Three of our region’s clubs will be involved in the Southern League next year with South City Royals, Green Island and Mosgiel flying the flag for the deep south.

Football South are delighted as this development gives players a clear pathway to playing at the highest level in New Zealand. Football Development Manager Danny Ledwith has been impressed by the efforts displayed by the three clubs, “It’s taken a lot of hard work for clubs to get to this level and it is another step in an exciting direction for our federation, it’s fantastic to have 3 clubs from our region involved in the National League next year. National League club licensing is a roadmap into how clubs should aspire to operate, and for 3 of our clubs to achieve this through the hard work of countless volunteers is amazing! It is also extremely positive for our young players, who now see a clear pathway to the National League.” 

Ledwith continues, “I think on the whole it is a truly exciting time in our federation. A revamped ODT Southern Premiership with promotion and relegation both ways will be the driving force for club development and help us continue to grow and develop as a region. There are some very exciting times ahead!”  

New Zealand Football granting Mosgiel, Green Island and the South City Royals National League club licensing is testament to the hard work behind the scenes of three clubs. South City Royals’ head coach Richard Murray is delighted that the Royals have met the National league licensing requirements, “We’ve worked really hard, and the main goal was to get into the Southern League, which we’ve done. The licensing stuff took a lot of work from people behind the scenes to get a licence first up is really rewarding for those that got us to that point.” Murray continues, “It provides a great pathway and means we’ve built that foundation that we can work from and improve. It also reinforces that the merger was the right decision for us to make.” 

Green Island’s Head Coach Shane Carvell is relishing the chance to represent the region in the Southern League again in 2022, “It’s a brilliant opportunity and we’re really excited to be there again. It's something we’ve been looking to secure for a while and we dug deep in the play-offs, but now we have the licensing it makes it all worth it.” Carvell reflects that it is a move forward for the club, “It’s a massive step for the Island with both a Southern League team and a team in the ODT Southern Premiership. It requires some more hard work but raises the profile of the club too.” Carvell is thankful to everyone who has been a part of the club securing the licensing, “Everybody down here is a volunteer and it’s people giving their free time which we’re very grateful for, we couldn’t have done it without everyone’s help.” 

Mosgiel’s head coaching trio of Cameron McPhail, Rory Crow and Malcolm Fleming are overjoyed with Mosgiel’s spot in the Southern League and immensely thankful for the hard work behind the scenes at the club, “It is incredibly exciting for Mosgiel to be able to play at the highest level possible. A lot of hard work has been put in by players, coaches and administrators to get the club into this position.” 

Otago University just missed out on meeting the National League club licensing requirements, but have a chance (as do all teams) to secure promotion to the Southern League if they win the ODT Men's Southern Premiership and meet NZF National League club requirements in 2022. Varsity earned a spot through sporting merit and their performances in the ODT Men’s Southern Premiership and the Southern League. They will participate in the ODT Men’s Southern Premiership this season and will have the chance to reapply for it in 2023. 

Next season’s ODT Men’s Southern Premiership will be revamped with an additional 2 teams competing, bringing the total number of teams to 10. The league has been spiced up with the addition of promotion and relegation, which allows for all teams throughout the region to aspire and work towards competing at National League level and gives teams from all FS regions the chance to be involved in the ODT MSP. To be promoted to the ODT Men’s Southern Premiership, there will be a play-off between the winner of the Fletcher Cup competition, the winner of the Donald Gray competition and the winner of the South Canterbury Division 1 Men’s competition. For promotion to the Southern League, there will be a play-off between the nominated Canterbury Premier League team and the nominated Southern Premier League team, this team must also meet NZF licensing requirements. 

There will be further regional representation, in addition to the 2 Central Otago based teams, there will be a team from both Southland and South Canterbury, with Queens Park and Northern Hearts representing their respective regions. Northern Hearts claimed their second straight South Canterbury Senior Men’s Division One title and nearly went unbeaten, recording 11 wins and just one loss. Queens Park also secured back-to-back titles in Southland's Donald Gray Cup, with the Invercargill side unbeaten in the league throughout.  

The teams in next season’s ODT Southern Premiership will be as follows: 

Green Island (Reserves) 

Mosgiel (Reserves) 

Northern 

Northern Hearts 

Otago University  

Queens Park 

Queenstown 

Roslyn Wakari 

South City Royals (Reserves) 

Wanaka