The Rock-Yerong Creek co-coaches Heath Russell and Brad Aiken were honest in their assessment of the Magpies' grand final loss

Co-coaches Heath Russell and Brad Aiken certainly didn't hold back from giving an honest assessment of the Magpies' performance in the 39-point loss.

Russell said the Magpies 'didn't turn up' while Aiken believes the 13.11 (89) to 8.2 (50) scoreline flattered his team.

"It's disappointment for the playing group probably that they didn't turn up, I guess they didn't turn up, to be honest, on the big stage," Russell said.

"They didn't reward themselves or give themselves the opportunity to win the game.

"But we sit here and say Marrar, full credit, the way they played and the way they work for each other, I think it's a lesson for our boys.

"We're disappointed, but also at the same time, we have to be realistic and you have to at the same time give yourself the opportunity to feel low to be in a grand final, our boys worked really hard to get here and all of the things they've done across the three years that Brad and I have done have been really positive so it's really hard, and you sit here and you lose the last game and the feeling it shithouse but it's ironic because you've actually had a really good season to get here."

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Aiken said the damage was done early with Marrar's six-goal opening term putting the Magpies on the back foot.

"Their pressure was intense and our boys probably didn't react well enough to it," Aiken said.

"Our disposal, we fumbled, they run in numbers and they're good at it. They're very structured, they work off the ball to put themselves in a position to exit in their back half. It's a credit to Sparks and the boys, they just play their roles.

"I don't know, we might have been a bit overawed by the occasion, some of them hadn't played in a grand final but we just got outplayed."

Aiken said Marrar never allowed TRYC to play anywhere near their best football.

"And it's a credit to them, they didn't allow us to get in our groove, they knew if we could get into that, we were quite capable of beating them but to their credit, they never allowed us and they didn't allow us pretty much all day," he said.

"The last quarter we showed glimpses and the game was over. We probably got flattered, the game should have been over a long time ago.

"They had 14 more scoring shots and they probably missed some opportunities that they should have taken. Look to be honest, we're probably flattered by the score at the end of the day, if I'm honest and being real."

Russell hopes the Magpies use the defeat to galvanise them moving forward.

"Thanks to our club, where we've come from and the journey we're on, we're disappointed now but the boys are a proud group and we'll regroup," he said.

"Full credit to Marrar, they're the team we aspire to be and our boys will learn a lot from today. Sometimes you need to lose one to win one."

The pair also thanked their loved ones for their support over the season.

"Thanks to our wives for giving us the opportunity to be part of the club and do what we do," they said.

"Without them, we wouldn't have that opportunity and they sacrifice a lot for us to be here every week so the appreciation to them is great."

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