WHEN Tamsin Bunt was crowned the Hockey New South Wales senior female indoor player of the year for season 2019, it gave her a shot of encouragement.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
But now the Bathurst talent is hoping she can encourage other female hockey players to find their best as well.
So hopes to do that by juggling her role as a mother along with vying for selection in the Australian team which will attend the Indoor Hockey World Cup.
The soon to be 31-year-old was part of the NSW side which won silver at the 2019 Women's Indoor National Championships, going down 4-1 to Western Australia in the decider.
It was her efforts at that tournament which earned her the state award.
Since then Bunt has given birth to her son Arlo Jye Bunt, made another appearance for New South Wales at nationals - they finished the 2020 titles in third - and been picked in the 25-player Australian women's squad for the upcoming Indoor Hockey World Cup.
"It's great to know that I played well in 2019 and I feel I played well this year after having the baby, I hadn't lost any skill or fitness. It was a good encouragement actually," Bunt said.
For me to still be getting awards like this at 30 years of age, it gives me great confidence.
- Tamsin Bunt
"There are plenty of really great players coming up and plenty of talented girls around, so for me to still be getting awards like this at 30 years of age, it gives me great confidence.
"It shows people that your career is not over, you can can still keep playing if you want to. If you are training well and playing well, there's nothing stopping you from playing.
"It also shows women it's not over just because you've had a baby. Hopefully it's good motivation for others as well."
Bunt knew she had been nominated for the Hockey NSW award, but said she was still surprised when she was revealed as the winner at the presentation evening conducted at Mount Panorama's Rydges.
Other award winners included Orange's Pip Mannix, who was given a Basil Sellers scholarship.
"It makes it nice I can get back to my home town. That's where I played all my hockey and that's where I learnt to play, where I grew up playing," she said.
"So I feel it was really fitting I won the award in Bathurst, it was great."
Bunt's latest honour adds to the Hockey NSW senior female outdoor player of the year award she won in 2016. That season saw her make her Hockeyroos debut.
In order to earn further Australian honours as part of the women's indoor side, Bunt must adhere to a fitness program set down by the coaching staff.
She will then attend a three-day camp in Melbourne in August and from that, the squad of 25 will be cut into the final team of 12.
"That camp's going to be the selection, for the squad members that will be the actual team selection," Bunt said.
"But up until then we have to be sending our fitness testing results to them via online periodically, so it's pretty full on actually. Especially with the new baby, it's very full on for me.
"Looking after a six-month-old, sending fitness test results off to an Australian team and going back and forth to trial matches all whilst still breast feeding.
"It's very exciting that I can still do it and play well, that I can still do something for me and play at the level I've always played at. I'm quite proud of that.
"I still feel like I've got a fair few years ahead of me."
Bunt previously competed at the 2018 Women's Indoor Hockey World Cup in Berlin.
The Australians reached the quarter-finals of that tournament, the highlights being an upset win over then world number three Czech Republic and a 2-all draw with European champions Germany.
In terms of outdoor hockey, Bunt is not far away from starting the new Metro League season as part of the University of Technology Sydney outfit.
Her husband Jye coaches that team.