Yes, they were specifically trying for it…

Because they said us new people had it too easy with our flail-less Tiamats. So they specifically tried to make her flail with judicious use of Sneak Attack/Trick Attack.

This was also the fight I spent the entire fight staring at the wall, doing nothing but stunning Firaga IIIs. Whee. Remind me why I wanted to have Dark Knight as a viable subjob for Red Mage?