The VFL fixture for 2014 has been unveiled, with the Northern Blues set to open their season with a home game against Williamstown on Sunday 6 April.

The Blues will host local rival Coburg in the battle for the Bell Street Cup in Round 5, while the Round 11 clash with Bendigo will see the teams travel to Echuca for a country showdown.

For the first time in more than a decade, the VFL will return to a 16-team competition next year.

Williamstown and the Western Bulldogs have ended their alignment, as has Coburg and Richmond. All four clubs will field standalone sides for the upcoming season.

Coburg will return to its traditional nickname of the Lions, while the Western Bulldogs’ team will be known as the Footscray Bulldogs.

Each VFL club will have two byes – for the Northern Blues the byes occur in rounds 7 and 16.