The Guinness PRO12 is fast becoming the league no-one appears to want to win, with the top of the table becoming incredibly bunched up as Connacht were the only winning side among the top four.
So Edinburgh's losing bonus point at Cardiff Arms Park may well turn out to be more than useful, but coach and captain of the capital side were united in concentrating on the three points that got away rather than the one gained.
“Frustration,” was the verdict of captain Mike Coman. “Errors killed us,” was the view of coach Alan Solomons.
“This thing is tight,” added Solomons, when asked about the top of the table mix. “The season has a long way to go. It's exciting for spectators and it will only be determined very late in the season.
“Clubs that don't lose a lot of players during the six Nations, like Connacht, are very fortunate. We have 10 matches to play – five at home and five away.
“The silver lining is that we got a bonus point. But we made a rod for our own back. Having held them to 10-3 at half-time we had a really great opportunity ahead of us and we didn't take it.”
Solomons also admitted Cardiff could have been out of sight after 20 minutes, they scored in the second minute of the game through full-back Dan Fish and blew two more chances to extend their lead in the first half alone as well as missing routine penalty kicks at goal.
“We got over the line four times, but only got one try”, was the rueful comment of Blues coach Danny Wilson.
So it could have been very different, but the bottom line was that Cardiff did not build up that early lead and Solomons was right in arguing there was everything to play for at half-time and Edinburgh did not take advantage of those opportunities with a favourable wind and a kicking game that earned territory.
Captain Coman concurred, “There was a lot of frustration. The bottom line is that we didn't deserve to win. Our ball retention was not good enough at this level. When we got in their 22 we just coughed up the ball or gave away a penalty. We were pretty lucky to come away with a bonus point after that performance.
“It's about individual accountability really. There is only so much you can say with guys dropping passes and not knowing their roles. This break has come at a good time; it has been a long period. It's a chance for the guys to take a step back.
“ If we continue to play like that we want to beat many sides. It's not good enough at this level.It's not dire straits. Were still tracking a lot nicer than we have in previous seasons, but we're still in the top four and we know we can play a lot better than that.”
It was their 16th successive match weekend and the players are looking forward to a break. When they get back Solomons will be concentrating on skill levels after feeling this was both a game they should never have been in after making 11 changes and starting slowly – but then could have won.
“Our error rate was through the roof,” said the coach. “When you have that you cannot possibly expect to win the game. If we are honest with ourselves, we were fortunate to get the bonus point.
“I thought we had a real prospect of winning the game. At 10-3, we had a bit of breeze behind us and there was nothing in it, but we just continued to shoot ourselves in the foot.
“We didn't have the strongest pack out there, but I thought the forwards did well. But we made too many mistakes in the back line. If you make mistakes you are not going to have the ball and you will not have territory.
“At the end of 16 games everyone is pretty exhausted. We had to travel for a 15th and 16th games, and that is not straightforward.
After 20 minutes we were under the pump because they got the early try and then the penalty. In any game you will get ebb and flow, and it's about how you respond when the tide is ebbing. We managed to hang in there and I thought we had a great opportunity. I'm disappointed that we didn't take it.”
So at the start of the Six Nations period it is advantage Connacht as they are less affected by international calls, but it remains close in the battle for the top four places and Edinburgh remain in that hunt despite focussing on what might have been in Cardiff.
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