Indeed, the last time Waikato and Otago met in Hamilton it was in a semifinal of the Air New Zealand Cup, in 2006.
But 2008 is not that sort of year.
Both are Super 14 bases and usually up near the top of the competition ladder, but this year is fast becoming forgettable for the two teams.
They meet tonight in a match which should decide which side stays in the hunt for the quarterfinals of the competition.
Lose and the season is effectively over. With two rounds of the competition left, Otago sits seventh, while Waikato is 10th.
Effectively, eight teams are in the hunt for three places, and losing at this stage of the season is not in the job description.
It sounds simple, but to win tonight Otago needs to hang on to the ball, and not fall asleep for long periods.
The key man tonight for Otago is first five-eighth Daniel Bowden, who put in a fine performance in the first half against Taranaki last weekend, before having to shift further out due to injury.
If Bowden can probe the gaps and free up those further out, Otago may well find itself a win at Hamilton, and these have been few and far between in recent years.
Otago coach Steve Martin acknowledged as much yesterday, saying Bowden had been picked again at first five-eighth this week as he created worry in opposition defence.
"Dan takes the ball a bit flatter than a lot of others and is quite quickly on top of the line," Martin said.
"We have got a couple of big strong wingers who, hopefully, can run off him and create some pressure."
Bowden has been a mixed bag in the Air NZ Cup, and his shortcomings on defence make him a better bet at No 10 than further out.
Outside Bowden will be new boy Dan Snee, making his first-class debut, and Martin said the University five-eighth had trained with the side all season, so should not get lost when it came to team patterns.
Snee offered some size, and ran good angles on both attack and defence, Martin said. If Bowden and Snee click, Otago has a great chance of scoring its first win in Hamilton since 1995.
But others, such as No 8 Steven Setephano, halfback Toby Morland, and lock Tom Donnelly, have to come to the party tonight, and deliver a quality performance if Otago is to have any chance of winning this match.
Otago has travelled to Hamilton seven times since 1995, but Martin said the game was just about tonight and not what had happened previously.
With a pre-season goal of making the semifinals, Martin said he was not thinking about the future of his job, with his contract running out this year.
"I am just focusing on getting the team to perform. That is the only job on my mind at the moment."
He has already made it clear he wants the job next year.
Though he has been repeating it all year, Martin again said an 80-minute performance would put the side a long way towards winning.
The side had come home strongly in games at the start of the season, then had reversed the trend and started strongly in the past couple of matches. It needed to do both tonight.
Otago last won a game on August 21 and needs to get back that winning feeling.
Waikato has been plagued by the same mistakes that have handicapped Otago.
Missed opportunities and a lack of composure have hampered coach Tony Hanks' side. Hanks has not been helped by 19 players from last year leave the side.
In last week's game against Hawkes Bay, Waikato fielded just three players from the side that took on the Magpies in the quarterfinal of the competition last year.
Despite Waikato's disappointing showing this year, players such as Liam Messam, Otago old boy Callum Bruce and Dwayne Sweeney are quality footballers.
If Otago does not shut them down, it could be another long trip home from Hamilton.
