The draws for the Mitre 10 Cup and the Heartland Championship were released yesterday and Otago was set a draw which is well spaced out and does not have the crowded week until right near the end of the season.
Otago will face premiership newcomer Wellington first on Sunday, August 19 and will then have a relatively short turnaround before facing Hawke's Bay on the following Friday, in the side's first game of the season at Forsyth Barr Stadium.
Otago Rugby Football Union general manager Richard Kinley said the union was happy with the draw it had received.
For the first time the union would host Friday night games which kick off at 5.45pm. It has two Friday night games at this time - the game against Hawke's Bay and a match against Northland.
Two games are played on Friday nights when when a test is being played in New Zealand the next day.
Kinley said the earlier kick-off time might pick up the work crowd and also people from the country, who could then get home after the game at a decent hour.
The side does not have a Ranfurly Shield challenge against Taranaki but through the quirks of the draw a challenge could fall its way.
Manawatu challenges Taranaki in the first challenge of the year and Otago plays Manawatu the following week, in Palmerston North.
The other home games for Otago are against Canterbury, on late Saturday afternoon, and games against Bay of Plenty midweek on October 3 and then Tasman, four days later.
Kinley said it was Otago's turn to host a midweek game and the game was at home as was the game immediately afterwards.
The side plays Auckland at Eden Park on the Friday night before it plays on the Wednesday.
The southern derby against Southland will be played on September 15, in Invercargill.
For the majority of the season, Otago plays home and then away, so that was good to space out home games, Kinley said.
The draw for the Heartland Championship has fallen down the middle for North Otago. It does not play Meads Cup champion and perennial heavyweight Wanganui in the regular season but also misses out on taking on easy-beats East Coast.
North Otago opens with a game against Buller in Oamaru, then has to travel north to take on Mid Canterbury in Ashburton the week after. The side also has home games against Horowhenua-Kapiti, West Coast and South Canterbury.
Along with Wanganui and East Coast, it does not play Poverty Bay.
The draw for the women's provincial competition is due out next month.
