Both the men and women will take 12 players to Rotorua, where they will play the other qualifiers from around the country at the two-day tournament.
Otago Mitre 10 Cup winger Mitchell Scott captains the men's team, which also features Jonathan Ruru, who made his New Zealand debut at the end of last year.
The side also includes pacey University and Otago back Gavin Stark, elusive utility Ben Miller and Dunedin back Leroy van Dam.
It has a tough road to the knockout rounds, needing to finish in the top two of a pool that includes Auckland, Wellington and Horowhenua-Kapiti. In November, Otago finished second in the southern regional tournament to qualify for the event, being pipped 12-5 by Tasman in the final.
The team is in a pool with Manawatu, Waikato and North Harbour. With only three pools, it needs to finish in the top two, or be one of the two best third-place finishes to advance. It also came second in the southern regional tournament, narrowly beaten by Canterbury 14-12 in the final.
The men's team begins its weekend against Auckland at 12.45pm, and the women kick off at 12.05pm against Waikato.
- Jeff Cheshire