National Paintball League (New Zealand)

The National Paintball League (NPL), formally the New Zealand National Paintball League, was a New Zealand tournament paintball organisation established in 1997. Founded through the efforts of Ian Southern and Dave Pellet, the league sought to establish a coordinated national tournament structure, improve refereeing standards and provide regular competitive opportunities for developing paintball teams.[1][2]

The original league operated through participating commercial paintball fields in Auckland and Whangārei. It comprised a First Division based around established major tournaments and a Second Division offering regular round-robin competition for newer teams.

The two-division structure operated until 1999, when the league lost the support of its participating field operators. Kyn Jackson of Actions Paintball subsequently took over the remaining administration, discontinuing Second Division while retaining an association of existing tournaments under the NPL name.[1]

The organisation was distinct from the New Zealand Paintball Players League (NZPPL), which operated during the 2010s.

History

Establishment

The National Paintball League was conceived in 1996 by Ian Southern and Dave Pellet, who were involved in the Auckland paintball business Splatman.[1]

The league was established in response to the fragmented nature of tournament paintball in New Zealand, where competitions were largely organised independently by commercial field operators and individual tournament promoters.

An introductory letter circulated in December 1996 outlined plans to establish a national organisation responsible for coordinating competitive paintball events.[1][2]

The letter identified three principal objectives:

To organise tournaments to a consistent professional standard.
To coordinate existing competitions and promote paintball through a common national structure.
To improve the quality and consistency of tournament refereeing.

The organisers also stated that the NPL would operate independently of paintball equipment manufacturers, commercial suppliers and individual fields.

The original letter was signed by Ian Southern as New Zealand NPL Director for 1997. The deadline for entries was 10 February 1997.[2]

The NPL began competition during the 1997 season.

Founding field operators

Three commercial paintball operators participated in the original league:

Operator	Location	Facilities represented
Splatman	Auckland	Four fields
Strategy Tag	Whangārei	One field
Actions Paintball Sports Arena	Auckland	One field

The participating operators provided playing facilities for NPL competitions.[1]

Each operator hosted games on a rotating basis, allowing tournament activity to be distributed among the different businesses.

This arrangement was intended to prevent any one field operator from carrying a disproportionate share of the costs and disruption associated with hosting competitive players.

The league's structure reflected the close relationship between commercial paintball fields and organised tournament play in New Zealand during the 1990s.

Inaugural season

The NPL introduced a two-division competition structure for the 1997 season.

First Division incorporated established major tournament events, while Second Division offered a regular competition for developing teams.

The arrangement allowed established tournament teams to compete in major events while newer players gained experience through smaller competitions at participating commercial fields.

Second Division teams were also encouraged to enter First Division tournaments.

The league's initial programme included tournaments in Auckland and Whangārei, with the major existing events forming the foundation of the First Division calendar.[1]

Competition structure

First Division

First Division consisted of established tournament events held approximately every three months.

The original programme incorporated:

The New Zealand Paintball Nationals
The Queen's Birthday tournament
The Northland Open

These events were already established or planned as major competitions on the New Zealand tournament calendar.[1]

First Division tournaments were open to teams outside the division, including Second Division entrants.

However, Second Division teams participating in First Division events could not win the First Division championship, and their results did not contribute towards their Second Division standings.

First Division provided a common competition framework for more experienced teams.

The format also allowed regional tournament organisers to retain their established events while participating in a broader national structure.

Second Division

Second Division was developed for newer and recreational players entering organised paintball competition.

Teams participated in a round-robin series held at the facilities of the participating field operators.

The division operated during two months of each three-month period, with the third month allocated to a First Division tournament.

The competition's original information sheet specified six rounds during the inaugural season.[3]

Second Division – 1997 scheduled rounds
Round	Month
1	February
2	March
3	May
4	June
5	August
6	September

Games were scheduled for the second Sunday of each designated month.[3]

Teams were rostered to individual participating fields, where they competed against different opponents over the course of the season.

The system allowed competitors to experience different playing environments and opponents while maintaining a regular tournament schedule.

The winner of the round-robin competition was to receive 10,000 paintballs and the title of New Zealand NPL Second Division Champions.[3]

Relationship between divisions

The two divisions were intended to provide a pathway for players entering tournament paintball.

Some established First Division teams formed or adopted affiliated Second Division squads.

These secondary teams provided opportunities to develop players and recruit new members for the more experienced tournament teams.[1]

Second Division participants could also enter First Division events, gaining experience against stronger opponents without leaving the developmental competition.

The system encouraged participation by newer players while maintaining separate competitive structures for teams at different levels.

Second Division rules

The NPL's surviving Second Division information sheet provides detailed evidence of the inaugural competition regulations.[3]

Playing format

Second Division games were played on speedball fields using an elimination format.

The competition used rules derived from the Australian Paintball Players League (APPL).

Teams were required to field at least four players per game. A team fielding fewer than four players would forfeit that game.

Reserve players were permitted and were recommended by the organisers.

The competition did not impose a limit on the number of paintballs a player could use during a game.

Team registration

All players, including reserves, were required to register with the NPL.

The original information sheet specified a NZ$10 membership fee per player, together with registration and indemnity forms.[3]

Teams were also required to pay a NZ$30 field fee before participating in each competition day.

The field fee was intended to contribute towards refereeing and tournament administration costs.

Paintballs were offered to registered teams at a bulk rate of 12 New Zealand cents per ball.

Team captains were advised to order paintballs in advance.

Refereeing and disputes

The NPL's competition rules placed responsibility for player conduct and team administration on each team's captain.

