WEYMOUTH and Dorchester Town have been provisionally placed in the Southern League South for the 2018-19 season.
The league is comprised of 11 teams from the Evo-Stik Southern Premier Division last season in Banbury United, Basingstoke Town, Chesham United, Farnborough, Frome Town, Gosport, Kings Langley, Merthyr, Tiverton, plus the Terras and Magpies.
Just one relegated side - Poole Town - drops down into the seventh-tier division, raising the tantalising prospect of two extra derbies for Weymouth and Dorchester next season.
A total of six promoted sides are also included in the Southern League South, those being Beaconsfield Town, Hartley Wintney, Salisbury, Swindon Supermarine, Taunton Town and Walton Casuals.
The league restructuring is set to ease the travelling burden on the two Dorset clubs, who had to endure several punishing trips, some in midweek, to clubs in Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Hertfordshire and Northamptonshire last season.
Instead, they are now faced with a less arduous calendar with visits to Merthyr Town and Banbury United the furthest, except possible cup fixtures, the Terras and Magpies can expect to travel.
Frome, in Somerset, Devon-based side Tiverton and Hampshire sides Farnborough and Gosport, plus two Wiltshire clubs Swindon Supermarine and Salisbury also provide Weymouth and Dorchester with relatively short-distance journeys.
Four teams, Harrow Borough, Hendon, Metropolitan Police and Staines Town, are sidestepped into the Southern League South based on the geographical restructuring of the league.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here