An amateur (from French 'one who loves' ) is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, self-taught , user-generated , DIY , and hobbyist .
36-619: The Northern League is an amateur New Zealand association football competition. It is a top-tier competition during the winter season, and sits at step two overall. The Northern League includes football clubs located in the northern part of the North Island from the Northland , Auckland , Waikato and Bay of Plenty regions. The competition was known as the NRFL Premier until 2021, when New Zealand's football league system
72-523: A dilettante . Through most of the 20th century the Olympics allowed only amateur athletes to participate and this amateur code was strictly enforced, Jim Thorpe was stripped of track and field medals for having taken expense money for playing baseball in 1912. Later on, the nations of the Communist Bloc entered teams of Olympians who were all nominally students , soldiers , or working in
108-420: A lower level of ability than professional athletes. On the other hand, an amateur may be in a position to approach a subject with an open mind (as a result of the lack of formal training) and in a financially disinterested manner. An amateur who dabbles in a field out of interest rather than as a profession, or possesses a general but superficial interest in any art or a branch of knowledge, is often referred to as
144-483: A maximum of four foreign players as well as one additional foreign player who has Oceania Football Confederation nationality. Originally each team had to also start at least two players aged 20 or under in every game. Before the 2023 season this was changed so that players aged 20 or under must account for 10% of available playing minutes throughout the season. Two teams from the National League qualify for
180-565: A one-off competition, the South Central Series , for teams qualifying from the Central League and Southern League. Miramar Rangers were both the premiers and champions for this stand alone competition. The 2022 New Zealand National League Championship phase will kick off on 1 October 2022. These are the current clubs for the 2024 season: Sky Sport had the broadcasting rights for the first two seasons (including
216-565: A profession, but many of whom were in reality paid by the state to train on a full-time basis. Near the end of the 1960s, the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) felt their amateur players could no longer be competitive against the Soviet team's full-time athletes and the other constantly improving European teams. They pushed for the ability to use players from professional leagues but met opposition from
252-601: A professional level in their careers. The following list is from the 2021 season onwards after New Zealand Football changed the football league system in New Zealand. From 2021, the Northern League has acted as a qualifier league to the National League . The following records are from the 2021 season onwards after New Zealand Football changed the football league system in New Zealand. From 2021,
288-556: A spot each year. The regional leagues runs from March through to September, with each league having a varying number of games. The Championship phase runs after the completion of the regional phase with each team playing each other once, followed by a grand final. Each season, two clubs gain qualification to the OFC Champions League , the continental competition for the Oceania region. The New Zealand National League
324-547: The 2023 season , Auckland City and Eastern Suburbs completed the season undefeated. This is the first time, since Eastern Suburbs did so in the inaugural 1965 season, and the first time two clubs have done so in the same season. The following list is of the official sponsors of the League, unless otherwise noted. As of the 2024 season. This list consists of past or present notable players that have either represented an international team, or made more than fifty appearances at
360-572: The 2024 season . The records are up to date as of the end of the 2023 season. As the 2021 season was cancelled, the 2021 South Central Series was not officially part of the National League. The OFC Champions League , also known as the O-League , is the premier football competition in Oceania. It is organised by the OFC, Oceania's football governing body. It has been organised since 2007 under
396-709: The FootballSouth Premier League ) would be formed into the Northern League, Central League, and the Southern League. These leagues would allow local clubs to qualify for the premiership season (now known as the National League Championship), with the top 4 teams from the Northern League, the top 3 teams from the Central League, and the top 2 teams from the Southern League making up the competition, alongside
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#1732790426192432-846: The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC). At the IIHF Congress in 1969, the IIHF decided to allow Canada to use nine non-NHL professional hockey players at the 1970 World Championships in Montreal and Winnipeg , Manitoba , Canada. The decision was reversed in January 1970 after IOC President Avery Brundage said that ice hockey's status as an Olympic sport would be in jeopardy if
