the impressive New South Wales Swifts in Sydney last night.
The Steel has never won an ANZ Championship match in Australia but, with 30 minutes remaining, it was trailing 27-23 and in a relatively good position to break the drought and secure a home venue for the semifinal.
But the Swifts were chasing a record of their own and became the first team to go through the round robin without dropping a match.
They piled on the pressure, lifting their defence and kept the Steel to just 15 second-half goals while adding 28 of their own.
The Swifts will host the Adelaide Thunderbirds in Sydney on Sunday in the major semifinal and the Magic will play the Steel at Auckland's Vector Arena with both Rotorua's Energy Events Centre and Hamilton's Mystery Creek unavailable.
The winner of the minor semifinal will play the loser of the major semifinal in the preliminary final on either July 4 or July 5, with the winner progressing to the grand final on July 11 or 12.
From the outset, it was apparent registering its first win across the Tasman was not going to be easy for the Steel.
Where it has been assured and patient in recent weeks, it was clumsy and nervy, coughing up eight turnovers in the opening quarter.
The uncharacteristic turnovers proved costly, with the Swifts taking a six-goal lead into the break.
Shocked into action, the Steel responded with five unanswered goals, silencing the crowd, albeit temporarily.
The Swifts met the challenge with a four-goal run of their own, undoing the visiting side's good work.
The Swifts were just too, well, swift for the Steel, moving the ball through court with more speed and greater accuracy.
However, the southerners scored the last four goals of the half to narrow the gap.
The Swifts made the third quarter their own, treasuring possession and picking up some good ball on defence.
Steel shooter Daneka Wipiiti missed just one shot in the first half but could not find her range in the third period.
Swifts goal keep Rebecca Bulley swooped on a couple of rebounds and her partner in crime, Sonia Mkoloma, poached two intercepts.
Kimberley Smith stuck to Steel wing attack Liana Barrett-Chase like lint to a woollen jumper and forced her opponent into mistakes.
Trailing by 11 goals with 15 minutes remaining, Steel coach Robyn Broughton replaced Wipiiti with Julianna Naoupu and goal keep Leana de Bruin switched bibs with goal defence Te Huinga Reo Selby-Rickit.
The changes had little effect with the Swifts stretching their lead, winning the final quarter 15-9.
The defending champions Melbourne Vixens broke a seven-game losing streak with a scratchy 49-48 win against the Central Pulse in Porirua last night.
The Vixens finished with six wins and seven losses, quite a turnaround from last season when they lost just one game.
