Jack Hayes of Albion Park Hockey Club has been voted Illawarra Hockey Player of the Year for the third year running.
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Hayes took the ultimate award after his team won the hockey grand final beating Wests Illawarra 7-1 recently after last winning the title in 2013.
He has capped off the year by also winning the club's top player award for the third consecutive year and following his Best Player award at the recent NSW State championships at Moorebank.
“I’ve been Player of the Year for the last three years but this year was the most special because we were also minor and major premiers,” Hayes said before going to Perth for the Australian Hockey League.
“Everyone played well in the grand final. We defended well which then led to a lot of scoring opportunities where we capitalised.”
Hayes said he owed a lot to former Park captain Steve Mayo who developed a lot of his skills since he was 14 playing for the club.
This year was the most special because we were also minor and major premiers.
- Jack Hayes
He praised Mayo for the success this year in winning the premiership.
Hayes will be making his fourth appearance for the NSW Waratahs in Perth in the Australian Hockey League which started this week and is hoping for another shot in the national squad after his only appearance for Australia A against Pakistan in Hobart in 2015.
His exceptional hockey skills have been inherited from the Hayes hockey family dynasty where his father Peter was also a Park premiership winning player and his aunties Janette and Sue were also Park first grade women players.
Hayes also gets his skills and speed from his cousins in current Hockeyroo Casey Sablowski and current Olympian and Australian 1500-metre champion Ryan Gregson.
Park team manager and former club hockey legend Keith Eastham described Hayes as the standout in Illawarra hockey this year and thought he should have won the award on his own merit.
“His skills are unbelievable and now he has some pace to go with it. A great club player and a great guy to be with and hopefully he will get some recognition over in Perth,” Eastham said.
Hayes was also recently named in the Australian indoor hockey men's team for the Indoor World Cup to be played in Berlin next year and is looking forward to that adventure.
