Forrest was yesterday reappointed Old Golds coach for a fifth season following an intensive union review.
He is already starting to plot how to get the team back on track after, by its standards, a deflating year that ended with a whimper in the second-tier Lochore Cup semifinals.
"I was gutted at how this year ended up and I really wanted to dig my toes back in and not go out like that," Forrest told the Otago Daily Times yesterday.
"The review process was really good, and I still feel like I have a lot to offer North Otago rugby.
"This year hurt but I’m really excited about the opportunity to have another go, and I want to get that Meads Cup back."
Forrest said the review process was "outstanding" and helped him gain an understanding of where he needed to get better as a coach.
"I needed to go through it, and I’ve taken on a heap of learnings around me and my coaching."
The Old Golds won the top Heartland Championship prize in 2019, Forrest’s first year in the job.
They found the magic formula of good imports and outstanding locals to go with the talent and hard work required to win the competition.
But that formula was mostly nowhere to be seen this year as North Otago never found a settled line-up, played very poorly in a couple of games, and lost a couple it should have won, finishing fifth then crumbling to Mid Canterbury in the Lochore Cup semifinal.
"To finish where we finished this year wasn’t good enough," Forrest said.
"There’s a lot of unfinished business. We need to find some consistency, and do better at getting players in the key positions and finding that higher level of performance.
"We’ve got some changes to make, but they’re only little changes. We weren’t that far away. We were one win away from a semifinal in Timaru."
Forrest will again have North Otago centurion Ralph Darling as his assistant, while Scott Mayhew (manager) and Glen Sturgess (fitness trainer) will also return.
He is also eager to keep tapping into the knowledge of mentor and former Old Golds coach Barry Matthews.
North Otago chief executive Colin Jackson said he was "very happy" with Forrest’s reappointment and the opportunity to have continuity in the role.
