A 32-point semi-final loss was hard enough to swallow alone before adding the looming departures of Christian Lealiifano, David Pocock, Henry Speight, Sam Carter and Rory Arnold among others.

Waking up on Sunday morning will be the first day of Dan McKellar's rebuilding job.

He'll need a new captain, a new playmaker, new locks and new leaders to drive the team forward.

Mack Hansen, Noah Lolesio, Bayley Kuenzle and Reesjan Pasitoa will have to fill the flyhalf boots vacated by Lealiifano. Coach Dan McKellar will resist the temptation to recrut someone experienced.

Lachlan McCaffrey, Joe Powell and Allan Alaalatoa loom as captaincy options and Scott Sio will have a big role to play in the new generation stepping up.

It seems almost unfair the Brumbies' campaign ended the way it did because there was so much to like about a running rugby revival this season.

They set a record for the longest single-season winning streak in the club's history, scored some remarkable tries and started to generate new support.

Unfortunately the players will look back and wonder 'what if' after failing to fire in the semi-final and never giving themselves a chance to win.

The Brumbies will now say farewell to Lealiifano (Japan), Henry Speight (Queensland), Sam Carter (Ireland) and Rory Arnold (France) among others.

It's a massive changing of the guard, with David Pocock also finishing his Brumbies tenure.

AT A GLANCE

ARGENTINA JAGUARES 34 (Matias Orlando 2, Tomas Cubelli, Tomas Lavanini, Emiliano Boffelli tries; Joaquin Diaz Bonilla 4 conversions, 2 penalties) bt ACT BRUMBIES 7 (Folau Faingaa try; Christian Lealiifano conversion) at Jose Amalfitani Stadium, Buenos Aires on Saturday morning. Referee: Mike Fraser. Crowd: 31,000