Legendary England and GB Captain joins Wolfpack coaching staff
Field Hockey Canada is excited to announce the appointment of Kate Richardson-Walsh as the new assistant coach of the Women’s National Team. Eight weeks after the appointment of Danny Kerry as Head Coach, the Field Hockey Canada high performance team makes another huge acquisition.
Richardson-Walsh is the most capped female English national player, with 375 caps to her name. She won a bronze medal at the London 2012 Olympics. According to Richardson-Walsh, her greatest achievement as a player came in 2016 at the Rio Olympics where she was instrumental in leading GB to their first ever women’s hockey gold medal.
Richardson-Walsh is one of Britain’s greatest ever female hockey players, having captained Great Britain for 13 years. She also captained England for over a decade where she won the European Championships in 2015 and secured a bronze and two silvers in three successive Commonwealth Games. Richardson-Walsh was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2015 and Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2017 for services to hockey.
She said that she believes she can bring her hockey experience and leadership to Team Canada and support the growing success and momentum of this team.
“Having played international hockey for 18 years I have accrued a vast amount of knowledge on the game, leadership, and team culture,” Richardson-Walsh said. “I hope to blend this with my experience coaching Hampstead & Westminster in the English Premier League for the last five seasons to help the team and each player thrive.”
Susan Ahrens, CEO of Field Hockey Canada, is thrilled to bring Richardson-Walsh into the Canadian hockey community. Ahrens said that her impact will be far-reaching.
“Kate’s golden career in sport speaks for itself – she is one of hockey’s greatest and an icon of our game. Equally impressive has been her transition from athlete to coach and captain to a leader in other fields. Kate stands for excellence and uses her voice to advocate for women in sport and other groups whose voices need to be heard, including LGBTQ+ human rights. We are proud to have her as part of our Canadian hockey community.”
Richardson-Walsh’s recent coaching resume includes head coaching the Hamstead & Westminster Hockey Club’s top women’s team. The team consistently performs in the top three of the Women’s Premier Division and represented England in the recent European club competition.
Danny Kerry coached GB and England during Richardson-Walsh’s glory playing days. The two made a fabulous coach-captain combination in the 2010s, achieving top-of-class international success at the highest level. The two will be reunited behind the Canadian bench and will look to lead this program to new heights. He said he is delighted to work with her again and is looking forward for everything she can bring.
“Kate will bring a depth and granular understanding of what it is like to train as an Olympian, the standards required, an understanding of the women’s international game and the critical importance of the qualities needed in people to form a high performing team,” Kerry said. “Having worked with Kate for over 13 years, over multiple successful Olympic cycles I know Kate will bring needed support and challenge to myself, to the team and to the staff. Kate is a world class individual who will add incredible value to Field Hockey Canada and the Women’s National Team.”
For Richardson-Walsh, this opportunity connects the game she loves with her passion for supporting people’s growth and development. She is looking forward to reuniting with Kerry and starting with the Canadian Wolfpack.
“My passion in life is helping people and teams realise their potential. Using my ability to communicate to connect with people, I hope to quickly build bonds of trust and respect that will make us hard to break down,” she said. “I have long admired the spirit and energy of the Canadian women’s team and I believe our collective strengths will combine well across the program led by Danny Kerry.”
