This time last year, Parkes product Mariah Williams was only just returning to the international hockey scene after a very tough 18 months due to injury and rehab.
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The gun goal-scorer had been battling a debilitating pubic synthesis joint and abductor injury which required surgery.
Returning to the game the fittest and strongest she believed she's been, the 24-year-old has had a tremendous year in the green and gold in 2019 that has ended with another Hockeyroos selection and their joint top goal scorer for 2019.
Williams was named in the Hockeyroos squad for the inaugural FIH Pro League at the beginning of this year.
She also lined up for NSW Pride, alongside fellow Parkes junior Kurt Lovett in the men's, for the new national hockey league, Hockey One, in September.
But one of the biggest highlights came in October when Williams was selected in the Hockeyroos squad for the Tokyo Olympic Games qualifiers against Russia in a do-or-die two-game series that was Australia's last chance to book a spot at the 2020 Games.
Williams scored twice in the final match that gave them a 9-2 victory on aggregate to ensure they will join the Kookaburras next year.
November saw Williams - again with Lovett, who will debut for the Kookaburras - named on the 2020 Hockeyroos 27-player squad.
The squad, selected by Head Coach Paul Gaudoin, was based on a range of factors underpinned by having personnel who will provide the Hockeyroos with the best chance of success in what is a huge year, beginning with the FIH Pro League in late January and leading into Tokyo 2020 in late July.
"Whether it has been VAA (Visiting Athlete Agreement) opportunities, performances in the DTE (Daily Training Environment) and in international matches, form in the Sultana Bran Hockey One League, as well as the history of some of the girls, all of these factors have been taken into account," Gaudoin said.
"It's a very balanced squad. We've included some experience and some quality...of course it's disappointing to lose girls out of the squad but it's a part of evolving the Hockeyroos.
"The Hockeyroos' next official international is on January 25, 2020 in Sydney against Belgium in their opening match of the FIH Pro League 2020."
In what is Hockey Australia's night of nights, the Kookaburras and Hockeyroos celebrated its 2019 achievements at its annual awards night on December 13.
Among the awards, Williams was named dual top goal scorer for the Hockeyroos with two-time Olympian Emily Chalker from Crookwell, finishing with eight goals each for the year.
The Hockeyroos and Kookaburras squads will now head home for the Christmas break before returning to the High Performance setup in Perth to launch into preparations for Tokyo 2020.
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