But the former All Black is philosophical about this year and how it all played out.
Dixon broke into the All Blacks last year and made his test debut at Forsyth Barr Stadium against the Welsh.
That was just reward after two years of fine performances in the Highlanders jersey.
But this year was not as successful.
He was hit by niggling injuries with the Highlanders and ended up missing a good part of the season with an Achilles injury.
He was never in consideration for national honours and ended up playing for Southland in its winless season in the Mitre 10 Cup.
In the third-last game of the season for Southland he injured a bicep muscle which forced him to have an operation. He was unavailable for the New Zealand Maori tour and will not be training before Christmas.
But Dixon (28) is not down - he is a glass-half-full sort of guy.
He felt the year was getting better and he had been making improvements with Southland.
''I had little things that I had to work on during the Mitre 10 Cup season. I enjoyed my time with Southland even though we were not winning or did not get the results we were after. I really enjoyed the season,'' he said.
'I got the passion back for the week-to-week games and how I figure that off-field and on-field game. You're spending time with a growing family, a young family at that.''
He was named Southland's best player for the season so must have been doing something right.
''Last year maybe I was too busy. But maybe it was just a down year. Form goes up and down throughout an 18-week season. Things happen that you can't control. I had cellulitis but you can't do much about that. We will see how we go. But I'm just looking forward to putting some work into the body and getting back into some good condition and put it out on the field.
''I have been talking to the coaches and the managers already about next year and a few of the other boys about plans. So I am excited about the new group.''
