Eben Joubert did not know what was worse - dislocating his shoulder or standing on the sideline watching the shield dream fade away.
Joubert (27) was having a whale of game on the blindside flank for Otago against Southland when a scrum collapsed on him, or more specifically his right shoulder, 15 minutes into the second half.
He screamed out in pain as his shoulder was dislocated and was eventually assisted off the field.
But before he left he laid down the law to his team mates.
"I just said to them 'you've got to win that shield. Don't leave the field without it'," Joubert said.
"I felt so helpless, helpless on the sideline. There was no way we looked like we were going to lose that game.
"I had total faith in the guys they were going to win the thing."
He said the side was naturally very down after the loss and it was a long and quiet bus trip home on Saturday night.
"Though it was hard, we have to look at the some of the positives we can take out of that game.
The game was there for the taking but we couldn't quite do it."
Joubert had X-rays on his shoulder yesterday and it revealed no broken bones.
He will see a specialist later this week for a full diagnosis, but will be out for a minimum of three to four weeks.
He hopes to get back on to the field later in the season, as he pushes for a spot in the Highlanders.
Joubert was part of a great forward effort on Saturday, which almost won the game for Otago in what was yet another near-run thing in Ranfurly Shield challenges.
It was obvious there was a lot at stake as the game resembled an arm-wrestle throughout the 80 minutes.
Otago kept the ball in its forwards and won the battle on the advantage line as the Southland defence was slow to come up.
Otago led 9-6 at the break after Glenn Dickson had fired over three penalties, with Robbie Robinson replying with two penalties for the home side.
Southland gained more ball in the second half and kept it in hand.
The key moment in the game came when Southland captain Jamie Mackintosh flopped across the line to score a hotly disputed try 12 minutes from the end.
Otago still had time to reply but, four points behind, it had to look for a try, and its options of keeping the ball close were not going to work near the end.
Referee Jonathon White was a dominant figure in the match and his rulings at the breakdown puzzled Otago.
Otago was miles better than last week and, although it would be hard to single anyone out in a gallant effort, prop Kees Meeuws was all energy, as was lock Hoani Matenga.
Skipper Alando Soakai had an outstanding 50th game in the Otago jersey.
Otago gained a bonus point with the loss and remains in the bottom reaches of the table.
Waikato scored its second win of the season, with a last-minute 21-18 win over Auckland in Auckland on Saturday.
On Friday night, Bay of Plenty beat Hawkes Bay 30-11 in Napier while Taranaki toppled Tasman 33-11 in New Plymouth.
Canterbury just pipped Manawatu 27-26 in Palmerston North on Thursday night.
Yesterday, Counties-Manukau continued its Cinderella rise with a 31-25 win over Wellington, while North Harbour came from behind to beat Northland 25-24 in Whangerei.
Ranfurly Shield
The scores
Southland 16
Jamie Mackintosh try; Robbie Robinson 2 pen, James Wilson pen, Wilson con
Otago 12
Glenn Dickson 3 pen, dropped goal
Halftime: Otago 9-6
Crowd: 17,500
