The National Women’s League kicks off this weekend with the seven federations of New Zealand fighting it out to be crowned champions.

Check out the squad lists and get the lowdown on each team’s prospects with the official preview below.

The NWL sides were required to submit an 18-woman squad by 11 September. The full 23-woman squad for the NWL needs to be submitted by 10 October.

Please note that the National Women’s League squads are subject to change throughout the season.

Northern Lights

Position last season: Runners-up
Titles: Three (2011, 2012, 2015)
Coach: Shane Verma
Football Ferns: Maggie Jenkins
Key player: Claudia Bunge
Young player to watch: Saskia Vosper

Squad: Ava Pritchard, Chloe Knott, Emily Couchman, Helena Kelderman, Kelli Brown, Lily Alfield, Liz Savage, Maggie Jenkins, Rene Wasi, Saskia Vosper, Talisha Green, Claudia Bunge, Jess Innes, Hannah Carlsen, Geneva Ross, Dayna Stevens, Mackenzie Barry, Arabella Maynard

Prospects: One of the strongest squad in the NWL with a number of national reps and members of the Future Ferns Domestic Programme (FFDP). Expect them to be in the top three and pushing for a place in the final.  

Auckland Football

Position last season: Third
Titles: Seven (2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2017)
Coach: Nic Downes
Football Ferns: Liz Anton, Sarah Morton, Steph Skilton, Katie Duncan. Nadia Olla 
Key player: Katie Duncan 

Young player to watch: Rebekah Van Dort

Squad: Nadia Olla (GK), Genevieve Ryan, Liz Anton, Rebekah Van Dort, Maisy Dewell, Stephanie Skilton, Britney Cunningham-Lee, Jade Parris, Katie Duncan, Ella Russ, Emma Leaming,  Jaedeci Uluvili, Chloe Marthe, Sophie Bradley, Tessa Leong, Sarah Morton, Lucy Carter, Ava Collins, Hannah Pilley, Alisha Perry (GK) 

Prospects: Seven-time champions Auckland were not happy in missing the NWL Final in 2018. They have the most number of Ferns in their squad and are bolstered by the return of experienced midfielder Katie Duncan.

WaiBOP Football

Position last season: Sixth
Titles: None
Coach: Tracy Wrigley
Football Ferns: None
Key player: Grace Winsewski
Young player to watch: Lisa Evans

Squad: Emma Sizer, Chloe Henderson, Lisa Evans, Shannon Trebes, Richlyn Tuhoro, Stella Neems, Rhiannon Jones, Adi-Grace Mooar, Paige McCloskey, Maddison Ollington, Rachel Major, Georgia Candy, Olivia Hooper, Annaliese Heuvel, Lilly Muspratt, Toni Power, Caitlin Byrne, Grace Wisnewski, Iona Love

Prospects: Former Auckland coach Tracy Wrigley moves down State Highway 1 to take over a young WaiBOP team. They have two players – Georgia Candy and Grace Wisnewski - who were part of the NZ U-17 bronze winning team. They will need to inspire this squad against the favourites.

Central Football

Position last season: Seventh
Titles: None
Coach: Barry Scullion
Football Ferns: None
Key player: Mikaela ​Boxall
Young player to watch: Charlotte Lancaster

Squad: Eve Barry, Brooke Bennett, Kate Bennett, Mikaela​ Boxall, Aoife Gallagher-Forbes, Charlotte Lancaster, Emma Lees, Torijan Lyne-Lewis, Florence MacIntyre, Kate Mori, Jana Niedermayr, Natalie Olson, Freya Partridge-Moore, Maggie Pedersen, Rubi Perano, Helen Talbot, Peta van Hattum, Tyler Wood

Prospects: Barry Scullion knows he has a challenge on his hands with the quality of his rival squads, but expect this young Central team to be motivated and be up for wins in their local derbies with Capital and WaiBOP.

Capital Football

Position last season: Fourth
Titles: Two (2004, 2010)
Coach: Natalie Lawrence
Football Ferns: None 
Key player: Kate Barrott
Young player to watch: Charlotte Wilford Carroll  

Squad: Courtney Norman (GK), Molly Woodhead, Katie Barrott (c), Michaela Robertson, Zoe Barrott, Sophie Dijkstra, Jayden Watts, Jemma Robertson, Jemma Catherwood, Ariana Gray (GK), Danielle Ohlsson, Ellen Fibbes, Kelsey Wilkinson, Tupelo Dugan, Nina Kondo, Molly Simons, Sarah Alder, Francesca Grange, Julliana Los, Libby Boobyer, Charlotte Wilford Carroll  

Prospects: Natalie Lawrence takes over a young Capital side that will feel the loss of Football Ferns Sarah Gregorius and Anna Green. They will look to upset the big three during the season.

Canterbury United Pride
Position last season: Champions
Titles: Four (2013, 2014, 2016, 2018)
Coach: Alana Gunn
Football Ferns: Annalie Longo
Key player: Annalie Longo
Young player to watch: Macey Fraser

Squad: Una Foyle (GK), Marisa Van Der Meer, Rebecca Lake, Annabel Gilchrist, Chloe Jones, Gabi Rennie, Jayda Stewart, Annalie Longo (c), Macey Fraser, Lauren Dabner, Whitney Herburn,  Jasmine Donald, Britney-lee Nicholson, Samantha Senior, Zoe McMeeken, Ellena Firth, Kate Taylor,  Nicola Dominikovich, Bel Van Noorden, Annie Foote

Prospects: The team to beat. The Pride have an incredible record in the NWL and are well led by their omnipresent captain Annalie Longo. Alana Gunn is an experienced campaigner and she has a squad stacked full of national reps.

Southern United

Position last season: Fifth
Titles: None
Coach: Ignacio Sande
Football Ferns: None
Key player: Mikaela Hunt
Young player to watch: Rose Morton

Squad: Ruby Anderson, Renee Bacon, Samantha Baldwin, Mikayla Gray, Amy Hislop, Mikaela Hunt, Kelsey Kennard, Juliette Lucas, Hannah Mackay-Wright, Jade Middleditch, Emily Morison, Rose Morton, Sammy Richards, Tahlia Roome, Lena de Ronde, Madeline Roseke, Erin Roxburgh, Shontelle Smith, Zoe Thomas, Chelsea Whittaker, Jordan Woodward

Prospects: Southern United will want to find the magic that saw them finish third in 2017. They have a number of players who experienced glory in the NZ Football Foundation Kate Sheppard Cup last year, can they deliver a consistent NWL campaign?

Article added: Friday 13 September 2019