Otago coach Tony Brown will be back next year and the rest of his coaching crew is also set to return.
Brown could not quite repeat last year's efforts when his Otago side made the Championship final.
Instead, it crashed out in the semifinal last Sunday against Hawkes Bay, in a match marred by some questionable refereeing decisions from Mike Fraser.
Brown was still poring over clips of the semifinal defeat yesterday, but was not taking the issue with referee Fraser any further.
He would do player reviews and debriefings over the next few days and said although the team was disappointed to lose 29-24 to Hawkes Bay on Sunday, he was still proud of the effort it had put in.
''Looking back at the season I'm pretty proud of the boys and what they have achieved. It was a tough way to go out on Sunday,'' he said.
''But with the experience we are slowly developing we should be all the better for next year.''
The side finished second in the Championship section last year with five wins, but managed to bag one more victory this season. It also achieved three wins over teams from the higher Premiership section this season.
Brown will be in the final year of his three-year deal when he returns next season.
He said fellow coaches Phil Young and Kees Meeuws, along with a couple of others who help out from time to time, such as outside backs coach Roy Hawker, were also keen to be involved again.
Brown said he had not started thinking about next season yet, and what holes in the team needed to be filled.
''Hopefully, we will get the majority of the players back and there is always the opportunity for guys to make an impact through club rugby.''
One player who came through club rugby this season and made an impact was loosehead prop Craig Millar, who played all but one game in his first season at this level.
Brown said Millar had a top year. He said there was also plenty of promise in the ability of young players Josh Renton and Tei Walden.
Otago Rugby Football Union general manager Richard Kinley said the union wanted Brown to continue.
''We are keen to keep him here and he is contracted for next year. He has said to us he enjoys what he is doing and enjoying being part of the coaching team,'' Kinley said.
Brown will head back to Japan in a couple of weeks where he will continue his work with the Panasonic club.
He is a technical adviser with the club, a role he said he really enjoyed. He has been involved with Panasonic since 2004. His family will remain in Dunedin.
The club has former Highlander Michael Hobbs on its books, along with former Wallabies Daniel Heenan and Berrick Barnes. Springbok winger JP Pietersen is also part of the team.
Two foreigners are allowed on the field for their sides in Japanese rugby at any one time.
Panasonic lost in the semifinal to eventual champion Suntory last season.
Also heading to Japan is Otago halfback Fumiaki Tanaka, who is likely to play for Japan against the All Blacks next week when he may face Highlanders team-mate Aaron Smith.
Tanaka made a rushed trip back to Japan straight after the match on Sunday.
His wife, Tomomi, gave birth to a baby girl, the first child for the couple, in Japan on Sunday.
Otago 2013
Season record
Played 11, won 6, lost 5
Points for 328, points against 334
Top points scorer: Hayden Parker 38 penalties, 23 conversion, 2 tries for 170 points
Top try scorers: Jayden Spence 5, Buxton Popoali'i 5, TJ Ioane 4
Best game: v Waikato 26-19: The one where Otago finally got the monkey off its back, winning the Ranfurly Shield. The way the season panned out Waikato was not a great team but it was still a mighty effort by Otago considering all the history of previous failed challenges.
Worst game: v Tasman lost 49-16: Suffering from a distinct Ranfurly Shield hangover, Otago was a distant second against the Makos. Tasman is a quality side but was made to look way better by a jaded Otago outfit.
Best players
1)Tom Franklin: a breakout year for the big lock ending with selection in the Highlanders. Got round the park, made his tackles and won ball in the lineout. Will be interesting to see how he goes at the next level.
2) Hayden Parker: kicked like a dream and his option taking was much improved. In his third year at this level Parker guided the team around the park well and picked his time to attack.
3) Gareth Evans: started like a house on fire and grabbed turnovers at will. Big match in the successful Ranfurly Shield challenge. Maybe tapered off slightly near the end of the season but still got through plenty of work. Perhaps has a future with the No 7 on his back.
Questions for the future
1) Will Paul Grant be back for Otago next year? And will he ever play a game of Super 15, for whoever?
2) Who wants to be the sprint coach and get the Otago backs a tad quicker?
3) Josh Renton has a big future but was he any better at the moment than Brad Weber?
