Many leading names are missing from the Otago tennis team which heads to Queenstown today for the first round of the southern tennis league.
Otago plays Southland today and Southern Lakes tomorrow in an abbreviated first round with South Canterbury having withdrawn.
It is in the women where Otago has been hit hardest, with Libby Scott and Brittany Wong ruled out because of exams.
Also unavailable are Paula Ferguson and Amy Rapley, while Heidi Blackburn has returned to Christchurch following exams.
This leaves Otago with the youngest squad seen at this level.
Sian and Hanna English, Georgia Hume and German exchange student Pauline Hobbhahn are all aged from 13 and 16, and, while there is undoubted talent in this squad they are likely to find the Southern lakes women in particular to be too experienced.
If Li Ying Moroney, Suma Ito and Louise Oxnevad are all available the Otago girls are in for a learning experience.
Oxnevad dropped only two games in winning all her matches in the recent junior Southern teams event, including a clear win over Sian English.
She has an ITF junior world ranking.
The Otago men will blood two new players, Campbell Higgins, a student from Tauranga, who has remained in Dunedin for this event, and leading junior Ryan Eggers.
They are joined by the very experienced Philip Mirfin and Jeff Elliotte, who retain their places on current form.
Conrad Wong and Matt White are committed to exams and Dwayne Cleugh has transferred to Wanaka.
Southland is likely to be depleted, although Oliver Cuthill is expected to take the No 1 spot in the men, having returned from a tennis scholarship in New Orleans.
This leaves the home team as clear favourite for the weekend.