468-496: The National Soccer League operated as an invitation-only summer league, the Northern League again became the highest level club competition available to the clubs from the northern provinces. With the demise of the club-based National Soccer League in 2004, the Northern League, now known as Lotto Sport Italia NRFL Men's Premier, became part of the highest level of football league competition in New Zealand for
504-877: The New Zealand football league system . Founded in 2021, the New Zealand National League is the successor to the New Zealand Football Championship . The league is contested by ten teams, with teams qualifying from their regional leagues. Four teams qualify from the Northern League , three qualify from the Central League , two qualify from the newly formed Southern League and the Wellington Phoenix Reserves are automatically given
540-592: The Northern League , Central League , and the Southern League . These leagues would allow local clubs to qualify for the premiership season (now known as the National League Championship ), with the top 4 teams from the Northern League, the top 3 teams from the Central League, and the top 2 teams from the Southern League making up the competition, alongside the Wellington Phoenix Reserve side. All teams that qualify plus
576-416: The OFC Champions League each season: those two teams being the two finalists of the championship phase. In March 2021, New Zealand Football announced a change to the structure of both the premiership and the top regional leagues around the country. The four top regional leagues ( NRFL Premier , Central Premier League , Mainland Premier League and the FootballSouth Premier League ) would be formed into
612-590: The Olympics . The ancient Greek citizens spent most of their time in other pursuits, but competed according to their natural talents and abilities. The "gentleman amateur" was a phenomenon among the gentry of Great Britain from the 17th century until the 20th century. With the start of the Age of Reason , with people thinking more about how the world works around them, (see science in the Age of Enlightenment ), things like
648-572: The Wellington Phoenix Reserve side. All teams that qualify plus the Phoenix Reserves, would then play a single round-robin competition between September and December. The first few season were dominated by Auckland City after replacing sister club Central United at the dissolution of the New Zealand Football Championship. Auckland City won the league four consecutive times in their first four seasons. In
684-471: The cabinets of curiosities , and the writing of the book The Christian Virtuoso , started to shape the idea of the gentleman amateur. He was vastly interested in a particular topic, and studied, observed, and collected things and information on his topic of choice. The Royal Society in Great Britain was generally composed of these "gentleman amateurs", and is one of the reasons science today exists
720-614: The 1972 retirement of IOC President Brundage, the Olympic amateurism rules were steadily relaxed, amounting only to technicalities and lip service, until being completely abandoned in the 1990s (in the United States , the Amateur Sports Act of 1978 prohibits national governing bodies from having more stringent standards of amateur status than required by international governing bodies of respective sports. The act caused
756-448: The Northern League has acted as a qualifier league to the National League . The records are up to date as of the end of the 2024 season . Amateur Historically, the amateur was considered to be the ideal balance between pure intent, open mind, and the interest or passion for a subject. That ideology spanned many different fields of interest. It may have its roots in the ancient Greek philosophy of amateur athletes competing in
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#1732790426192792-630: The Olympics, because of the unwillingness of the NHL to take a break mid-season and the IOC's amateur-only policy. Before the 1984 Winter Olympics , a dispute formed over what made a player a professional. The IOC had adopted a rule that made any player who had signed an NHL contract but played less than ten games in the league eligible. However, the United States Olympic Committee maintained that any player contracted with an NHL team
828-546: The Phoenix Reserves, would then play a single round-robin competition between October and December. The top two placed teams will then progress to the Grand Final. In November 2021, during the first edition of the National League, New Zealand Football announced the National League had been cancelled for that season due to COVID-19 . Qualified teams from Auckland and Waikato were unable to participate due to their alert levels . New Zealand Football replaced this with
864-740: The South Central Series). One game a week was live on television with the remaining four games free to air on either the Sky Sport Next or New Zealand Football YouTube channels. In September 2023, New Zealand signed a deal to have all National League games streamed for free on FIFA+ worldwide. This includes select games of the qualifying league games as well. On 8 May 2024, New Zealand Football announced they had partnered with Sportway to continue broadcasting on FIFA+. 4K Sportway cameras have begun to be installed at grounds as of May 2024 with plans to broadcast over 200 games for
