Still, having soaked up every bit of doubt this season, using the critics as an essential and effective tool for motivation, it was difficult for Smith to let down his guard. And if anyone thought the best team lost in Wellington, he had a message to send.
"It's still a little bit disrespectful," Smith said of anyone taking gloss off the Highlanders' achievements. "The best thing about it was that no one believed, and we've just been chilling down in Dunedin. It's a little bit of a storm that just blew up and now we've got this beautiful trophy sitting in our laps."
While no one can argue with the spoils, issue may be taken with the claim the rugby world were full of doubters. Even before toppling the Chiefs in the opening week of the playoffs, the Highlanders were being treated as legitimate title contenders, having followed last season's playoff appearance by amassing the second-most competition points in the round robin.
But the perceived lack of believers was a topic that featured prominently post-game, a fact illustrative of the seige mentality Jamie Joseph had instilled within his squad. With fewer big names than any of the other Kiwi teams -- no forwards in the All Blacks and, initially, only three in the backs -- the Highlanders genuinely felt it was them against the world.
"We never really doubted what we could do but, obviously, the public always believed in All Blacks and history," Smith said. "But the best thing about Super Rugby is it's what you do now."
What they do now is celebrate, with Dunedin set to honour their heroes tomorrow. Such a scenario would have been hard to envisage when the Highlanders were mired in mid-table mediocrity but Smith, who headed south in 2011, had long ago set those lofty goals.
"My dream when I came down five years ago was to hold something up in the middle of the Octagon," he said. "And I hope I get to do that tomorrow."
