Gold Coast Hockey gains notice at Open State Championships
Gold Coast hockey featured strongly at the 2026 Open State Championships, led by Daniel Evans and the women’s team.
What’s happening?
The newly named Open State Championships, Hockey Queensland, have wrapped up after a strong first year.
Gold Coast teams featured across the tournament as Queensland’s top hockey regions came together.
Why it matters?
The championships showed the strength of hockey across Queensland.
For Gold Coast hockey, the results point to strong local talent at state level.
The women’s side reached the top four in a field filled with quality players.
The men’s side also faced strong opposition, including Brisbane, Townsville and Ipswich.
Daniel Evans’ scoring result gave the Gold Coast one of the tournament’s major individual honours.
It also showed the region’s attacking strength against leading Queensland sides.
Local Impact
Gold Coast hockey leaves the tournament with a solid state-level result.
The women’s Division 1 finish gives the region a strong platform for future campaigns.
The men’s result also keeps Gold Coast in the state conversation.
Daniel Evans’ goalscoring honour is a clear local highlight.
His result adds to the region’s growing profile in Queensland hockey.
The tournament also gave Gold Coast players more experience against elite and emerging athletes.
By the numbers
The Open State Championships featured 23 teams from across Queensland, showing the size of the state competition.
The Gold Coast women finished fourth in Women’s Division 1, behind Maryborough, Tweed and Brisbane.
The Gold Coast men finished seventh in Men’s Division 1, ahead of Toowoomba.
Daniel Evans scored 10 goals for Gold Coast, finishing as the Men’s Division 1 leading goalscorer.
Zoom In
The women’s final brought together Tweed and Maryborough in a high-quality match.
Tweed had a strong line-up, including Brisbane Blaze players Jade Reid, Laney Smith and Ash Ensbey.
Former Hockeyroo Kali Commerford also featured for Tweed in a player-coach role.
Maryborough included Brisbane Blaze players Hannah Cullum-Sanders and Maddy Kenny.
They were joined by Queensland Under 21 and extended Brisbane Blaze squad athletes.
Tweed scored first, but Maryborough took control before half-time.
Maryborough led 3-2 at the break.
Tweed fought back in the final quarter through Laney Smith.
She scored and converted to level the match.
Maryborough had the final say through Caitlin McKay.
Hannah Cullum-Sanders was outstanding and finished with a hat-trick.
She was also named Player of the Final.
Zoom Out
Across the tournament, Maryborough, Brisbane and Sunshine Coast finished as the major division winners.
Maryborough claimed the Women’s Division 1 title, while Brisbane took out Men’s Division 1.
Sunshine Coast finished first in Men’s Division 2.
Tweed, Townsville and Gladstone also reached grand finals, showing strong representation from several Queensland regions.
The results showed a wide spread of hockey talent across the state, with regional and metropolitan teams both featuring in the top placings.
Matt Finn was too strong in goals and helped Brisbane secure the title.
Curtis James from Townsville was named Player of the Division 1 Final.
Jack Rider from Sunshine Coast was named Player of the Division 2 Final.
Other major awards went to Phoebe Nixon, Anastasia Long, Britt Wilkinson and Mackenzie Warne.
Aleisha Neumann, Steve Rogers and Tracey Doyle were also recognised for officiating excellence.
What To Look For Next?
Gold Coast hockey will take confidence from its state championship results.
The women’s top-four finish gives the side a strong base for the next campaign.
Daniel Evans’ scoring award also gives the region a clear individual success story.
For local players, the tournament experience can help build stronger squads across future state events.