Otago Country will make its debut in the Dunedin senior club competition against Carisbrook-Dunedin today.
It will play in the first round of the one-day tournament this year before dropping out to play in the zone 4 Hawke Cup elimination series against cup holder North Otago, South Canterbury, Mid Canterbury and Southland.
For the likes of vice-captain James Pyle, it is a fantastic opportunity to push his claims for a spot in the Otago side.
The wicketkeeper-batsman is rated highly in the country and was first picked to play for the Otago Country Hawke Cup team when he was 15.
But opportunities to play in front of the likes of Otago coach Mike Hesson and some of the other selectors have been rare in recent years, and the 25-year-old is determined to make the most of the opening.
"We've got a huge point to prove," Pyle said.
"We've always struggled to play cricket in front of guys like Hess and it is good chance for us to play well in front of him and put some claims forward for higher honours."
As a promising youngster, Pyle was picked in various age-group teams and played in the Dunedin competition for five years while he was at university.
He started out with Green Island and then shifted to North East Valley.
It has always been his goal to play for Otago but that dream has remained elusive.
"I've been through the age-group system and always wanted to play for Otago.
"But it just never seemed to work out. I never really played well enough while I was in town, to be honest."
Pyle believes he has made progress since he last played in the Dunedin competition.
"I know where I need to be in my mindset to score runs and how to carry that out on to the field to be successful.
"I've done a lot of work with him [Andy Sainsbury, Otago Country coach] over the years, and a few things which Hess tried to get through to me when I was younger have kind of just clicked for me."
The gloveman bats in the top four and has been a prolific scorer for Otago Country in the past few seasons.
An agricultural contractor, he lives in the picturesque Ida Valley and clocks up about 500km each week driving to and from practice.
And hailing, as he does, from curling country, Pyle is a dab hand at the winter sport and represented New Zealand at age-group level.
His father, John, also played Hawke Cup cricket and his mother, Julie, played hockey for Otago Country.
Otago Country has lost some key personnel, with opening batsman Leighton Morgan and leading bowler Ronnie Kotkamp moving away.
Likewise, all-rounder Jason Domigan has shifted to Invercargill and bowler Ben Purvis is overseas.
Change bowler Ollie Newton is playing for Dunedin club Albion.
That has left the bowling attack down on experience but it will be boosted by the arrival of Otago bowlers Warren McSkimming, Ian Butler and James McMillan for the first round.
Defending champion Green Island edged University-Grange by two points to win the senior title last summer and shapes as a tough competitor again.
Batsman Jordan Sheed, all-rounder Mark Joyce and medium-pacer Dion Lobb are key personnel in a squad which also boasts Otago captain Craig Cumming and exciting left-hander Hamish Rutherford.
Grange has an impressive line-up when it is at full strength including Butler, McMillan, Aaron Redmond, Sam Wells and Anthony Bullick.
But those players' skills will be deployed for Otago for a large chunk of the summer, leaving the likes of Mitch Rutherford, Michael Bracewell and veteran batsman Andrew Hore to carry the load.
Albion has picked up Otago strike bowler Neil Wagner from the now defunct Pelichet Bay club and will be looking to improve on its fourth placing.
Wagner's pace, combined with the spin of Nick Beard, Mark Craig and Nathan McCullum (when or if he is available), gives the Albion club plenty of options.
Brendon McCullum has also been named in the squad and, however unlikely, what a treat it would be for the faithful to see the Black Cap take the field for the club again.
Taieri is an unknown quality with a host of personnel changes.
Club stalwart Michael MacKenzie has taken 250 wickets and scored more than 4000 runs for the club but has hung up the boots and experienced players Jarrad Waldron and Craig Stanway are also unavailable.
North East Valley will look to the Broom brothers, Neil and Darren, to give the club some early momentum with the Murley brothers, Jamie and Simon, are also key to the club's prospects.
Canterbury batsman Iain Robertson will bolster Kaikorai's top order, while Carisbrook-Dunedin will sorely miss the services of Greg Todd, who has transferred to Auckland.
The Districts Series also gets under way this weekend.
