Guns N' Roses sang of November Rain, but Broncos winger Deine Mariner is just glad he was stung by coach Michael Maguire's "November Pain".
Ditto strike centre Gehamat Shibasaki.
A lot has been made of Maguire flogging the players at the start of the pre-season, but instead of being a curse the players insist it was a blessing.
The odd vomit didn't hurt anyone, and there was more than one when Maguire turned up and gave the players a reality check in stifling heat.
Shibasaki arrived on a train-and-trial deal and has since starred for Queensland and earned a top-30 extension.
He was overweight at 110kg in October and lost 13kg to get himself in shape to play NRL.
The benefits are now on show, with the Broncos through to the preliminary final against either Canterbury or Penrith after winning 11 of their last 13 games.
Mariner had been sailing through his career on the back of talent, but has been a standout at the back end of the season.
He said the November whip that cracked was intense.
Mariner was asked which session stood out.
"Every day in November. Every day," he grimaced.
"There wasn't one that was specific ... every day ... but it has been good. We are a lot fitter now. I don't want to think about it, but definitely that month of November was crazy.
"Knowing that if we could get through that month, it is just 80 minutes that we have to put our best foot forward for. It just gives you a bit of confidence knowing you went through a month where it felt like hell."
The Broncos have fought back from two 16-point deficits and one of 14 points to win in the past months.
Last Sunday's 29-28 golden-point win over Canberra in the qualifying final, after they were down 28-12, was another example of how November kept them in good stead.
Mariner saved the match late with an intercept that showed he was both mentally and physically fit for the challenge.
"We had a real tough pre-season, but it was something we needed. Now we are getting to the back end of the year we are confident we are fit enough," he said.
"We know we can play the long game.
"Throughout the week leading up to the (Raiders) game, we knew they were a team of offloaders and we had to expect the ball coming back. Because of the work we put in throughout the week, I was in a position to be there and get that intercept.
"We did a bit of recovery after. It was an intense game, but I pulled up all right and most of the boys did."
Shibasaki is just glad he got absolutely flogged.
"That big pre-season at the end of last year was a big help for us to get into games like this," he said.
"I'm pinching myself now, but I think the biggest thing with 'Madge' (Maguire) was for me to be present in that moment in time. I needed to get my weight down, I needed to fix my body to get right for the season."
