Otago surrendered the Ranfurly Shield to Canterbury at Forsyth Barr Stadium on Saturday night but not before it exhausted all its attacking options.
There were a couple of intercepts, the odd loopy pass which did not find its target and, in those moments of inaccuracy, Canterbury pounced.
Ultimately the visitors were good value for their 35-25 win.
But Otago had to play the way it did. It needed to get the ball wide and as far away from Canterbury's big pack as it could.
That meant taking risks and the crowd of just under 4600 was treated to a fantastic match and a frenetic final 20 minutes.
Dylan Nel bashed the ball forward, Slade McDowall was everywhere, Josh Ioane peppered the flanks with some pinpoint cross kicks.
Perhaps Otago could have stuck someone taller out on the flank to drag in those kick-passes. But wingers Jona Nareki and Vilimoni Koroi were just magic.
Nareki weaved his way to the line to give his side hope in the dying moments, and earlier Koroi scored a wonderful 70m solo effort, only for it to be ruled out because the pass to him was forward.
A lot of endeavour went unrewarded. Canterbury's rush defence was pretty effective though, particular in the first half.
The visitors led 13-6 at the break. Brett Cameron drilled two penalties and a conversion.
The competition's leading try scorer Josh McKay beat several defenders on his way to the line for another five-pointer.
McKay got his opportunity when winger Dallas McLeod picked off an ambitious pass from Sio Tomkinson and ran 40m before linking up with the fullback.
Otago looked to have replied when Aleki Morris-Lome spun out of a tackle and got the ball to Nareki who was ruled to have been held up.
Everybody south of the Waitaki could see Nareki got the ball down. The actual evidence was not clear enough to award the try, though.
Another try went begging late in the half when Tomkinson floated a pass to no-one. Michael Collins would have been in had it gone to hand.
Canterbury scored early in the second spell but Otago replied when Ioane stabbed a grubber through for Tomkinson to run on to.
The euphoria was short-lived. Canterbury struck back immediately through winger Sam Gilbert and led 27-13 with a quarter of the game remaining.
The drama was just beginning to unfold. Veteran flanker Adam Thomson rolled back the years with a wonderful intercept try under the dot.
But that good work was undermined moments later, when Ioane went for a skip pass and Tim Bateman accepted the gift.
Then the Canterbury midfielder picked up a yellow card for getting offside and the visitors played the last five minutes a man down.
Nareki jigged his way to the line to cut the deficit to a converted try but Cameron sealed victory with a penalty.