Oscar Smart’s NSW selection is a reward for his devotion to the game.

“I just love it,” he said.

“When you’ve got the ball, it’s all up to you, you’ve got to make your own decision every time.”

During the winter, the 16-year old played school sport on Friday night, Premier League One for Essendon in Melbourne on Saturday and club hockey for Norths on Sunday.

And during the off-season, he travels to Melbourne every weekend for academy training.

“He loves it, that’s his goal,” his father Matt Smart said.

“Hockey’s his number one thing.

“He’s one of my best mates, we spend that much time together in the car.

“He’s got his L’s (learner driver’s license), so his hours are certainly up on his L’s anyway.”

But that’s not the end of his travels.

Smart will attend a two-day training camp in Wollongong, a 1000-kilometre round trip, before leaving for Adelaide.

The Year 11 Albury High School student has a strong background in the sport, with his late grandfather, Bob Smart, a Hockey Albury-Wodonga life member.

“He always taught me the old tricks they used to do,” Oscar said.

“He used to ring me actually every Sunday after my games and ask me how I was going.

“He was a very tough player, he was always asking, ‘did you get body contact’?”

Smart’s game though is based on speed and skill.

“I want to go as far as I can, my dream is to play for Australia,” he said.

He’s hoping to take that next step in Adelaide.