How sad that the Wallabies and All Blacks head to a sold-out Optus Stadium in Perth on Saturday with the Bledisloe Cup already packed away for another year.
It's the biggest trophy in trans-Tasman sport and yet after just one 80-minute Test the winner has already been decided in a two-match series that requires the Wallabies to win or at least draw the opening Test to keep the cup in play.
That's not to say there isn't still so much to play for at Optus Stadium on Saturday night.
The Rugby Championship trophy is still in the balance -- although very much remaining in the Springboks' trophy cabinet bar a calamity in London -- James Slipper will be saying farewell to the gold jersey in his 151st Test, while the Wallabies look to desperately end their 10-match losing streak to the All Blacks.
But imagine the added tension and excitement if the Bledisloe was still on the line.
It's been 23 long years since the Wallabies last lifted the trophy. Some players within the Wallabies side have never even witnessed Australia holding the oversized cup while the memories of the Sydney decider in 2002 are fading for many fans.
Since the opening series in 1931, the Bledisloe has been contested over one, two, three and even four match series across its 94-year history and was played across three Tests up till a few years ago. Clearly there is no sense of 'tradition' restraining the tournament to just two Tests.
Given both Australia and New Zealand have enjoyed sold-out crowds throughout their domestic Test seasons, a third Bledisloe Test would present another opportunity to fill the coffers, or even still, a chance to take the game to a neutral venue. It's certainly not a new idea with the Bledisloe played in Hong Kong and Japan in the past, while they could follow South Africa's lead and take a clash to Twickenham, or given New Zealand Rugby's ties to the USA, take another Test to Chicago.
With the uncertainty of the Rugby Championship heading into the future - the 2026 edition has already been sidelined - it presents the perfect time for both sporting bodies to look at returning the series to three games.
While the All Blacks and Springboks will play out a traditional tour including three Tests in South Africa and a fourth in London during the usual RC timeslot next year, reports suggest Australia will play the Springboks in a one-off Test while they'll play the All Blacks at least twice in Bledisloe Cup Tests. Why not simply make it three? There's clearly an appetite for Test rugby across both nations and there are fixtures that need filling.
Given NZR's decision to leave Australia out in the cold to play what's been dubbed 'The Greatest Rugby Rivalry' tour, you'd think it would give RA added motivation at the negotiation table.
But for now, the Wallabies must enter Optus Stadium on Saturday night with the knowledge there's still plenty to play for, even if the Bledisloe Cup is no longer on the line.
Currently sitting third on 11 points behind South Africa (15) and New Zealand (14), a bonus-point win on Saturday night gives them a sniff of claiming the RC for the first time in a decade, while a win could at least secure second place. Given the Wallabies fast descent to rock bottom just a few years ago, a rise to contend for the title this season displays just how far the group have grown.
"I think we only ever go out to win games and to stack enough good moments in the game to win them," Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt said on Thursday. "For us, the silverware, make no mistake, that would be a massive bonus.
"It's a long time since we've even been in a competitive position for the Rugby Championship and if we could get a win this week, at worse we'd finish second, so that would be incredible compared to, you know, last season and the season before that where they were the winless sort of season in the Rugby Championship building our way forward. I do think that it gives us a little bit more confidence."
There will also be added motivation and emotion as they farewell stalwart prop James Slipper.
The 35-year-old announced his Test retirement just a week after he played his 150th Test at Eden Park last weekend, telling his teammates in what Allan Alaalatoa dubbed "in a classic Slippy way, just drop the message on the chat".
"He doesn't like any attention," Alaalatoa told media on Thursday. "You know, he's achieved a few milestones, as we all know, and he just wants to keep scraping it to the side and put the team first.
"And that was just the old, old typical fashion of Slippy just to send out a text saying, 'yeah, boys, my last one. Love you'.
"There were quite a few players that were emotional, myself included. We knew that he was close to the end, but we didn't know that it was going to be this soon. And I think in saying that it's because of the way that he's been playing.
"He's been playing some great footy. He's been a true warrior of the game and for his country over 150 times. So I think if anything, he's leaving a great legacy behind for us players to continue on, which is to lead by actions, to put your body on the line, for the jersey and off the field, to be a great husband and a great father to his two beautiful girls.
"He's had a massive impact on us and his country and, if anything, we want to make sure that we go out there and put in the performance that he'll be proud of.
"I think it's more about just focusing on like one moment at a time, because we know that that's eventually you stack all those moments, and it gives you the opportunity to get the result.
"And I think, taking a leaf out of Slip's book, it's to go out there and to put your body on the line, it's to give everything you've got through every moment, and most importantly, just doing what you say you're going to do, so I think that's, more about what we focus on and taking a bit out of Slips and what he's brought to the Test arena over a number of times."
