Opening strong, Northland had fans on their feet with some promising plays. But the dam eventually burst, just like it has on many occasions this year.
The first points of the night went to Otago first five-eight Fletcher Smith who was successful with a penalty kick in front of the sticks.
Northland struggled to contain Otago fullback Tony Ensor - the architect of Otago's attack in the first half.
The floodgates well and truly opened as Ensor linked a silky smooth break down the left flank to set up Otago's third.
Wowing their loyal fans with a try under the sticks from Shane Neville, Northland winger Dave Thomas then blitzed his way to the line to score arguably one of the best tries seen in the ITM Cup so far this season.
Unable to carry any confidence from Thomas' try into the second half, Northland's defensive woes continued as Otago stacked on the points.
Struggling at scrum time, Otago picked up an easy three points as Northland's front row buckled at the start of the second stanza.
Otago then kept the tank running full steam ahead with a try to James Lentjes off a driving maul.
Northland then failed to secure possession as Otago ran in their remaining tries to rub salt into the wounds of the Taniwha and the hearts of the Northland faithful.
With all hope lost for a win, Northland decided to do the unthinkable.
A flurry of tries in the last quarter saw Northland transform into a side unseen throughout the 2015 campaign.
Kara Pryor starred in a superb try via an 80m run after intercepting the pill from a loose pass which came from the hands of Otago replacement halfback Kaide Whiting.
Replacement Taniwha halfback Kurt Davies then secured Northland's first championship point of the year with the fourth try of the night, which was then followed by a well-earned fifth try by hard-working skipper Matt Moulds.
Lifting themselves off the donut with the bonus point, Northland weren't quite finished as winger Jordan Hyland ran in their sixth under the posts to head into this weekend's fixture versus North Harbour with a bounty of confidence, but some defensive creases which need to be ironed out.
Northland 36 (Shane Neville, Dave Thomas, Kara Pryor, Kurt Davies, Matt Moulds, Jordan Hyland tries; Dan Hawkins con, Tyler Lansdowne 2 cons)
Otago 54 (Michael Collins 2, Fletcher Smith, Tony Ensor 2, James Lentjes 2, Kaide Whiting tries; Smith 2 pens, 4 cons)
HT: 12-27
