The winners of the 2019 Hockey NSW Awards were announced recently at an event attended by more than 200 guests at the Rydges Mount Panorama in Bathurst.

The winners were selected for various categories, including umpire, coach, official, community event and community, which was taken out by the Nelson Bay club.

Hockey NSW CEO David Thompson congratulated all of the winners for their outstanding efforts across their communities as hockey representatives, and he praised Nelson Bay for its continued efforts to promote hockey as a family based sport that everyone can enjoy.

"The winner of this award is a club that has its local community at heart. In 2019, they implemented many initiatives to try and increase their membership, including an innovative female mentor program, free uniforms for all and rebates for girls aged 12-18 to increase female participation," Thompson said.

"They also introduced subsidised registration for larger families. The club is very pro-active in the local media and even organised for a bus load of their members to make the five-hour round trip to support Australia in the Sydney pro-league games last year."

Club president Nicole Le Grange said they had not expected to win such a prestigious award.

"We actually didn't even know that we were a finalist. It is wonderful that the hard work of our committee and members is being recognised in this way by Hockey NSW and the broader hockey community," Nicole said.

"We are truly grateful for the award and I would like to thank each and every one of our members for making our club the resilient community club that it is today.

"We aren't just a great community club, we also have a wide range of ages and abilities and cater for all levels."

The club has currently suspended all competition due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Cathryn Churchill, club membership coordinator, said it was heart-warming to see Nelson Bay recognised for the efforts they have put in over the past 12 months.

"As a club we work hard to ensure we keep the family focus and allow everyone to have a go. We have been really fortunate to attract quite a few families to our club and we have a really great presence of support and friendship," she said.

"This flows through to off-field relationships as well. We have a strong contingent of parents that assist with fund raising and promoting our club, as well as attending social functions together.

"We are one of the best clubs in terms of value for money, friendships, and also because you don't have to travel too far to get to games played at Salamander sporting complex. They are all local."

Call Cathy with any inquiries on 0432 761 651.