An own goal inside 15sec was not the start coach Luiz Uehara wanted in Timaru, where a strong Canterbury team comfortably beat Southern United 5-1.
Already weakened by five first-choice players trapped in Dunedin for university exams, the Southern side struggled in the early stages, and a boot in the eye sidelined defender Jakob Schneider after 10 minutes.
Swathed in bandages, the new German signing from Carl Zeiss Jena took no part in the rest of the match.
In the 16th minute, Canterbury sliced through a hesitant Southern defence and at 2-0, things looked bleak for Uehara's side.
But to its credit, Southern settled with some controlled passing and Cam Attwood led a spirited fightback. Pride switched the Southern side into top gear, and Taylor McCormack showed pace and control to hit the Canterbury line and deliver crosses.
The score remained 2-0 at halftime.
Regan Coldicott and Peter Rae also carved their way forward, but resolute Canterbury tackling led by centreback Tom Schwarz, limited Henriques Viana, and the Brazilian was targeted with close marking throughout the match.
Campbell Higgins and Matt Joy settled, and the Southern side had spells of controlled possession, but despite some promising United moves, goals by Russell Kamo, Cory Mitchell and man of the match Steve Morrison, from a superb free kick, gave Canterbury dominance.
Daniel Morris scored Southern's late goal with a crisply-hit penalty, after referee Hamish Phillip punished an over-enthusiastic Canterbury tackle in the box.
Canterbury coach Keith Braithwaite praised his seasoned midfield trio of All White Aaron Clapham, experienced professional Stu Kelly and former Everton player Morrison.
Braithwaite also has had a quality infusion of exotic talent in Pablo Mayo and Fed Marques, and enough pre-season game time to form a reasonable unit.
Southern coach Uehara expected better, but he and assistant Darren Hart admitted the opposition was quicker in body and mind than the local opposition they had been training against at Tahuna Park.
''To start five men short, then concede an almost instant own goal, and then lose Jakob, made it an uphill struggle against a well-organised Canterbury side,'' Uehara said.
''There were still some good performances, and I am sure that with the spirit shown, we can build and become more effective, as we will have to be, in our first national league match next week against Waitakere.''
