Earning promotion to the big show might be a tough ask but Otago is determined to do well at New Zealand badminton’s big weekend.
Otago will today resume battle in the Slazenger Cup, the second-tier national competition, in Auckland.
It plays North Harbour and Waitakere today, and Welling-
ton tomorrow morning, before the playoff games.
The national teams competition has long had the two-division structure. The top four teams play in the Wisden Cup and the next eight in the Slazenger Cup.
Otago has yo-yoed over the years but has stayed in the second tier since earning promotion from the third division in 2017.
Team member Lucy Thomsen said Otago’s chances were "pretty good" this week.
"Usually, we target just one or two teams to beat to stay in the competition, but I feel like we have a slight chance of making the top four this year.
"That would be awesome; the best we’ve done in a long time.
"I think we have quite a solid, experienced team at this point."
On the men’s side, Otago is led by the experienced Jake Dickson, who has qualified as a masters player but still holds his own in open badminton.
"He’s a psychologist, so he’s pretty cool, calm and collected most of the time," Thomsen said.
Keirik Scilloux, originally from Tahiti and now studying at the University of Otago, has played Oceania-level badminton, so is a welcome addition to the team.
Another newcomer is Claudia Smith, a former Southland representative who has also pitched up in Dunedin for university life.
Josh Kellett, Adithi Alexander and the Kolimlims, Ferdinand and Natasha, have all come through the Otago junior ranks.
Thomsen and Pingkan Polak are in good form, having won the doubles titles at the Otago, Southland and Canterbury opens this year.
Both are in their sixth year in the Otago team.
Bradley Jackson rounds out the 10-strong Otago squad.
