Vantage National Masters Tournament week comes to a close
The Vantage National Masters Tournament came to a close last week, with sunny skies, packed sidelines, and back to back matches starting from 8am in the morning right through to 8pm at night over seven days.
Across 312 matches, players aged from 35 right through to 78 took to the turf, a true example of lifelong participation and love for the sport.
Huge credit goes to those who run and manage this tournament in various capacities from our Hockey New Zealand event team and North Harbour Hockey staff, to all of the officials including Tournament Director Kit Rutherford his team of 100 officials, volunteers and team managers. Pulling together a tournament of this level is no small feat.
We also have to acknowledge all 1,792 players who showed up across the week, playing up to seven games back‑to‑back, this is no easy task at any age. The physical and mental resilience on show was exceptional.
There was no shortage of drama across the grades, with several competitions coming down to the wire. The Men’s 55s was one of the tightest pools of the tournament, with five of the six teams still in contention heading into the final round.
In the Men’s 35s, the spotlight was on the semi‑final clash between Harbour and Auckland, a true Battle of the Bridge. Harbour, stacked with several New Zealand Masters representatives, were edged out by Auckland in a result that underlined just how deep the competition ran this year.
Across all grades, the standard of hockey continued to lift, with fast, physical contests, making for a strong selection week for our World Cup Masters Teams, which have been announced following the tournament.
Hockey New Zealand National Tournaments & Events Coordinator Lisa Williamson summed up the week as both busy and hugely successful.
“With a record number of team entries this year, it’s certainly been busy, but it’s fantastic to see so many people involved. We’re lucky to have such a high-quality facility here in New Zealand.
It’s inspiring to see players of all ages getting out there and having a crack and the camaraderie across the tournament has been a real highlight.”
A massive thank you to North Harbour Hockey for hosting this year’s tournament.
The venue received great feedback throughout the week, with five turfs allowing the event to run seamlessly and the grandstand area creating an outstanding viewing experience for the fans.
2026 Tournament Winners
W35: Waimanawanua
M35: Auckland
W40: Canterbury
M40: Auckland
W45: Tasman
M45: North Harbour
W50: Canterbury
M50: Auckland
W55: Northland
M55: Wellington
W60: Auckland
M60: Auckland
W65: Wellington
M65: North Harbour
M70: Canterbury
Congratulations to all teams who claimed titles across the grades, and to everyone who turned up and participated in this year’s Vantage National Masters Tournament. We are already looking forward to next year and wish everyone the best for their club and Masters seasons ahead.