Life around the Scottish Thistles won’t ever be dull with Kath Tetley in charge but with that fun-loving nature comes a fiercely competitive streak and finely tuned will to win.
The Australian was appointed Thistles’ head coach and Netball Scotland performance director in June before making the flit halfway across the world to start work in September, bringing several decades of coaching, management and leadership experience along with her.
Tetley is engaging company as she talks fondly about her Scottish roots and the difficulties she’s faced trying to understand the Glaswegian dialect but, like many of her compatriots, there is an inherent winner’s mentality at the core of her being.
Next week’s home Celtic Cup, a four-team tournament featuring Northern Ireland, Wales and Zimbabwe, will provide a first chance to watch her new charges in action but there is no thought given to this being seen simply as a warm-up exercise.
“We want to win the Celtic Cup,” confirms Tetley. “It’s a pretty straightforward equation. In addition to that, it’s also about showing the brand of netball we’re going to play as Thistles.
“We need to be pretty gutsy and fierce. The athletes have been really open to that which is great. They know that if we are really going to be challenging and pushing the top six nations of the world then we have to make sure we are in beast mode all the time.
“It doesn’t mean that off court we’re not delightful human beings that people want to hang out with. But when we step on court there has to be bravery and a fierceness.
“That’s something I’m used to from back home but I’ve come in here and there are some athletes in this group who are seriously good. I’m just here to be their guide.
“If there are things I can help them with – and one of them is this being fiercer so teams are a little bit more afraid of them – then I owe it to them to be honest and lay that gauntlet down. But already I’ve found this to be one of the most open and coachable groups I’ve worked with in the past 20 years.”
Tetley has been appointed with the 2027 World Cup as the long-term focus but the recent announcement that netball had made the cut for the slimmed-down Commonwealth Games the year before has provided a fresh target.
“I love nothing more than ripping in and squeezing the juice out of life,” adds Tetley, with tigerish enthusiasm. “It looks like we are hitting the ground running here and I love it. I’m pretty stoked for the athletes [about the Commonwealth Games news]. As the song says, ‘players want to play’ and so this opportunity to do so and at home is going to massive.
“After hearing all the wonderful stories from the last Games here in 2014, the fact we get to be a centrepiece of the next cycle, 12 months out from the Sydney World Cup, will be fantastic.”
It hasn’t been all positive news for Scottish netball lately, of course. The demise of the country’s only semi-professional side, the Strathclyde Sirens, after they were priced out of Netball Super League 2.0, was a significant blow. But Tetley hopes it can be turned into an opportunity.
“With the Sirens not being in play, we have to think about how we deliver for the athletes differently. In a performance headspace, what does a national league look like? How do we make that better, stronger, faster and fitter?”
Tetley has only been in the country for six weeks or so but is gradually getting used to a new way of working and living.
“It’s been a whirlwind of emotions, fun and life adventures,” she confirms. “Packing up our lives and moving to Scotland has been one of the greatest adventures we’ve ever tackled in our household. But we’re loving it. I keep seeing the pink signs everywhere saying People Make Glasgow and that’s true. I’m still trying to figure out some of the Glaswegian terminology and language, though. The girls are having a bit of fun at my expense on that one.”
Netball was not the only thing that drew Tetley and her husband, Andrew, to Scotland. Her family’s heritage can be traced to the north-east and there are plans to spend a bit of time exploring when the sporting calendar allows.
“My middle name is Jane as was my grandmother’s. Mary Jane Wright was born in Aberdeen, one of eight brothers and sisters, and she was a huge part of my upbringing. She was on my dad’s side and that stoic, sarcastic, salt-of-the-earth humour is something I take great pride in. So, this is a homecoming of sorts for me. I’m really looking forward to learning more about my heritage and adventuring around the country when we get the chance.”
The Celtic Cup takes place at the Emirates Arena, Glasgow from November 7 to 10. Tickets are available from the Netball Scotland page on Fanbase: http://bit.ly/cctix
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