SHE has enjoyed plenty of Australian Hockey League success as a New South Wales Arrow, but now Tamsin Bunt is hungry to play with Pride.
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Bunt was one of the players selected to take part in the recent Future Pride camp run by Hockey One outfit New South Wales Pride.
While that camp featured a host of up and coming talents as well as those like Bathurst's Jess Watterson who were part of the inaugural Hockey One season in 2019, few had the sort of experience Bunt boasts.
She made her debut in the Australian Hockey League - the nation's former premier field hockey competition - in 2009 for the Arrows.
Transitioning from the centre half role she had filled while playing club hockey, Bunt became a mainstay of the Arrows' defence.
She won a title in her maiden season with the Arrows and found success again in 2014 and 2018. Bunt would have been in the frame to be part of the inaugural Pride squad as well, but she was pregnant with her first child.
While Bunt has played at the national indoor hockey titles since giving birth, the Future Pride camp was her biggest field hockey test since then.
She enjoyed the mix of fitness, skills and games.
"I found it quite quick, it was really good speed, and there was a good mix of some older players plus some up and coming young players. I thought the skill level was really high and I thought that all four games were played at a really high level," she said.
"They were fast-paced, there were some great goal-scoring opportunities and really good goals. It was also quite fun to play.
"I thought it was a good start point for me, my body could definitely handle it and I was able to pull up well after the four games. My body was fine, I kept up with the pace so I was pretty happy.
"I'm still enjoying it too, so naturally I want to still put my hand up for selection."
The Hockey One competition, which was cancelled this season due to COVID-19, is something Bunt sees as a positive for the sport in Australia. She gave the first talent camp run by Pride her tick of approval too.
"Obviously we've had the AHL for so many years but it just adds that bit of something extra - it's a fresh, it's new, there are some new rules that are coming in as well," she said.
"I though it [camp] was a really good idea, it rewards people who have played well during the season and it allowed people to showcase their skills over four games and you wouldn't normally have that opportunity apart from nationals."
As well as hoping to be a part of the 2021 Hockey One season, Bunt is continuing to work on her indoor game. She is aiming to be part of the final Australian squad that contests the Indoor World Cup - an event which was postponed from this year to 2021 due to COVID-19.
"I can use the same sort of running for indoor and outdoor, the indoor training will keep me fit for outdoor and the outdoor will keep me fit for indoor," she said.
"I'm still really enjoying doing that extra training, so I might as well keep it up."
