NHC TRIALS 2026

Auckland Hockey – NHC 2026

Information for Players
The Ford National Hockey Championship will take place in Wellington during the week of Sunday 13th – Saturday 19th September 2026.
Auckland Hockey will again have two Men’s and two Women’s teams. Our Auckland NHC teams will be competing in Tier 1 and Tier 2 competitions.

Trial Dates
Monday 20th and Monday 27th July.
Venue: LEP 1 & LEP 2
Time: 7pm – 9.00pm

Final team selection will be confirmed by Friday, 31st  July.

Costs
$1850 Tier 1 p/p inc GST
$1700 Tier 2 p/p incl GST

Payment plans are available as well as U16 and U14 coaching opportunities to help offset fees.

Click Here to Register via PlayHQ

Weekly Training
Training will be once per week on Mondays or Sundays TBC through July, August and move to twice per week after Club Finals weekend in mid-August.
The training schedule leading up to the club finals on 22 nd and 23rd August is as follows:

Mondays: 7:30 PM – 9:30 PM @ LEP
August 3rd, August 10th, August 17th & August 28th.

Build Up Matches – Northern Region Representative League
Matches v Northern Region Association teams have been organised to serve as meaningful preparation matches for NHC. Dates below:

Friday 3rd July vs Harbour
Friday 17th July vs Harbour
Friday 28th August vs Harbour
Monday 17th August vs Counties

Please note this is TBC.

 Leave Letters
AKH is happy to write the requisite letter for University and Employment leave for players on request.

Registrations close on Friday 17th July.

Any questions about this year’s NHC Campaign should be directed to Jude via development@akhockey.org.nz

Eligibility criteria:

Eligible players must attend the trials, unless they provide a valid reason to the AK Hockey CEO or Head of Hockey, or they may not be eligible for selection, nor will they be eligible for release to play for another Association or Region. There can be an exemption made for NZ or NZA athletes.

Eligible players must make themselves available for selection for Auckland NHC Tier 1 or 2.

Players not selected for Tier 1 Auckland may only be released to play Tier 1 for another Association.  

Players selected for Auckland NHC Tier 2/Development are squad cover for NHC Tier 1, in case of injury or unforeseen circumstances.

Eligible Players can be nominated by their clubs or can self-nominate.

Players not selected for Auckland Tier 1 or Tier 2/Development squads will be released to play for another Association.

Hockey NZ Rules for 2026 National Representative Tournaments – National Hockey Championship

Guest Player Appendix 6 (full version available on HNZ website)

1. f) A Guest Player is a person who has permission from their registered Association to play for another Association in a Hockey NZ competition.

1. g) An Association may withhold permission for a player to become a Guest Player if: the player did not make themselves available for their own Association the player is un-financial to a club/school within their Association or to theAssociation, or the player has been suspended from hockey due to current or pending disciplinary action.

1. h) Associations must not withhold giving written permission for a player to become a Guest Player if none of the conditions set out above are applicable to the player. Negotiations are between Associations and Guest Players. Hockey NZ will not participate in any negotiations. The player has the right to decline to play for an Association.Association of Origin Players

1. A Player’s ‘Association of Origin’ is defined by each player but must meet one ofthe following criteria: First represented association Registered association during the majority of your secondary schooling Registered association of first senior club game Registered association during the majority of your tertiary education
2. There are no restrictions on the number of ‘Association of Origin’ players in a team.
3. The Hockey NZ Association of Origin Form must be signed by the player’sregistered /Association Executive, the player and the Executive of theAssociation wishing to register the player. (A copy of the Association of Origin Form is available to download from the Tournament Resources’ section of the Hockey NZ website).
4. A copy of the signed Association of Origin Form must be received by Hockey NZ by the 1st of August 2026 for NHC and 14 days before the tournament for NMT.

Once a player has chosen their ‘Association of Origin’ this cannot be changedyear to year except the outlined clause in 8.5

1. Where a player has been living in an Association and been actively playing in that Association’s club competition for a minimum of 5 consecutive years they can apply to change their ‘Association of Origin’ to their current ‘Registered Association’ by submitting an application to Hockey New Zealand. Once changed the ‘Registered Association’ becomes for all intents and purposes the players ‘Association of Origin’. Hockey New Zealand decisions on these matters will be final.

Selection criteria
Players will be evaluated based on the following criteria
Technical – Passing accuracy and receiving ability, basic skill set
Tactical – Positional play and tactical game awareness, consistency
Physical – Speed, agility, strength and endurance
Mental/Social: Coachability, Attitude, Work ethic and Leadership
PCA and PCD skills
Fitness testing (Intermittent Level 1or 2 Yo Yo test)

Selection Outcomes

Successful athletes will be notified by the 31st of August 2026.

A squad of around 24 athletes will be selected

Selected athletes will be required to attend an initial induction meeting and be available for all scheduled training sessions, practise matches, team activities before

the tournament.

Non-selected athletes for Tier 1 may be released to play Tier 1 for another region upon the discretion of AHA.

 A selection panel is to be used to select all teams. The coach/coaches for the Representative Team has the right to make the final selection of the members of their team and will present the team to AK Hockey for approval.

 The selection panel may consist of the Head Coach/Coaches and other independent selectors appointed by AKH.

For any queries please contact Jude Menezes (Head of Hockey) via development@akhockey.org.nz