Round 2 MVPs: The Players Who Made the Difference

Round 2 of ahm NPL 2026 had movement everywhere.

Unbeaten starts ended. Winless teams responded. Tight conferences started to separate. And across the Pro Division and Division 2, the MVPs were the players who gave their teams something steady in a round that had very little of it.

Some did it through perfect records. Some through heavy workloads. Some through one or two key rubbers that helped swing a match.

Here’s how each Round 2 MVP earned the call.

Pro Division

NSW Conference

Ryan Henry — Stingers

Ryan Henry put together one of the cleanest Men’s records in NSW Pro.

He did not lose a Men’s rubber all round. Alongside Kyle Stoker, Henry took two Men’s Doubles wins: 22-17 over Dinkers in Match 1, then 22-17 over Comets in Match 2. He also won both of his Men’s Singles, each by a tight 16-14 margin.

His only loss came in a 23-25 Mixed Doubles result against Comets in the conference’s deciding match.

Brian Tran also made a strong case, backing up his Round 1 conference MVP with a 4-2 round and two Men’s Singles wins as the finisher. But Henry’s Men’s rubber record gave him the edge.

Michaela Haet — Comets

Michaela Haet helped Comets turn a difficult Round 1 into a much stronger Round 2.

Against Round 1 leaders Heat, Haet and Nancy Ferguson won Women’s Doubles 22-20 over Selina Turulja and Shannon Spencer. Haet then partnered Guillermo Jacquet to help seal the 4-1 result, winning Mixed Doubles 22-19 over Turulja and Joshua Chia.

Her biggest moment came in Match 2 against Stingers.

With the result still live, Haet and Jacquet won Mixed Doubles 25-23 to help Comets close out a 3-2 win.

Five wins from six. The only Comets player to win every match she played in.

VIC Conference

Ethan Butson — Tide

Ethan Butson put together the cleanest individual round in VIC Pro.

He was the only unbeaten Pro Male of Round 2, finishing with six wins from six rubbers.

Butson and Joshua Fisher beat Sahil Dang and Ethan Chung 22-14 in Men’s Doubles against Roos, then followed it with a 22-11 Men’s Doubles win over 29ers. Butson also came in as the finisher in both of his Men’s Singles, including a comeback where Tide trailed 2-8 at the swap before he took Game 2, 9-7.

His Mixed Doubles partnership with Ayesha Dang was just as important. They won both matches, including the 25-23 result that helped Tide edge Roos 3-2.

That result mattered in a tight VIC conference picture, and Butson was central to it.

Ayesha Dang — Tide

Tide’s strong Round 2 also produced the VIC Pro Female MVP.

Ayesha Dang and Memory Lelenoa took Women’s Doubles 23-21 over Roos in the round opener, a close result that proved important in Tide’s 3-2 match win.

Dang also partnered with Ethan Butson in Mixed Doubles, with the pair winning both of their matches. Their 25-23 result against Roos helped Tide take the match, while their second Mixed Doubles win helped complete a 4-1 result over 29ers.

Two Tide MVPs in one conference reflected the round they put together.

QLD Conference

Conor Robertshawe — Reef

Conor Robertshawe helped Reef edge ahead in a conference that had been completely level after Round 1.

His biggest moment came in Reef’s opener against Brumbies, where he and Tayah Cross won the longest game of the round: a 34-32 Mixed Doubles result over Andrew Horridge and Aleisha Horridge.

Robertshawe and James Wilson also took back-to-back Men’s Doubles wins, beating Brumbies 22-17 and Outback 23-21.

Reef finished Round 2 at 2-0, moving to the top of QLD Pro after all four teams had entered the round at 1-1.

Nicola Schoeman — Opals

Nicola Schoeman went back-to-back as QLD Pro Female MVP.

Her Round 2 was built around a strong partnership with Crystal Mildwaters. Together, they produced one of the round’s most dominant individual rubbers: a 15-0 Women’s Singles win over Brumbies.

They also won Women’s Doubles 22-9 over Outback in Match 1 and 22-11 over Brumbies in Match 2.

