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The Wallabies are finally out of the Rugby World Cup — but it came right down to the wire as Portugal pulled off the upset of the tournament to beat Fiji in a thriller.
Sure, the outcome was entirely expected from a Wallabies perspective, but certainly not in the rollercoaster way that it played out.
Now attention turns to the stellar quarterfinal line up, but questions are also set to be asked of the lack of opportunities for smaller nations between World Cups — and whether they get a fair crack of the whip when they do play against the tier one nations.
Here's the five quick hits from the Rugby World Cup.
1. Portugal's 'total rugby' wows
There is little doubt that Portugal have been the revelation of the Rugby World Cup.
Superbly coached by Patrice Lagisquet, Portugal have wowed spectators and opponents alike with an enterprising and exciting brand of "total rugby".
Former England winger and pundit Ugo Monye said Portugal had "been so much fun to watch".
World Cup winner and broadcaster Maggie Alphonsi said "Portugal depart the tournament with their heads held high … Love watching them", adding they would be a "worthy inclusion" to the Six Nations.
After coming within a missed kick of beating European Championship rivals Georgia earlier in the competition, Portugal finally got their hard-earned first Rugby World Cup victory in the most dramatic of ways against Fiji.
"I don't know what to say. I am always afraid of big words but it is a fantastic moment," Lagisquet said.
"The players surprised me one more time. I knew they were capable of going into the last bit of action but I couldn't look at the scoreboard. It is not the first time they have played that kind of trick on me.
"The final try corresponded to the team's DNA. These players are capable of playing the width of the pitch."
2. 'Sort the global season out asap please!'
Portugal's performance was exceptional and yet, outside of World Cups, the opportunities for teams like Os Lobos to compete against top level opposition is scant.
Former Samoa international Daniel Leo said the onus was now on World Rugby to provide more matches.
"The 'Fiji' of Europe!," Leo wrote about Portugal on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
"It would be criminal if World Rugby don't give these guys more games. Big games."
Former England international Andy Goode agreed.
"Need to see way more of the Rugby Europe Championship across TV and socials next year, as well as adding Fiji, Samoa, Tonga and Japan to the Rugby Championship," Goode wrote on X.
"Sort the global season out asap please!"
The performance of Portugal was in stark contrast to that of Italy, leading to some to postulate that promotion and relegation should be introduced to the Six Nations from the second-tier Rugby Europe Championship.
Lagisquet agreed in his press conference, but made note of the economic reality facing top-tier nations.
"In rugby one needs to play against high-level teams to flourish," Lagisquet said.
"I would say the great nations need to make money and to fill the stadium. I'm not sure if France v Portugal will fill the stadium … maybe that's not the right example because there are a lot of Portuguese in France.
"Even though there is a will from World Rugby there is an economic reality. The tier-one nations cannot play two, three or four matches in a row [against so-called tier-two nations] and that's what these nations would need."
3. Fiji faltering ahead of date with destiny
As wonderful as the scenes were surrounding Portugal, the alarm bells will have to be ringing in the Fiji camp.
The Islanders played their get out of jail free card against Georgia last time out to edge to a 17-12 victory, and then limped into the quarterfinals despite tasting defeat against Portugal thanks to their better head-to-head result against the Wallabies.
"Obviously we're disappointed to lose the game," Simon Raiwalui said.
"But our first qualification for the quarterfinals since 2007, we're very happy to be there.
"But we have a lot to do this week … There are a number of areas to work on. We need to get those basics right."
Fiji has reached the quarterfinals twice before, but never progressed further.
Having already beaten England this year, albeit for the very first time in August, Fiji should be confident of making the semifinals for the first time, but Rauwalui said this contest will be a very different prospect.
"It's a totally different match," he said.
"They play rugby to win. They're very talented.
"There will be aspects of how they play that are similar but they will bring new stuff as well.
"It's about us being efficient and doing the things we do well and giving ourselves the best chance to compete."
4. Will Fiji be given a fair crack by the referee?
One of the hot topics over the course of the tournament has been the officiating.
That's nothing new, but in a couple of instances the inconsistency of refereeing has been called into question when the laws were applied to tier two nations against tier one nations.
Samoa coach Seilala Mapusua was asked about his side's poor discipline in their 18-17 defeat against England and whether his team needed more exposure to top referees.
Samoa gave away 14 penalties to England's nine in the match and had Tumua Manu sent to the sin bin.
Mapusua said the exposure of his players to top referees was not the problem.
"I have asked the question in the past around do referees have an unconscious bias when a tier one team is playing a tier two team?" he said.
"These players are playing in the same [domestic] competitions, a lot of them are teammates. They're exposed to the refs.
"When you throw all of them in the same-coloured jersey, for some reason we need more exposure to the referees.
"I believe there is [an unconscious bias], I believe there has been in the past, it's, I don't think it's anyone's fault, it's just what I've seen in our game for I don't know how many years, from when I was playing."
5. Quarterfinal picture set
Despite the drama of Portugal's unlikely victory over Fiji, the upshot is that for the first time in the ten-tournament history of the Rugby World Cup the Wallabies are not a part of the quarterfinal picture.
The quarterfinals that have been set though, are genuine doozies.
First up, Wales will take on Michael Cheika's Argentina in Marseille before a blockbuster encounter between Ireland and the All Blacks in Paris.
Grand Slam winners Ireland, so impressive in topping their pool and the overall competition favourites, have never won a quarterfinal at a Rugby World Cup.
Tests don't come much tougher than those against the All Blacks, who Ireland only beat for the first time in 2016, ending a 111-year, 28-game run of defeats.
However, since then, Ireland have won five of their last eight Tests against New Zealand.
The following day, England take on Fiji in Marseille before the hosts meet the defending champion Springboks at the Stade de France.
France are unbeaten at this tournament, but it's come at a cost with star flyhalf Antoine Dupont suffering a fractured eye socket against Namibia.
Will he be fit to take the field against a brutal Springbok team?
"His physical qualities are impressive," Karim Ghezal, a member of the France support team told World Rugby.
"The next step, is the appointment with his surgeon, who will decide [if he can play].
"Physically, he hasn't lost much in the week he's been off, quite the opposite in fact. Physically, he's in great shape."
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