The Otago men are chasing a triple against Southland this weekend.
They have held on to the coveted Bates Shield since wrestling it off Southland in 2023.
The Whatukura defended their prize in Invercargill last year and will have the home advantage at Hancock Park on Sunday.
It is a big day on the calendar for both provinces.
The Otago women have the Henderson’s trophy tucked away.
They won it back in 2023, but Southland was unable to field a team in the annual fixture last year.
The Māreikura will start as favourites. They have had a few Southlanders defect to their ranks.
Co-coach Doug Hill said the team had experienced plenty of player turnover since 2023, when they won both the Henderson Shield and the Jubilee Cup.
"That was an extremely strong team with some key players," he said.
"We’ve had a lot of turnover since."
In saying that, Hill said the team has "strength across the board but we don’t have that extreme top-level pitcher like two years ago when we had Kate Dolinski over from Canada."
Māreikura will lean on Teagan Popata to pick up the slack on the pitching mound, while Southland player Abby Wallace will be behind the plate catching.
Teremaia Johnson, Maraea Te Huia and Keira Harvey have also made the move from Southland to Otago.
Hill is also excited to see what younger players Benka Page-Smith, Jasmine Hill and Kamyn Hale will offer at this level for the first time.
Whatukura will be led by player-coach Mitchell Finnie again.
He is the pitcher and will team up with catcher Cameron Watts.
Ash Watson, James Mathieson, Jacob Wedlock and Nathan Hill all shape as important contributors as well.
Wedlock is the back-up pitcher, while Watson, Mathieson and Hill lead a powerful batting lineup.
Otago and Southland have competed for the Bates and Henderson Shields for more than 70 years.