900-447: The activities of amateurs. Gregor Mendel was an amateur scientist who never held a position in his field of study. Radio astronomy was founded by Grote Reber , an amateur radio operator . Radio itself was greatly advanced by Guglielmo Marconi , a young Italian man who started out by tinkering with a coherer and a spark coil as an amateur electrician. Pierre de Fermat was a highly influential mathematician whose primary vocation
936-575: The breakup of the Amateur Athletic Union as a wholesale sports governing body at the Olympic level). Olympic regulations regarding amateur status of athletes were eventually abandoned in the 1990s with the exception of wrestling, where the amateur fight rules are used due to the fact that professional wrestling is largely staged with predetermined outcomes. Starting from the 2016 Summer Olympics , professionals were allowed to compete in boxing, though amateur fight rules are still used for
972-571: The change was made. In response, Canada withdrew from all international ice hockey competitions and officials stated that they would not return until "open competition" was instituted. Günther Sabetzki became president of the IIHF in 1975 and helped to resolve the dispute with the CAHA. In 1976, the IIHF agreed to allow "open competition" between all players in the World Championships. However, NHL players were still not allowed to play in
1008-624: The current format, following its successor, the Oceania Club Championship. Two teams from the New Zealand National League participate annually. Four O-League titles have been won by teams from New Zealand. The Charity Cup was introduced in 2011 and is contested between the winner of the National League Grand Final and the winner of the Chatham Cup . Although it was planned to start in 2022 after
1044-521: The rule was only applied to the NHL and that professionally contracted players in European leagues were still considered amateurs. Murray Costello of the CAHA suggested that a Canadian withdrawal was possible. In 1986, the IOC voted to allow all athletes to compete in Olympic Games starting in 1988, but let the individual sport federations decide if they wanted to allow professionals. After
1080-489: The third time in its history. The league runs between the New Zealand autumn and winter months (April to September), while the New Zealand Football Championship runs between the New Zealand spring and summer months (October to March). In March 2021, New Zealand Football announced a change to the structure of both the premiership and the top regional leagues around the country. The four top regional leagues ( NRFL Premier , Central Premier League , Mainland Premier League and
1116-430: The tournament. Many amateurs make valuable contributions in the field of computer programming through the open source movement. Amateur dramatics is the performance of plays or musical theater , often to high standards, but lacking the budgets of professional West End or Broadway performances. Astronomy , chemistry, history, linguistics, and the natural sciences are among the fields that have benefited from
Northern League (New Zealand) - Misplaced Pages Continue
1152-436: The way it does. A few examples of these gentleman amateurs are Francis Bacon , Isaac Newton , and Sir Robert Cotton, 1st Baronet, of Connington . Amateurism can be seen in both a negative and positive light. Since amateurs often lack formal training and are self-taught, some amateur work may be considered sub-par. For example, amateur athletes in sports such as basketball , baseball , or football are regarded as possessing
1188-419: Was Oceania's strongest national league for four consecutive years in 2023 according to IFFHS . There are two stages to the competition: the regional phase, in which each team plays each other twice in their respective regions; and the championship phase, in which the top teams in each region play a single round-robin competition, followed by a grand final in order to determine the champion. Each team can field
1224-530: Was a professional and therefore not eligible to play. The IOC held an emergency meeting that ruled NHL-contracted players were eligible, as long as they had not played in any NHL games. This made five players on Olympic rosters—one Austrian, two Italians and two Canadians—ineligible. Players who had played in other professional leagues—such as the World Hockey Association —were allowed to play. Canadian hockey official Alan Eagleson stated that
1260-399: Was law. In the 2000s and 2010s, the distinction between amateur and professional has become increasingly blurred, especially in areas such as computer programming, music and astronomy. The term amateur professionalism , or pro-am, is used to describe these activities. New Zealand National League The New Zealand Men's National League is a men's football league at the top of
1296-483: Was restructured. Clubs compete each season to qualify for the New Zealand National League . In the years 1965–1969, before the launch of a National Soccer League , the Northern League was the highest level competition available to the clubs in the northern region. When the National Soccer League was created in 1970, the Northern League became one of its feeder leagues. In 1997 and 1998, when
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