HOCKEY has taken Estelle Hughes all over the world, but this weekend Bendigo will be the destination with a sole goal in mind.
Having enjoyed stints in the US, Germany and Ireland, Hughes now finds herself back in Newcastle and representing NSW Pride for the first time.
The 27-year-old Regals player, who overcame a back injury to take her place in the state women's squad a couple of months ago, is two wins away from claiming a national Hockey One title.
"It's been amazing," Hughes told the Newcastle Herald.
"I haven't played for NSW since under 18s. I've been overseas playing hockey so when I came back post COVID I didn't really think I'd ever be able to get back into a NSW team.
"I've just been playing locally and I can't believe I got in the [Pride] squad, let alone playing all the games.
"It's really surreal and I'm super excited. It's nice to be back playing for the state, it's pretty special."
Recovering for the 2022 campaign was difficult for Hughes, only returning for a successful Sydney grand final less than a fortnight out from Hockey One.
"I had a stress reaction in my back, which means it's not quite fractured yet but the bone is weakened so if you keep overloading it makes things worse," she said.
"It kept me out for two months which wasn't great and it meant a really quick turnaround. I was cleared to play the grand final on the 18th and Pride started on the 29th so I basically had 11 days to get ready for Hockey One."
NSW finished the regular season in second spot following an emphatic 6-0 victory in the last round, which saw opponents Canberra Chill slip from equal standings to outside the top four.
The Pride now tackle Perth Thundersticks in Saturday's opening semi-final (10:35am) with minor premiers HC Melbourne and Brisbane also battling it out for a place in Sunday's showdown.
"Anything can happen now. We beat Perth in the round games but obviously lost to both Melbourne and Brisbane, so we feel confident coming in and knowing what we need to do," Hughes said.
Hughes is joined by Hockeyroos striker Mariah Williams (Souths). The NSW pair previously combined to win a state under-18 crown for Newcastle on home turf.
The men's Pride squad also has a strong local flavour with Kookaburras duo Matt Dawson and Ky Willott (Norths) lining up alongside the likes of Nathan Czinner, Tom Brown (Souths) and Sam Mudford (Wests).
NSW snuck into fourth position despite a last-round loss and meet top-ranked Brisbane in Saturday's first semi-final (12:05pm) while Canberra and Perth clash in the other.
