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NSW Pride
NSW Pride is an Australian professional field hockey club based in Sydney. The club was established in 2019, and is one of 7 established to compete in Hockey Australia's new premier domestic competition, Hockey One.[1] The club unifies both men and women under one name,[2] unlike New South Wales' former representation in the Australian Hockey League as the NSW Waratahs (men) and NSW Arrows (women).[3][4] NSW Pride competed for the first time in the inaugural season of Hockey One, which was contested from late September through to mid November 2019. The NSW Pride Men's came first, becoming the inaugural Hockey One Men's Champions and defeating the Brisbane Blaze 8–3 in the Grand Final, with Flynn Ogilvie being named Player of the Final and Blake Govers as the tournaments Top Goalscorer. HistoryNSW Pride, along with six other teams, was founded on 17 April 2019 as part of Hockey Australia's development of hockey.[5] The team's logo and colours are inspired by the New South Wales flag. The name 'Pride' is intended to evoke feelings of "community, strength and fierceness."[6] NSW Pride is strangely focused on its foundation as a team for the community, with many of its famous identifiers being selected by the fanbase. In May 2019, NSW Pride ran a four-week knockout style contest to select the new team's motto. Asking fans to vote via social media, the options dwindled down to two final options: 'Defend The Den' vs. 'Unleash The Beast'. The end result was a landslide with 'Unleash The Beast' winning and henceforth adopted as the team's motto. Following the success of the Tagline Tournament, NSW Pride deployed the same tactic again in August 2019 with their Name Our Lion campaign; a chance for fans to name the new team's mascot. The contest was once again, conducted via social media with one fan winning a family membership by voting in the contest. With over 1,000 votes submitted over the four week campaign, the pride fanbase (commonly nicknamed Pride Nation) overwhelming selected 'Roary' as the team's new mascot name. Home StadiumNSW Pride are based out of Sydney Olympic Park in New South Wales' capital city, Sydney. The stadium has a capacity of 8,000 spectators, with 4,000 fixed seats.[7] Following the announcement of new team name, NSW Pride, the stadium has adopted the nickname The Lions Den. UniformsThe uniform of the NSW Pride Men and Women's teams corresponds with the team's colours of gold and red. Incorporating the team's signature lion on the front and teeth marks on the socks. The introduction of the Hockey One made history with both men and women wearing the same uniform and united under the same name for the first time in Australia's domestic hockey history. Performance
TeamsMen's teamThe following players were names in the men's preliminary squad.[8]
Women's teamThe following players were names in the women's preliminary squad.[9]
References
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