Flynn Ogilvie believes the chance to get home and soak up the fresh Wollongong air has put him in good stead ahead of this Saturday's Hockey One decider.
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Ogilvie will be one of three Illawarra men - alongside Jack Hayes and Tristan White - to represent NSW Pride in the grand final against Brisbane Blaze in Melbourne.
Fellow local Blake Govers is also in the Pride squad but will miss out due to injury.
Ogilvie said the opportunity to return to Wollongong during the inaugural Hockey One competition had helped his on-field form.
"It's been a good chance to get home while still playing hockey. Usually when I come home, it's just for a week or two," the 26-year-old said.
"But to come home and spend a large chunk of time here, it's been really good. I love the Wollongong area - nothing compares to it. It's been fun to have a little down time but also focus on hockey.
"I'd been in Perth for the first three quarters of the year and it was starting to get a bit stale over there. I think it's been good for me to get back for a few months."
I love the Wollongong area - nothing compares to it. It's been fun to have a little down time but also focus on hockey.
- Flynn Ogilvie
The Pride will enter Saturday's clash as favourite after going through the regular season undefeated. The team booked its place with a 6-2 win over HC Melbourne in the semi-final last week.
NSW beat Brisbane 5-0 victory when the teams met earlier this month, but Ogilvie refused to underestimate their opponent.
"Brisbane is always good. They've been the benchmark [in domestic hockey] for the last five or so years. It's going to be a tough game," he said.
"They play the same structure every time, but it's a solid structure and it's worked for them for many years. They know their gameplan down pat so we've just got to be better skills wise.
"But we're feeling pretty confident after going through the rounds undefeated and winning the semi."
Ogilvie is one of the Pride's "second or third oldest players" at just 26. He said the team's youth had driven their good form this season.
"We've played together for a long time now but a lot of this group is really young. The young guys have come through the under-19s and under-21s together so they know how each other plays," Ogilvie said.
"We've been building over the last few years of the domestic league and it's good to put it together this year.
"I'm not actually that old, but running around with 21-year-olds makes you feel old. But I think I can offer them a bit of experience."
Hockey Australia launched Hockey One in 2019 and it featured some of the nation's best male and female talent.
Ogilvie said the league had been a "great idea" and it was great to see the competition spread over a couple of months.
"Going forward, we would like to get bigger crowds but hopefully that comes with more exposure we get," he said.
"But so far, for its first year, I think it's been a success."
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