Anyone who was there will tell you that is codswallop
Okay, so Fax's National League One season ended one game sooner than it had done 12 months ago with Whitehaven's classic smash 'n' grab raid last weekend.
But while the end was undeniably disappointing, and more than a little frustrating, the nine months that preceded it point to a team - and, at long, long last, a club - heading very much in the right direction.
Entertainment on the field, crowds steadily climbing - a little bit too steadily, perhaps - off it and the soon-to-be-completed cash cow that is the Shay's East Stand all point to this being a starting point, not the final destination.
Yet, on a freezing January afternoon, sat amid the piles of DVDs, scribbled notes and whiteboard scrawl you find in every coaching office, Matt Calland - who had already lost AWOL oversea recruit Aaron Heremaia and was about to lose another, Sam Hoare - admitted it would be "very tough" for Fax to improve on their previous season, when Martin Hall's team fell one game short of the Grand Final.
With three full time teams in the competition - Celtic, Salford and Widnes - plus the big spenders over at Leigh, Fax's rookie coach was certainly on a steep learning curve.
Yes, Calland was already a part of the furniture after 18 months as Hall's right hand man.
But the transition from that job to the top job is a difficult one, and Calland himself would probably admit he has made mistakes along the way.
Nine months down the track though, and one thrilling rollercoaster ride later, the impression is of a promising coach who has learned a lot.
The opening month of the season was a breeze, with Fax's new look line up averaging nearly 50 points a game as they whistled past Northern Rail Cup opponents Workington, Whitehaven, and Keighley.
There was also that fantastic night against Melbourne, when Fax's initiative in bringing the Storm to town was rewarded with an electric atmosphere and a brilliant performance, with two tries from centre Jon Goddard - up against teenage man mountain Israel Falau - the highlight of a sensational night.
Early March sped by in similar fashion, but there were signs in the Challenge Cup win at York of the frailties that would haunt Fax as the year went on.
The following week's defeat at Whitehaven, the club's first competitive loss of the year, was written off largely because Calland had fielded a weakened side, resting several key players in preparation for the start of the National League season the following weekend.
Sheffield were duly dispatched on the Thursday night, but it took a late Graham Holroyd try to snatch a win at Dewsbury on Easter Monday.
That was also the fateful day that captain Sean Penkywicz suffered the broken scaphoid that ruined his summer.
Penkywicz played on in pain for several weeks, with Fax officials keeping the problem under wraps, but there was little doubt the club's best player was less effective than he would have been fully fit.
Back to back defeats by Celtic, one in the league on a mudheap in Bridgend and a home reverse in the Northern Rail Cup the following week, underlined both Fax's own shortcomings and the quality of the Welsh side.
April brought a gutsy display against Huddersfield in the Challenge Cup, a game Fax were very much in until the closing minutes, and a super-exciting win at Leigh, with the visitors storming back from a seemingly insurmountable 36-10 deficit to record a 42-36 victory.
May was a mixed bag, with trialist hooker Janan Billings starring in massive home wins over Dewsbury and Batley, only to be left out in the cold following the long awaited capture of a specialist half back, Ben Black.
A humiliating loss at Sheffield followed - arguably the club's worst effort of the year - but the return of Penkywicz, rested but still not fully fit, inspired a fine win at Widnes and a home romp over Haven.
That set up a first against second date with Salford at the Willows, with Fax coming back from 24-0 down to level at 24-24 going into the final quarter.
Stefan Ratchford's disputed try got the Reds home in the end, but Fax were certainly good value that night, with Black and young Wigan back rower Mark Flanagan outstanding.
An expensive home win over Leigh in early July came at a price, with Jon Goddard, Dana Wilson and David Larder all suffering serious injuries.
That made the indifferent run that followed - a draw with Widnes, after a Mark Gleeson inspired fight back, and losses to Whitehaven and Salford, entirely understandable and begs the question as to how differently things might have turned out if Calland had enjoyed better luck with injuries.
Black got the bandwagon back on track with a late winner at Batley, before Celtic again proved too hot to handle in a match that ultimately relegated Fax to third.
The less that is said about the ridiculous 100-point spree at Featherstone on the final day the better, but Fax rallied brilliantly to beat Widnes in week one of the play offs, Black turning in his best performance of a truncated season and Holroyd finally breaking Tuss Griffiths' 50 year old goals in a season record.
As good as they were in that game though, they were comparitively average against Haven, although the Cumbrians still needed a hefty slice of luck as they dumped Fax out of the competition a week earlier than everyone expected.
Overall, Fax have certainly been flawed at times this year, no one can deny that.
One look at the 'points against' column on the final league table tells us that much.
They have also been exhilarating. To the point that you have to go back at least a decade - to that third place Super League finish in 1998 - or perhaps even further, to find a team that thrilled so consistently.
True, perhaps they played too much football, took too many risks. That certainly looked the case against Whitehaven at the weekend.
But after a decade of dross - admittedly punctuated by the odd high point - how refreshing has it been to watch a side that, at their best, are a timely reminder of everything that is good about rugby league?
The disappointment was tangible around the Shay last weekend, You could see it, hear it, feel it.
The challenge for Calland now is to use that to fuel his side's assault on 2009.
There will be changes, big ones. Players will come in, and, inevitably, players will go.
Widnes' prodigiously talented playmaker Bob Beswick is already here, alongside another versatile performer, Harlequins' much travelled and hugely versatile utility player Dwayne Barker and Bradford prop Matt James.
Those three - still just 23, 24 and 20 respectively - should add significant quality and versatility.
They will also help to cut Fax's average age significantly, pointing to a team that will be younger and more athletic next season than it was this.
The bulk of the additions seem likely to be forwards, with Calland making no secret of his ambition to assemble a pack capable of laying a consistent platform for the glut of attacking talent that will line up behind them.
If he can do that, then the good times could really roll.

Tries
Shad Royston 23
Lee Patterson 16
Sean Penkywicz 16
Damian Gibson 15
Jon Goddard 15
Miles Greenwood 13
James Haley 10
Paul Smith 10
Ben Black 8
Graham Holroyd 7
Richard Varkulis 7
Mick Govin 6
Mark Flanagan 5
Andy Smith 4
David Larder 4
Janan Billings 4
Lee Greenwood 4
Frank Watene 4
Paul Southern 4
Mike Ratu 3
David Wrench 2
Dana Wilson 2
Andy Bowman 1
Thomas Coyle 1
Mark Gleeson 1

Goals
Graham Holroyd 157
James Haley 1