On a wet and windy night in northern Queensland, the Tigers were made to fight until the end to banish the demons of 2011 and 2012, eventually beating the Suns by nine points at Cazalys Stadium.
Hardwick was hopeful the lessons his team had learned over three years in Cairns would pay off as the 10-5 Tigers draw closer to their first finals appearance since 2001.
"It was a decision we had to make, there's no doubt about that, and we certainly got some kicks in the backside along the way," Hardwick said on Saturday night.
"At the end of the day, it's been a learning experience for our footy club.
"We've been up here three times and every time it's been a howling gale and wet, so you're never going to get a good game.
"Hopefully those lessons learned over the two years previous will come to fruition at some stage and it'll be a good learning process for us."
In a strange game that was dictated by the strong wind that favoured one end, the Tigers played extra numbers in defence early to try and "make it a nil-all draw" while the Suns kicked with the breeze.
They wasted their opportunities in the second term, however, kicking 3.7 and taking a six-point lead into the main break before an arm-wrestle in the second half.
Despite the nature of the game, Hardwick had positives to draw on, with midfielder Daniel Jackson keeping Gold Coast star Gary Ablett to 26 possessions and kicking two goals himself.
"It's reflective of his season," Hardwick said of Jackson's game.
"You look at Gary Ablett, he had 26 touches and that's an average game for Gary. He's such a quality player.
"It was a really good contest between two really good players."
Lead-up forward Aaron Edwards spent the first three quarters playing in defence in a new role that impressed Hardwick before he was substituted out.
"He did his role really well, but obviously we thought with the wind we'd sub him because we didn't need him forward late," Hardwick said.
"I thought he was terrific, [with] his work across half-back playing on some good players back there."
On midfielder Shaun Grigg, who started as the substitute, Hardwick said: "His form has been OK. It hasn't been to the level that myself and Shaun know it can be."
"Matthew White certainly deserved his chance today, but Shaun's a good player, he's a proud player and he'll come back."
Nathan Schmook is a reporter for AFL Media. Follow him on Twitter @AFL_Nathan
