With the SI Champ or whatever it is called for Coastal and Cashmere, what are Nomads and Universities doing?. Same question further south, what has been put in place for the 5 teams other than the top 2.
Universities and Nomads now contesting the 7 team New World Canterbury Premier League, the other 5 teams are from the recently completed Canterbury Women's Championship League (CWCL) 5 teams - Cashmere Technical CWCL, Christchurch United, Coastal Spirit SAS, Halswell and Selwyn.
Unsure what if happening in the Football Southern Federation, but will try and find out.
Also the official name is the South Island Women's Championship, - involving Dunedin City Royals, Roslyn Wakari, Cashmere Technical and Coastal Spirit SAS, not the Southern League as some are calling it.
Morrison Mitsubishi Reta Fitzpatrick Cup Semi-Final Draw: Universities vs. Christchurch United - 2 August 7pm Coastal Spirit SAS vs. Cashmere Technical - 3 August 7pm
Understand details around WPL will be announced any day, looks like we could see a big increase in the number of teams in recent seasons, which was an all-time low of only four in 2022. Obviously as you have alluded to Nelson Suburbs are going to be starters and would expect the four from last season - Coastal Spririt SAS, Cashmere Technical, Nomads (who are now working closely with FC 2011 in 2023 with both clubs offering combined programmes for female players), would expect Christchurch United to enter a team, then have the likes of Selwyn, Ferrymead Bays, Halswell and Waimak who have all had teams in the WPL at some stage in recent seasons.
Believe the 8 teams are: Cashmere Technical, Coastal Spirit SAS, Halswell - Christchurch United (combined), Nelson Suburbs, Nomads, Selwyn, Universities and Waimak. One round, with the first of the 7 games scheduled for 1 April. Unused sub
So… Coastal Cashtech Nomadsfc2011 University of C Nelson Suburbs Chch Utd Waimak Halswell? Selwyn? Bays? Western? Who are the 8 teams?
Cheers Gavin. No Western or Bays. I’m surprised that Halswell and Chch Utd have combined. Utd could afford a stand alone team surely? Although several of their players have played for at the nest before. Would make more sense if Selwyn and Halswell combined. Is the Nomads team combined with Fc2011? So glad to see an 8 team league. Good idea to have combined club teams rather than only 5 entries. It means the players have more games- although disappointing to only have 1 round??? And more opportunities for younger players, and the lower teams still have games they can get something out of rather than getting pasted all the time and it’s a good challenge to take on the likes of Coatal and tech. A shame they don’t have a second round to judge how much they have improved and learned from the first round. I can’t think of any good reason why they can’t have a second round.
In the draw just has Nomads unlike Halswell ChCh United and Coastal Spirit SAS.
After one Round top teams split off to play the top teams from down south, which if like last season will be over two Rounds, for the Southern League, or South Island Championship as it was called in 2022.
Ultimately NZ Football are looking for the Women's National League to be fully club based, which will lead to the demise of Southern United and Canterbury United Pride, Central and Capital in the coming seasons. This was announced several years ago and has already started to happen with four club-based teams coming out of the Auckland / Waikato regions for 2022 WNL.
Unused sub
Cheers Gavin. No Western or Bays. I’m surprised that Halswell and Chch Utd have combined. Utd could afford a stand alone team surely? Although several of their players have played for at the nest before. Would make more sense if Selwyn and Halswell combined. Is the Nomads team combined with Fc2011? So glad to see an 8 team league. Good idea to have combined club teams rather than only 5 entries. It means the players have more games- although disappointing to only have 1 round??? And more opportunities for younger players, and the lower teams still have games they can get something out of rather than getting pasted all the time and it’s a good challenge to take on the likes of Coatal and tech. A shame they don’t have a second round to judge how much they have improved and learned from the first round. I can’t think of any good reason why they can’t have a second round.
Release earlier today from NZ Football which also has timeline around for the Women's National League to become fully club based:
Women’s National League Championship expands to ten teams including adding Wellington Phoenix reserves
New Zealand Football’s women’s National League Championship will be expanding for the 2023 season, including the addition of Wellington Phoenix’s reserve side.
The league will grow from eight to ten teams and switch to a single round robin competition followed by a grand final, the same structure as the men’s National League Championship.
As piloted in 2022, the 2023 women’s competition will operate a hybrid model with both club and federation-run sides.
The 2023 competition will feature:
Four club sides qualifying from the Lotto Northern Region Football League
Three federation sides (one Central Football, two Capital Football) to be delivered in partnership with club sides from the regions
Two federation sides representing the South Island, Canterbury United Pride and Southern United, to be delivered by Mainland Football and Southern Football
Wellington Phoenix reserves will be granted an automatic qualification spot, as in the men’s competition, to support the youth development of the A-League Women side
The competition will move to a fully club-based model, the same as the three regional leagues of the men’s competition, when club capability allows. This is provisionally targeted for 2024/2025 in the Central and Capital federations and 2026 for the Mainland and Southern federations.
To further support the future move to a fully club-based competition, 2023 will also see the Mainland and Southern federations jointly deliver a South Island league. While it will not form part of the qualifying process for the National League Championship, it will act as a pilot for future incorporation into the league, as the Southern League does for the men’s competition.
Daniel Farrow, General Manager of Football at New Zealand Football, sees this as a big step on the way to having a fully club-based women’s league:
“The feedback we had from the 2022 women’s National League Championship was that participants want to move to a club-based competition as soon as possible.
“This change is part of New Zealand Football’s ‘Bridging the Gap’ project which will see the competition transition to a club-based model, the same as the men’s league, over time whilst still having the support of federation sides.
“It is now the job of New Zealand Football and the federations to work with clubs across the country to ensure that they have sufficient capability and youth development, through tools like our Club Licensing programme, to deliver a fully club-based women’s competition as soon as competitively possible.”
Going forward the Mainland Women's League will be known as the Southern Qualifying League (SQL), with the top four sides qualifying for a six team Southern League, the other two coming from the qualifying league down south. The Southern League will be over ten games, 'home' and 'away'.
The four teams that do not qualify for the Southern League will then play in a Women's Premiership.
Sounds like a good plan and an incentive for club teams to take it more seriously. Hopefully Nelson can be one of the qualifiers in the southern league and we can see some great quality football here.
Good luck to Rebecca Lake - Coastal Spirit SAS and Pride captain, who has moved across the ditch and signed for Northern Tigers FC in Sydney for the coming season.
Good luck to Rebecca Lake - Coastal Spirit SAS and Pride captain, who has moved across the ditch and signed for Northern Tigers FC in Sydney for the coming season.
Good on her. That NSW NPL comp is a good level of competition. And has a good lead into ALW. I think she is at that standard, so will be in the shop window for Aussie teams, not just the Nix next year. last year Steinmetz, Gomez and Bunge(for half the season) played for Northern Tigers.
More aspirational players should play in those leagues. There were/are a whole host of Pride players and others in the NWL that could push on and play ALW. Up to them to pursue it though if they want.
South Island Qualifying League - Round 2 (all Good Friday) 11:30am Coastal Spirit SAS vs. Universities - English Park Midday Selwyn vs Nelson Suburbs FC - Foster Park 2:45pm Nomads vs. Halswell Christchurch United - Tulett Park Cashmere Technical - the bye