2019 was a year of firsts as Wānaka Premiers were a last-minute addition to the Otago Daily Times Southern Premier League.

Driven by the merge of the established Wānaka junior club with the unaffiliated three men’s teams, both parties sought a clear pathway for our junior members to rise through the club and represent Wānaka at the highest level possible.

The late entry into the league had coaching staff and administrators feverishly working on and off the field to get the official transfers and paperwork required by NZ Football to have eligible players for our first game of the season in Southland on March 23.

Wānaka got off to a perfect start with a convincing 4-2 win with a notable four goals to Steve Pleskun.

The remaining fixtures in this first round proved challenging and two further wins were accompanied with six loses as we adjusted to the competitive nature of the league, finishing 7th equal on points but 9th after goal difference was applied.

With the top three teams moving up to a South Island league we entered the second phase of the season in a new seven-team competition called the Southern Championship.

Our goal was to win this as we had played all the teams and felt, on our day, we had the ability to beat anyone. 

The first three games had us lose two and win one; and after a hiding at the hands of Green Island away there were a lot of questions asked. 

The welcome return of key players proved vital in a change in fortune for the next chapter. 

An unbeaten run of four draws and five consecutive wins had the team and club in good spirits and relishing the challenge every week lifting us to third in the league behind winners Green Island and runners up Roslyn Wakari. Highlights of the last games of the season were victories over Green Island and Roslyn then to top the season off nicely, a 4-2 victory in the local derby versus Queenstown Rovers. 

Football wise we tried to play a possession-based game which cost us in our early stage of the season but we ultimately benefited from this game plan as the season progressed and we improved as a team, player wise it was a pleasure to see our younger youth players improve over the course of the season and the guidance our senior players provided was crucial in this development.

Training is a topic we need to vastly improve on as low player numbers proved challenging but more importantly lighting, suitable lights is a priority going into next season.

From a coach’s point of view, much like our three Wānaka men’s teams this year, player availability was crucial. Thirty-four players played and they were all instrumental in us finishing the season on a positive note. 

The ability as a club to call on players from our seniors and senior reserves when the prems are low on numbers is a crucial part of building a solid club with a sustainable future. A number of players played one or two games and without committed club players like them, we would not have gained vital points during these games, so it’s a big ‘thank you’ to you all.

I won’t name drop as there are too many people so just a big thank you to all the players and their partners, our club committee, sponsors and anyone who has contributed to Wānaka football this season.