Victory and Heart confirmed their participation in the statewide knock-out tournament, similar to the Dockerty Cup which was last played in 2004.

The FA-Cup style tournament will give former NSL clubs such as South Melbourne and Melbourne Knights the chance to take on Victoria’s A-League giants, but also throw up the opportunity for small suburban clubs or country teams to go on a dream cup run.

Mirabella signed a naming-rights sponsorship for the cup for 10 years and will also offer a $50,000 prize money pool to teams that make the semi-finals.

The competition will start in March, with the final to be played prior to Victorian Premier League finals and the start of the 2011/12 A-League Season.

The initial stage will be a knockout format for all amateur men’s clubs statewide.

Victorian Premier League and State League one teams will be introduced at the second phase, while Victory and Heart will enter at the quarter-final stage.

Football Federation Victoria opened team entries today. More information on the format and fixtures will be available from FFV in the coming weeks.

"We’re well aware of the history and tradition of the Dockerty Cup and its popularity in Victorian football,” FFV CEO Mark Rendell said.

“To have Mirabella on board to enable us to bring back a knockout event back into the football calendar is wonderful for our sport.

“We’re expecting it to be popular throughout all of our leagues, as every club has a terrific opportunity to face off against Victoria’s two Hyundai A-League clubs, Melbourne Heart and Melbourne Victory.”

“With significant prize money on offer, the Mirabella Cup is sure to be fiercely contested amongst Victorian clubs.”