Newcastle duo Ky Willott, Mariah Williams star in national Hockey One title sweep for NSW Pride

Willott and Williams were each adjudged best on ground for their respective men's and women's finals in Bendigo on Sunday.

NSW won both showdowns, the men defending their 2019 crown by prevailing 2-0 over Perth Thundersticks and following up the women's 3-1 shootout success against Brisbane Blaze.

Norths product Willott opened the Pride's scoring with an outstanding goal in the men's decider, described in commentary as "a vicious tommahawk with no space, no time and no daylight".

Willott, who debuted for the Kookaburras earlier this year, trapped the ball on the edge of the circle and moved towards the byline before firing off a shot that "threaded the needle" between the near post and goalkeeper.

His effort made it 1-0 midway through the second quarter. It was 2-0 at half-time.

"Unreal. It's so good. The best feeling you could ever hope for," Willott told Kayo Sports in a post-match interview.

Willott was joined in the Pride side by Matt Dawson (Norths), Nathan Czinner and Tom Brown (Souths).

In the women's fixture, Souths striker Williams netted the first goal of the shootout for NSW. It was 2-all at the end of regular time. Estelle Hughes (Regals) also played for Pride.

NSW qualified for Sunday's finals following dual wins in Saturday's semis. The men beat Brisbane 5-3 in a shootout while the women edged out Perth 1-0.

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