Sam Brown took over the coaching reins last season and the team finished seventh of the eight teams.
''It was the the team's best performance for over a decade,'' Brown said.
''This year, we are targeting fifth or sixth place.''
The Black Sticks did not play last year because of the Olympics and their return will make the competition tougher.
''The strength of the Southern team has always been the heart and determination of its players,'' Brown said.
''We've never been one of the regions predicted to make the top four or the semifinals. But we are still hopeful of a good result.''
The standard of women's hockey in Otago has dropped since the glory days when inspirational international striker Jenny McDonald ruled the roost.
It is 26 years since Otago last won the national tournament and the Southern coach does not expect a change this year.
The 18-strong squad has been boosted by two international guest players. Midfielder Louise Mitterdorfer is from the Netherlands and defender Mathilda Carmichael is from Australia.
Mitterdorfer (25) played for the Netherlands under-21 team before shifting to Australia. She now plays in the Australian league.
The highlight of her career was being a member of the Netherlands team that beat Germany to win the European under-18 championships seven years ago.
''They will stiffen up the centre of the field for us,'' Brown said.
They will give encouragement to a Southern team that lacks the elite players teams such as Canterbury and Auckland have in the ranks.
The other guest players in the squad are Briana Lupton, Stephanie Mackie and Georgina McKenzie.
A player expected to shine is Junior Black Sticks striker Phillipa Symes, who has just returned from the world junior championships. Liz Gifford is in the New Zealand development squad.
Another experienced player joining the squad this year is midfielder Sophie Wickens (24), who played for Capital and Midland before playing club hockey in Ireland for two years.
''There is a bigger emphasis on club hockey over there and the competition was of a high standard. We played against Irish internationals,'' Wickens said.
There are positive signs southern women's hockey is on the up. The under-21 team won a bronze medal at the national tournament in Whangarei in May, and the under-18 team was third in Hamilton in July.
Southern has a tough start to its national league campaign this weekend when it plays Canterbury in Timaru tomorrow and Capital in Wellington on Sunday.
Canterbury has eight Black Sticks in its squad and a defender from the junior women's team.
The week-long national tournament begins in North Harbour the following weekend.
Southern hockey
Women's squad
Mathilda Carmichael, Millie Cowan, Elizabeth Gifford, Latoya Grant, Aimee Heaps, Charlotte Henley, Tessa Hewlett, Dayna Holland, Paige Lane, Brianna Lupton, Stephanie Mackie, Georgina McKenzie, Louise Mitterdorfer, Courtney Ross, Emma Spratt, Phillipa Symes, Sophie Wickens, Jamie Wiles. Coach: Sam Brown.
Manager: Kerry Lockhart.
