The team fell short of their goal of a third straight title but player-coach Jared Ovens said there were still plenty of positives.
Six players made the tournament team — Olly Wickham, Nick Dalziel, Josh Dalziel, Jonty Naylor, Neil Bryant and Blain Hamilton.
Goalkeeper Wickham was particularly impressive considering he was just 16, Ovens said.
“Olly in goal would’ve been our standout performer. He kept us in games.
“We would’ve lost all three games if he didn’t stop some of the amazing shots that he stopped.”
The team’s opening match against eventual champions Mid Canterbury was ultimately their undoing.
North Otago was up 3-0 but conceded a trio of late goals to end up drawing the match.
They went on to lose to Central Otago 3-0 before beating Eastern Southland twice — the second time being the third and fourth playoff — to cap off the tournament.
North Otago were dealt several injury blows which “hindered us a bit”, Ovens said.
However, it opened up opportunities for younger players like Wickham and fellow Waitaki Boys’ High School student Liam Hayes.
“It’s good to see we’ve got some young kids coming through that potentially could play for quite a few years for us.”
The entire tournament was played at a very high level, Ovens said.
“There wasn’t much between each team. It was very, very good clean hockey and it was quite fast.
“Each team had some real up-and-coming talents ... and it shows that our wee southern area is still producing some very good hockey players.”
They are motivated to win back the title in Central Otago next year.
“We’ve got a good core. Hopefully some of the injuries will be good by then and we can have an even stronger team next year.”
