Queensland Is Bringing Size, Speed and Serious Personality to ahm NPL '26

If New South Wales sounds measured, Queensland sounds like a live wire.

Ahead of the ahm x NPL 2026 season opener on April 25, we asked the captains of the four Queensland teams a few quick questions about their squads, their own games, and what life looks like once they step off court. The answers came back with plenty of personality. Some were sharp. Some were chaotic. All of them gave away something useful.

Queensland, at least from these first answers, is not turning up quietly.

Crystal Mildwaters sees the danger in her team’s variety. The Opals, she says, will be a problem because every player brings their own strengths, and together they have a flair that makes their vibe “both within pickleball and outside of it, scary.” That line says a lot. This is not just a team built on clean roles or neat labels. It sounds like a group with range, energy and a little unpredictability, which is usually the part nobody enjoys facing.

Her TV comparison lands in a similarly telling place. Gogglebox. A team that watches everything, notices everything, and then talks about all of it together. Funny, yes. But also not a bad description of how good teams work. Observe. Read. React. Say what needs to be said.

In her own game, Crystal is trying to bring two sides together: the aggressive driving style she carried over from tennis, and the softer, more patient side she has developed more recently. It is one of the more thoughtful answers of the group because it gets at something deeper than mechanics. The best players are rarely choosing between power and touch. They are learning when each one matters. If she could steal one shot from the league, she had a few in mind: Nicola’s speed-up off the bounce, Aaron Johnson’s tomahawk, or Kirsty McCorkindale’s inside-out forehand. A good reminder that admiration in this league usually comes attached to very specific details.

Harrison Brown took a different route. His team, he says, will be hard to beat because they have the tallest average height in the league and “there’s no good drop locations.” It is part joke, part challenge, and exactly the kind of answer you would expect from someone who enjoys leaning into the theatre of competition a little. His team’s TV show would be Outback Opal Hunters, which, in fairness, needs very little explanation.

Underneath the humour, though, there is real intent. Harrison’s main focus this year is pattern recognition — reading points earlier and applying attacking patterns with more purpose. It is an interesting contrast. The team answer is playful and physical. The personal answer is analytical. That usually means a player is seeing the game clearly. If he could steal one weapon from anywhere in the league, it would be Adam Walters’ forehand.

James Wilson kept things simple in the best way. Why will his team be a problem? “Speed and size.” Two lightning-fast women and “the man mountain Conor.” Efficient, visual, and probably accurate. His fictional team show, Breaking Bags, comes with the explanation that they are cooking up body bags in the kitchen. Slightly unhinged. Fairly on-brand for preseason. His personal focus is fitness, and specifically getting the heart ready for big weekends. Again, clean and honest. No pretending. No fluff. He knows what the season will demand.

His choice for the one stolen skill in the league might be the most entertaining of the lot: not just Aaron Johnson’s Erne winner, but the full screaming celebration combo that comes with it. That is a proper answer. Why take only the shot when you can take the energy too?

Andy Horridge rounds out the Queensland group with a tone that feels half deadpan, half absolutely serious. Why will his team be a problem this year? “It’s the year of the horse baby, that’s gotta mean something.” Hard to argue with logic like that. His team’s TV show would be Kitchen Nightmares, because the team is loud, they simulate Gordon Ramsay shouting orders, and they are here to deliver wins. The image alone is strong enough.

Andy is working on changing his grips, particularly on the backhand volley, but also wants to sharpen the mental side of his game. That combination makes sense. Technical tweaks are one thing. Trusting them under pressure is another. If he could take one trait from another player, it would be Nigel Lee’s speed. No hesitation there.

What makes this Queensland group interesting is not just the confidence. Every state has confidence in preseason. It is the texture of it. These answers feel lived in. No one sounds media-trained. No one sounds like they are reading off a card. They sound like players who know their teams, know themselves, and are comfortable saying it their own way.

Off court, the answers help round out the picture.

Crystal’s best trip involved the Philippines and what sounds like a mildly disastrous kayaking adventure with her sister, featuring two “naive princesses,” a wooden boat, lost oars and a rescue squad. Harrison’s ideal getaway was a pickleball trip to Da Nang, Vietnam — three hours of pickleball, six hours of beach clubs, and apparently not much need for further explanation. James went with two weeks in Japan: sake on tap, unlimited street food and unreal landscapes. Andy’s standout trip was a World Cup run to Florida, where the group, the atmosphere and the pickleball all did their part.

When it is time to switch off, each captain seems to do it a little differently. Crystal juggles full-time teaching, gym sessions, coffee, cards with friends, time with her partner, and life as a dog mum to a golden retriever. Harrison still works 20 to 30 hours a week as a mortgage broker, while beach walks or runs help clear the head. Andy games hard when he is not on court or in the gym, using it as a way to switch off and yell at his mates when needed. James’ final answer came through incomplete, but that almost feels fitting for a group that does not exactly give polished, overmanaged energy anyway.

And that is probably the strongest takeaway from all four captains.

Queensland is bringing plenty into ahm x NPL 2026. Size. Speed. Observation. Flair. A bit of noise. A bit of edge. Enough personality to make these teams feel distinct before the season has even started, and enough honesty to make the whole thing feel real.

The season opens on April 25.

Queensland sounds more than ready to make itself known.