Otago had a golden run in the competition but fell short in the final.
Canterbury were ruthless in the second half and pulled away to win 36-28 in Christchurch on Saturday after trailing 14-10 at the break.
While that was disappointing, Lio-Willie has had a mighty year.
The 27-year-old won a title with the Crusaders and made his All Blacks debut.
The powerful loose forward performed well in two tests against France, and many were surprised he was not selected for the All Blacks’ northern tour.
But their loss has been Otago’s gain.
He has been a juggernaut off the back of the scrum.
Incredibly, he has only been involved in four losses all year across his various teams.
"I haven’t really had time to reflect on it, to be honest. It’s been just one after the other," Lio-Willie said on Saturday.
"Even tomorrow [Sunday], I’ve got to leave in the morning for the ABs XV tour.
"I’m just so blessed to be able to get into these different environments and to play my game.
"I just want to keep doing my best in every team and every jersey that I put on."
Lio-Willie has lived in Christchurch since 2023 but returns to Dunedin to play for Otago and plans on doing the same next season.
It is where he got his start in professional rugby and loyalty is important to him.
While Otago was denied a fairytale finish to the season, Lio-Willie said it had been an enjoyable campaign.
"I’m proud of Otago, man. We’re just going to have to come back next year and we’re just going to need to do it again.
"We’ve had a taste of our final for the first time since [2005].
"Hopefully, we’ll go one more and win the championship."
Lio-Willie and the All Blacks XV are staying in Brentford and training at the London Welsh club this week.
They play the Barbarians at Gtech Community Stadium, home of Premier League football club Brentford, on Sunday morning (NZ time), England A in Bath a week later, and Uruguay in France on November 16.
Lio-Willie was the only player from a high-flying Otago team named in the All Blacks XV but Highlanders fans can cheer for Jack Taylor, Sean Withy, TK Howden, Folau Fakatava, Caleb Tangitau and Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens.
