Kiwi coach Warren Gatland had his Cardiff swansong, but not the winning note he would have liked, as his Barbarians side lost to Wales at Principality Stadium.
With fellow Kiwi Wayne Pivac now in charge of Wales, Gatland's Barbarians were beaten 43-33 in an 11-try encounter in front of 62,000 fans.
Before the match, Gatland was given a hero's welcome, after a 12-year reign in which he led Wales from the doldrums to the top spot in the world rankings.
The 56-year-old will return to New Zealand to coach the Chiefs for the 2020 Super Rugby season.
"I just want to say thank you so much, it's been brilliant for 12 years," he said in an interview after the match.
"I've loved this place, you guys have given me so much. My time in Wales has been absolutely brilliant, and there will be a really special place in my heart for Wales and the people here.
"Thank you, it's been incredibly special, and you guys have been a massive part of it. I'll be back someday, maybe sitting in the stand.
"It's been pretty cool. It's brilliant to see Wales win today with their new regime, but you guys [the fans] have been a special part of it."
Earlier this week, Gatland was honoured with the creation of 'Gatland's Gate' at the main entrance to Principality Stadium, recognition of a successful tenure that brought four Six Nations titles, three Grand Slams and two World Cup semi-final places.
While the Welsh fans were sad to see Gatland go, they will be pleased that the Pivac era got off to a winning start in the non-capped match.
Pivac made nine changes from the team that lost to New Zealand in the World Cup bronze-medal match - including a debut for Christchurch-born winger Johnny McNicholl, who scored a try. The World Cup's top tryscorer, Josh Adams, scored a brace.
The game only really sparked into life in the second half, as the Barbarians threw caution to the wind and, trailling 33-7, ramped up the pressure to score 19 unanswered points.
Chiefs utility back Shaun Stevenson was among the five Barbarians tryscorers.
Pivac was pleased with how Wales played in his first match in charge.
"It was fantastic from our point of view, the game itself," he said. "We've had a week together and put in some building blocks for how we want to play in the Six Nations.
"I'm very pleased to score 43 points, first of all. I thought 20 minutes after half-time, it might have been 33-7, it was looking pretty good.
"We were pretty happy with where things were at and made some changes. There were a lot of reset scrums, and the game stopped and started.
"We conceded some tries and were pleased to get the win, but it's something to get our teeth into."