Only the captain was permitted to raise disputes with the head marshal.

Captains were also responsible for coin tosses, understanding the competition rules and managing their team's player selection.

The rules followed the APPL framework, which was widely used in Australasian tournament paintball during the period.[3][4]

Team information packs

Accepted teams were to receive an information pack containing:

Tournament rules
Field maps
Contact information
Venue details
Scheduled game times
Additional information requested by team captains

The use of standardised information packs was part of the league's effort to improve tournament administration.[3]

Administration

Ian Southern

Ian Southern was the inaugural director of the National Paintball League.

He signed the introductory letter for the 1997 season and was one of the two individuals credited with developing the league concept.[1][2]

Southern's involvement connected the NPL with the Splatman paintball operation and its network of Auckland fields.

The introductory letter emphasised the league's intended independence from commercial field and equipment interests, despite the practical involvement of field operators in hosting events.

Dave Pellet

Dave Pellet was a co-originator of the National Paintball League concept, according to the historical account preserved by Mercenaries Star.[1]

He was associated with Splatman, one of the three original field operators participating in the league.

Together with Southern, Pellet helped develop the competition structure that brought established tournaments and regular developmental competitions under a national organisation.

Kyn Jackson

Kyn Jackson, also known as Kyn "Action" Jackson, was associated with Actions Paintball Sports Arena, one of the league's founding field operators.

By 1999, the original NPL structure had lost the support of the commercial operators involved in its administration.

A historical account published by Mercenaries Star states that Jackson took over the remaining league administration and discontinued Second Division.[1]

The surviving First Division structure continued as a grouping of established tournament events under the NPL name.

Jackson subsequently remained involved in New Zealand tournament paintball through Actions Paintball and other competitions.

Decline and reorganisation

The original National Paintball League operated with its two-division structure until 1999.

According to the historical account The Rise and Fall of the New Zealand National Paintball League, the administrative demands of the competition became difficult for its participating field operators to sustain.[1]

The organisation required regular scheduling, player registration, refereeing, venue coordination and communication between teams and commercial fields.

As field-operator support declined, the NPL was no longer able to maintain its original Second Division programme.

The remaining league administration passed to Kyn Jackson of Actions Paintball Sports Arena.

Jackson discontinued Second Division, bringing the original developmental competition to an end.

First Division continued in a reduced form, operating primarily as an association of existing major tournaments.

By the beginning of the 2000s, the original NPL was regarded as defunct as a national league. Mercenaries Star's subsequent tournament calendars continued to list individual national and regional tournaments while identifying the NPL as a defunct competition.[5][6]

The exact date on which the remaining NPL arrangements ceased has not been established.

Tournament paintball in New Zealand

The NPL was an early attempt to coordinate competitive paintball across multiple commercial operators in New Zealand.

Before its establishment, major paintball tournaments were organised largely as individual events, with limited coordination between organisers.

The NPL's First Division brought together established competitions under a shared structure, while Second Division introduced a regular series for developing teams.

The use of participating field operators in Auckland and Whangārei reflected the concentration of organised tournament paintball in the upper North Island during the late 1990s.

The league also encouraged a system of player development through affiliated squads, allowing newer competitors to gain experience before entering major tournaments.

Following the end of the original NPL structure, tournament paintball continued through individual events and other competition organisers.

Events including the New Zealand Nationals, Northland Open, Rotorua tournaments and regional competitions continued to form part of the national competitive calendar.

Relationship to later leagues

The original NPL should be distinguished from later New Zealand paintball organisations.

New Zealand Paintball Players League

The New Zealand Paintball Players League (NZPPL) operated a national tournament series during the early 2010s.

The NZPPL held events in Auckland and the Wellington region, including the 2014 International Pacific Championship.

Although the two organisations shared an interest in coordinated national tournament paintball, no direct organisational continuity between the original NPL and the NZPPL has been established.

South Auckland Paintball Club

The South Auckland Paintball Club (SAPC) was an incorporated competitive paintball organisation established in 2013.

SAPC organised regular tournament events during 2014 and 2015, including Open X-Ball and mechanical pump competitions at Asylum Paintball.

Its competitions formed part of a later period in New Zealand tournament paintball and were not part of the original National Paintball League.

Historical legacy

The National Paintball League was one of the first documented attempts to establish a coordinated national tournament structure for paintball in New Zealand.

Its two-division format combined existing major tournaments with a developmental league for emerging teams.

The involvement of Splatman, Strategy Tag and Actions Paintball Sports Arena also demonstrated the role of commercial paintball field operators in supporting competitive play.

The surviving introductory letter and Second Division information sheet document efforts to standardise player registration, scheduling, tournament rules and refereeing.

Although the original competition structure ended in 1999, the NPL remains part of the history of organised paintball competition in New Zealand during the 1990s.

References

The Rise and Fall of the New Zealand National Paintball League. Mercenaries Star. Historical account of the league's establishment, founding operators, competition structure and reorganisation in 1999.
Welcome to the New Zealand National Paintball League. Original introductory letter signed by Ian Southern, New Zealand NPL Director, 1997.
New Zealand National Paintball League – Division Two Tournament Information. Original competition information sheet, including schedule, registration, rules, fees and prizes.
Australian Paintball Players League Tournament Rules. Mercenaries Star. Historical APPL rules archive.
Mercenaries Star Tournament Calendar. Historical tournament calendar identifying the NPL as defunct.
Mercenaries Star Events Directory. 2001 tournament calendar and historical league listings.

External links