The Old Golds locked away the Lochore Cup after beating Horowhenua-Kapiti 64-47 in an entertaining final in Maheno to finish the Heartland Championship season.
The union laid the foundation early in the year when community stakeholders gathered to form a strategic vision.
That led to the appointment of former Old Golds favourite Luke Herden as Heartland head coach, joined by North Otago centurion Ralph Darling as assistant.
The union returned to the Oamaru Showgrounds this season — with Whitestone Contracting Stadium unavailable due to construction of the Waitaki Event Centre — where club rugby, age-group representative, the North Otago development squad and North Otago women’s games were also played alongside the Old Golds.
North Otago chief executive Sene Naoupu paid tribute to the community at the heart of their success.
"All of those wonderful things took also the community to support us," Naoupu said.
"Every single week of that representative campaign, and as well as the club campaign ... as well as our school calendars, that was all representative of our purpose and vision.
"Then to celebrate a wonderful Lochore Cup final for the boys ... you can’t quite put that into words.
"Ultimately the community have all been part of it.
"They’ve led the strategy development right from the start. They’ve guided the way that we were able to bring in the right person.
"We absolutely are proud of Luke and Ralph, and the entire coaching team, to bring the squad together in such a way that the environment of that group was just absolutely phenomenal."
Players had played "the house down" through the club season and that only continued through Heartland.
"They’ve carried themselves with that mana on the field and off the field.
"That’s the theme of this whole year and that’s what us as a union need to remember and be grounded by — we’re community-led."
There is further reward for prop Kelepi Funaki, No 8 Junior Fakatoufifita and second five Tini Feke, who were selected for the Heartland XV’s two-game tour of Samoa next week.
"There’s just so much excitement and [it’s] just [a] time of celebration after what’s been an incredibly intense year," Naoupu said.
"There’s an awful lot of people to thank that got us through such a successful campaign, the highs and lows.
"But certainly from our team in the union, and our incredible volunteers who also helped us, all the referees, and the wonderful supporters and fans ... the families and all of the kids who were part of it.
"Everything about that campaign was incredibly special."
The union has been working closely with the Waitaki District Council regarding the Waitaki Event Centre development and is "optimistic" about rugby returning to Whitestone Contracting Stadium next year.
