Otago country clubs have rejected a proposal to rejig the format of premier club rugby.
The proposal would have led to country clubs from both Central Otago and Southwest Otago competing against each other throughout the season.
Officials from both regions met recently to hear the proposal of a Heineken Cup-style competition running alongside the respective regional competitions.
Central Otago rugby board chairman Peter Gallagher said at least two-thirds of the Central clubs and half of the southwest clubs voted against the idea, for various reasons.
The competition would have involved each side playing teams in its own region once, for the regional title, while simultaneously playing in a separate Otago country competition.
Gallagher believed the change would have benefited the country clubs by giving extra exposure to players looking to break into first-class rugby in the Otago region.
However, the feeling of club players was that keeping the competition within their own regions was the better option because of the daunting travel commitments the new format would have required.
In a surprise move, the Wakatipu Wanderers side, rumoured to be joining the Southland B competition because of the many heavy defeats handed out in previous seasons, has been given a lifeline by the Central Otago board.
The board has agreed to a second-tier competition involving teams from Alexandra-Roxburgh combined, Cromwell and Upper Clutha.
Last year, the Wanderers were thrashed 112-5 in the first round of the Central Otago competition by Cromwell and recorded heavy losses over the rest of the season.
Their only win was against a depleted Clyde-Earnscleugh.
It will now get to stay in the Central Otago region and compete with teams of more even ability.
The club rugby competition begins on March 28.
