Ross Hay cradled one treasure in his arms but could not quite grasp the Ranfurly Shield last night.
Hay and young son Charlie had to be satisfied with looking at New Zealand rugby's most famous trophy as they grabbed a quiet moment under the Rugby Park grandstand.
"Bones" had, as usual, expended every last drop of energy from his wiry frame for the North Otago cause, and the openside flanker reflected on a more than respectable challenge for the Shield.
"That was good. It felt like we went out there and took it to them in the first half," Hay said.
"We didn't have much ball but our defence was quite good.
"Overall, we're pretty happy with that. I thought we matched it with them well, especially in the first half."
North Otago had no proper warm-up for the challenge but Hay said the side had been training well for weeks.
"We have actually been putting in a bit of hard work, and I think we performed reasonably well as a result."
North Otago coach Barry Matthews was more than satisfied after his first game in charge.
"We knew Southland would be tough but I thought the boys defended outstandingly for large parts of the game.
"I can't fault the work ethic of the players. I thought we scrummed well. Our technique at the breakdown was good and our forwards were outstanding.
"Everyone tried their best against a team containing 12 or 13 Super 14 players. To compete with them was pretty good."
Matthews revealed Highlanders coach Glenn Moore had pitched in to help his former side prepare for its game.
"He's been to a few trainings and he's been very good."
