Lee Johnson admits Hibs' 3-0 derby defeat to Hearts is even harder to take because his team played well.
But the Englishman insists that it's something they need to learn when progressing in the future.
Cup football is all about the result, with performance a secondary factor.
Johnson says Hearts' showing in the Scottish Cup fourth round highlights where Hibs need to be.
He told Viaplay after the game: "It's disappointing that we're out the cup. It wasn't good enough in both boxes today. That was probably the difference.
"Overall I thought we had good opportunities and had good control of the game. I suppose that's th disappointing thing. We've actually played well and we've ended up 3-0 losers. It doesn't feel right but it's the harsh reality of a one-off game.
"I suppose in one sense it shows where we need to get to. You can't play well, but not show the guile that we needed to, quality and composure in the final third and then give up one or two chances. The clinical nature of Hearts has ended up killing us.
"We felt it was a real opportunity for us today. Our guys went out there and fought there socks off but inevitably it wasn't good enough."
Johnson was particularly unhappy with the nature of Hearts' first goal. He insists his players didn't defend the situation well enough at all.
And he told his wide players that when attacking sometimes they need to get the ball out of their feet quicker and deliver for Kevin Nisbet.
"It was a silly foul for the first goal, we shouldn't have given that away. We didn't defend the cross anywhere near well enough. It's a good clinical finish from Ginnelly.
"We then stayed on the front foot, we tried to penetrate as often as we could. I thought we could've potentially delivered earlier than we did on a number of occasions. Forwards need to know when the ball is coming in. I feel sometimes we do a trick when there's no need. Sometimes you need to set the ball aside and deliver early crosses.
"Making them defend had to be key whereas we allowed them to settle in a little bit too much.
"We did attack and have opportunities. We just don't seem to be getting that little break at the minute that enables us to get a tap-in."
