Pop quiz: Which New Zealand rugby union has the longest-running playoff streak in the country, at 14 seasons and counting? And no, it is not Canterbury. It is, in fact, tiny North Otago. Sports editor Hayden Meikle looks back over an extraordinary era.
2000
Coach: Glenn Moore.
Star men: Simon Porter was in his debut season at first five as a loan player from Dunedin. Matt Saunders was in the midfield, when he wasn't completing his school homework. Regan ''Chief'' Laughton and Barry Fox formed the heart of the pack.
Semifinal (Oamaru): Beat Poverty Bay 53-32.
A confident North Otago side maintained its run of high scoring with a tryfest. The promised land was in sight . . .
Final (Oamaru): Lost to East Coast 25-21.
Sigh. Could have gone either way, to be fair. And East Coast had the whiff of destiny about it. Never mind, there's always next year.
2001
Coach: Moore.
Star men: Ever-smiling prop Hotili Asi could not stop scoring tries and was named third division player of the year. Fepikou Tatafu ruled the midfield, Nathan Archibald ruled the lineout and Ross ''Bones'' Hay ruled the whole field.
Semifinal (Oamaru): Beat Poverty Bay 40-20.
Blockbusting winger Pila Fifita equalled a North Otago record by scoring four tries.
Final (Oamaru): Lost to South Canterbury 20-16.
Garrrgghhh. Make it stop. Make the pain stop! This one still hurts. Losing a final is tough; losing to your arch rival is just awful. Grown men cried - and I was one of them.
2002
Coach: Moore.
Star men: Fifita scored at a ridiculous rate - 15 tries in seven games. Tatafu, Porter, midfielder Mike Mavor and halfback Ryan McCarthy were in sublime form. Archibald, Hay, Laughton and Ray Ofisa starred in the forwards.
Semifinal (Oamaru): Beat South Canterbury 58-10.
Sweet, sweet revenge. Nine tries - nine!
Final (Oamaru): Beat Horowhenua-Kapiti 43-19.
At last. No longer the bridesmaid. A champion for the first time in the union's history. Fifita three tries, Tatafu two. It's time to celebrate.
2003
Coach: Moore.
Star men: McCarthy, Mavor and Hay just kept performing at a top level. Cam McKenzie was the top man in the pack and an exciting newcomer was winger Scott Mayhew.
Semifinal (Napier): Lost to Hawkes Bay 24-18.
Robbed! Robbed blind! North Otago's first season in second division rugby could - make that, should - have ended in a place in the final. A Mayhew ''try'' was denied. If only there had been a television match official.
2004
Coach: Moore.
Star men: Mayhew was joined out wide by the electric Watisoni Lotawa. Ryan Bambry was a polished first five, and Ofisa was back in top form.
Semifinal (Nelson): Lost to Nelson Bays 32-15.
No argument here. Beaten by a classy side that included a VERY promising winger called Lucky Mulipola. Where did he end up?
2005
Coach: Moore.
Star men: Mike ''Big Bird'' Mavor became the first man from North Otago to play 100 first-class games. McCarthy and fullback Luke Herden were in great form. English flanker Adam Kettle became a crowd favourite.
Semifinal (Napier): Lost to Hawkes Bay 15-11.
Another heart-breaker in Napier. This was a phenomenal performance from North Otago, which kept the Magpies scoreless. A worthy effort to close the amazing Moore era.
2006
Coach: Mike Mullins.
Star men: A radically different playing roster, though Mayhew was still around. New captain Karne Kaufana joined exciting halfback Kilifi Fangupo in the backs. The forwards featured a young Englishman called Tom Wood.
Meads Cup semifinal (Masterton): Lost to Wairarapa-Bush 25-19.
First playoff game in the new Meads/Lochore format did not end well.
2007
Coach: Mullins.
Star men: Fangupo and Hay were as good as ever. But the big success was loan player Glenn Dickson, who proved influential to a great season.
Meads Cup semifinal (Oamaru):Beat Wairarapa-Bush 30-13.
Two tries on the wing for converted forward Stephen Sasagi.
Meads Cup final (Oamaru):Beat Wanganui 25-8.
Two tries for the wonderful Fangupo as the Old Golds claimed a second national title. Did the ODT rugby writer enjoy the look on the face of Wanganui mayor Michael Laws? Yes, very much.
2008
Coach: Mullins.
Star men: Hamish McKenzie and Jeremy Te Huia formed a skilled inside back combination. Joe Mamea and the ageless Hay dominated the loose.
Meads Cup semifinal (Ashburton): Lost to Mid Canterbury 38-24.
Mavor and player-coach Mullins - combined age of nearly 80 - each scored a try.
2009
Coach: Mullins.
Star men: Taua Limuloa soared high in the lineouts, and Peter Breen came home under the player of origin scheme.
Lochore Cup semifinal (Masterton): Beat King Country 31-27.
Dan Waenga scored 26 points - the union record is 28, held jointly by Porter and Chris Finch.
Lochore Cup final (Greymouth): Beat West Coast 21-13.
Nice to win a trophy, but this is seen as something of a consolation prize.
2010
Coach: Barry Matthews.
Star men: Herden was back - this time in midfield - and had Greg Zampach, Ben Patston and Billy Guyton for company. Josh Collier, Eric Duff and Ralph Darling were in the pack.
Meads Cup semifinal (Oamaru): Beat Mid Canterbury 40-24.
Lemi Masoe and the deceptively quick Herden each scored two tries.
Meads Cup final (Oamaru): Beat Wanganui 39-18.
And a third national title is in the bag. Six tries to two, so it was never in doubt. This capped a wonderful year for North Otago sport, following the cricket team's Hawke Cup success.
2011
Coach: Matthews.
Star men: Herden, Patston and Faaitu Tuamoheloa ran the backs. Duff was in peak form in the forwards.
Meads Cup semifinal (Oamaru): Lost to East Coast 23-17.
Bogey team strikes again. North Otago had beaten the Coast boys by 35 points earlier in the season.
2012
Coach: Matthews.
Star men: Guyton (now a Hurricane) ran at second five. Darling ran all over the field.
Meads Cup semifinal (Ruatoria): Lost to East Coast 26-15.
Three playoff games against East Coast, three losses. Enough said.
2013
Coach: Mullins.
Star men: Chris Talanoa and Robbie Smith sparked the backs. Duff, Samisoni Tongotongo and Josh Clark led a dynamic pack.
Meads Cup semifinal (Oamaru): Beat Wairarapa-Bush 48-34.
A tryfest, and fullback Ed Keohane kicked eight from nine for the Old Golds.
Meads Cup final (Ashburton): Lost to Mid Canterbury 26-20.
A clash of coaches, with Mullins doing a fine job in his second stint with North Otago, and Moore returning to the heartland to coach Mid Canterbury after three years with the Highlanders.
The story of this game was the wind.
One of Keohane's halfway restarts curled back over his head and bounced over the North Otago dead-ball line.
