Otago finished its season last Friday night with a flat 38-25 defeat to Manawatu to end with just three wins for the season.
It was a disappointing way to finish for coach Tony Brown, who has come to the end of his three-year contract and is moving on to work with the Highlanders,There is no obvious candidate to replace Brown and it is going to be a tough job. Instant results are not going to happen.
When Brown came on board in 2012, he had been coaching in Japan, knew the professional game well and was an Otago man through and through.
The first two years the team made progress and players made some real gains.
That is why this year was such a letdown - few players went forward and many stayed still or went backwards.
The side suffered some massive player losses before the season started.
Buxton Popoali'i's retirement was a huge dent in the backline for he had the ability to spark the attack and could create plenty out of very little.
The departures of forwards Paul Grant and Gareth Evans were big blows while Fumiaki Tanaka going back to Japan was another negative.
This season no-one stood up to any degree to take the place of those key players. There was no massive individual play to turn a game when it mattered. Two years ago, Tony Ensor lit up the competition. But this year, no-one put their hand up.
No-one in the Otago team would be vying for a sprint berth in a New Zealand relay team. Halfback was a problem position which cost the side.
Up front, Otago did not physically dominate enough and lacked some mongrel when it mattered.
Watch teams such as Counties-Manukau or Auckland. They are physically tough and strong. Otago was not in their league. Players struggled to get to the advantage line.
The side lost all three of its games around its one midweek match. This can make or break a season and Otago was always struggling from then.
The issue was not selection. More or less the best players in club rugby in Dunedin were picked in the squad. There were not a dozen players sitting on the sideline who should have been there.
So if this mob was the best Otago had, then where to now?
Getting out the chequebook appears to be a non-starter for the union which still carries the scars from near bankruptcy less than three years ago.
In 2010, Otago finished dead last. New players came in and many of them failed so that road is not the one to head down.
Otago has to hope a few young players and established players get better. And get better quickly. Otago needs players with ability not just triers.
How many of the current lot have that ability?
Judging on this year, not enough.
Otago: the 2014 season
STATISTICS
Played: 10, won 3, lost 7, points for 228, points against 279.
Top scorer: Hayden Parker 108 points (22 pen, 16 con, 2 tries).
Top tryscorer: Fa'asiu Fuatai 5.
BEST PERFORMANCE
v Waikato (won 38-7)
Otago just went out and played good, basic rugby. Kicked and tackled well and did not let the young Waikato team in with any chance.
WORST PERFORMANCE
v Hawkes Bay (lost 41-0)
At the end of a tough two weeks, Otago was blinded in the headlights and was down by 19 points inside eight minutes. Never got back into the game and never looked like scoring.
BEST PLAYERS
1) Lock Tom Franklin
Continued his improvement. Won plenty of ball at lineout time, ran hard round the paddock and was not slow to get physical.
2) Loose forward Lee Allan
Had a disrupted season, and was really missed when sidelined. Grabbed a few turnovers, made metres with the ball and was a good leader on the field. Missed the last three games of the season because of a head knock from a dangerous tackle where the offender was banned for one week. Go figure.
MUST DO BETTER
1) Fullback Trent Renata
At times, it was hard to believe this guy was a Super rugby player. A poor defender who was about as convincing in the tackle as David Seymour is in Parliament. Looked to be just clocking in and picking up the cheque.
2) Halfback Nick Ealey
For a team to succeed, it needs a good halfback. Otago did not have one. Josh Renton needs to go away and play club rugby for a couple of years, while Ealey added little on the field. Chose plenty of bad options and kicked poorly too often.