Mildwaters went unbeaten at 4-0 with the round’s largest individual points difference across either division at +40. Schoeman’s 5-1 line took the MVP call, but Opals had two of the strongest female performances in QLD Pro.

Division 2

VIC Conference

Dan Markworth — Roos

Dan Markworth led the Men’s side in Roos’ strong VIC Division 2 round.

His clearest work came in the 5-0 sweep of Tide. Markworth and Tam Le-Vo won Men’s Doubles 22-14, then took Men’s Singles 15-6.

Markworth finished the round 5-1, helping Roos move to the top of VIC Division 2.

Letha Gaigher — Roos

Roos also took the VIC Division 2 Female MVP through Letha Gaigher.

In the 5-0 sweep of Tide, Gaigher and Clare Butler won Women’s Doubles 22-9 and Women’s Singles 15-10.

Gaigher and Butler both finished the round 5-1 with identical points difference, but Gaigher’s finisher position gave her the edge.

Roos finished Round 2 with both VIC Division 2 MVPs and the conference lead.

NSW Conference

Kane Townsend — Comets

Kane Townsend was the Men’s anchor behind Comets’ Round 2 rise in NSW Division 2.

Townsend played seven games across the round, the deepest male workload in the conference, and helped Comets finish Round 2 on top.

In a conference where the ladder tightened quickly, his volume and consistency mattered.

Kathleen Voon — Aggies

Kathleen Voon carried the biggest workload of any Round 2 MVP.

She played nine games across three Aggies matches and won seven.

Her round included a 15-6 Women’s Singles win over Bandicoots in the upset that opened Aggies’ schedule. Bandicoots had entered Round 2 as NSW Division 2 leaders, but Aggies pulled the match back after dropping the first two rubbers.

Voon’s work across the round earned her the NSW Division 2 Female MVP.

QLD Conference

Sam Gibbs — Reef

Sam Gibbs anchored Reef’s cleanest result of the round.

In Reef’s 5-0 sweep of Brumbies, Gibbs and Ben Johns won Men’s Doubles 22-15, then took Men’s Singles 15-9.

He finished with five wins from six, earning QLD Division 2 Male MVP as Reef climbed out of their 0-2 Round 1 start.

Ellen McDonogh — Opals

Ellen McDonogh was central to Opals’ Round 2 response in QLD Division 2.

Against Round 1 leaders Burras, McDonogh and Irie Heather-Pereira won Women’s Singles 15-3 as Opals took the match 4-1.

They repeated the same 15-3 Women’s Singles result in Match 2 against Brumbies.

McDonogh finished 5-1, helping Opals move back into the QLD Division 2 race.

NZ Conference

Spencer Sandridge — Tuatara

Spencer Sandridge helped Tuatara stay unbeaten through two rounds.

In the conference’s key match against Taika, Sandridge and Andy van der Vyver beat Round 1 NZ Division 2 Male MVP Semisi Fanguna and Feiloakitohi Tavalea 22-17 in Men’s Doubles.

Tuatara won that match 3-2, then followed it with a 5-0 sweep over Taniwha.

Sandridge played eight games and won five, taking the MVP on workload as Tuatara moved to 4-0 — the only undefeated record across either division.

Ellena Tavalea — Taika

Ellena Tavalea produced the biggest individual win count of any Round 2 MVP.

She played eight games and won seven, giving Taika one of the strongest individual performances of the round.

Even with Tuatara taking the conference lead, Tavalea’s 7-1 line made her the standout female player in NZ Division 2.

Round 2 MVPs

Pro Division: Ryan Henry, Michaela Haet, Ethan Butson, Ayesha Dang, Conor Robertshawe, Nicola Schoeman.

Division 2: Dan Markworth, Letha Gaigher, Kane Townsend, Kathleen Voon, Sam Gibbs, Ellen McDonogh, Spencer Sandridge, Ellena Tavalea.

Crystal Mildwaters and Andy van der Vyver also finished unbeaten without taking MVP honours. Mildwaters went 4-0 for Opals with a +40 points difference, the largest individual margin of the round across either division. Van der Vyver went 4-0 for Tuatara, missing the MVP call on workload.

Round 3 starts soon.

For now, Round 2 belongs to these names.