NSW Pride have roared to claim both top spots of the women’s and men’s JDH Hockey One League tables with a pair of victories over the Adelaide Fire on a night where the results were overshadowed by breathtaking goals from international stars and NSW Institute of Sport (NSWIS) scholarship holders Tom Craig, Blake Govers and Grace Stewart.
The reigning women’s title holders picked up right where they left off last season with Makayla Jones finding ex-Canberra Chill star Laura Reid for a simple finish after seven minutes.
A few quiet words from the Hockeyroos coaching staff to Alana Kavanagh before she made her senior international debut against India last May not only quelled the butterflies that were rioting in her stomach, but they empowered the Sydneysider to play her own game.
If a good night’s sleep is a measure of a player’s confidence in their own ability, Maddison Smith, who led NSW Pride to the women’s championship title in last year’s adrenaline-charged national Hockey One League competition, is in a very good space.