Southern sides to meet as league kicks off

THE three southern sides will have familiar foes in the opening rounds of the new South Island league.

The league is set to kick off this weekend and the sevenround competition will go through until the start of September.

No final will be played: the eight teams will play one round robin.

Games are split between Saturdays and Sundays. Queenstown is set to play in the opening match of the season, taking on Cashmere Technical in Christchurch this Saturday.

The other two sides from the Football South premiership, which is sponsored by the Otago Daily Times, are Dunedin Technical and Southland United.

These two teams will do battle this Sunday in Dunedin, starting at 2pm.

Next week, Queenstown plays its first game at home when it takes on Southland United on July 7 at the Queenstown Events Centre.

Dunedin Technical has four home games and will get to host Queenstown on August 12. Queenstown Rovers and Southland United have just the three home games.

Games will be played at various kickoff times, depending on flights and transport arrangements.

There are five sides from the Mainland premier league in the competition to complete the eightteam league.

Cashmere Technical won the premiership in Canterbury, finishing five points ahead of Coastal Spirit. Ferrymead Bays was third, followed by Nelson Suburbs and Nomads United, which was nine points ahead of the sixthplaced team.

Dunedin Technical has been boosted by the decisions of four Irish players to join the club for the South Island round.

Connor O’Keefe, Danny Ledwith, Stephen Last and Garbhan Coughlan will be valuable additions to the Technical side.

The South Island league has been designed to introduce a higher standard of football among the players, to help prepare them to play in the national summer league.