Robin Hood, the defending champions, have been grouped with Lock & Key and West End United in group C of the new-look BTC Cup.

Butterfield & Vallis, Tuff Dogs and Vasco will play in group A, while Flanagan’s Onions, Footy Kings and BAA are in group B.

The competition should serve up some interesting matches with group C already looking like the proverbial “group of death”.

The tournament will have a new format with the introduction of a group stage, with three groups of three.

Group games will be played on December 9 and January 20 with the top two placed teams earning a bye for the first knockout round, which will decide who meets them in the semi-finals.

The first-round matches take place on February 17 before the semi-finals on March 10. The final is scheduled for April 21.

The opening round-robin matches will pit B&V against Tuff Dogs and West End United against Hood on Friday, while Onions play Footy Kings on Saturday.