Champion coach’s surprise pivot to the men Former Mystics winning coach Helene Wilson is realising her dream to coach an international netball side, with the men’s Net Blacks, but it’s been a baptism of fire, Suzanne McFadden writes
It’s what you might call an unexpected pivot. Helene Wilson has gone from her paid job helping New Zealand women to lead in high performance sport, to a voluntary role helping men in netball to flourish.
It may seem paradoxical, but the ANZ Premiership champion coach says both roles champion diversity and inclusion. And her new coaching gig with the New Zealand men’s netball side has helped her recapture her joy for netball.
Wilson also has an idea to solve the dilemma of how the New Zealand women’s game could grow at the pinnacle of the sport, with the help of their male counterparts.
It was a “no-brainer” for Wilson to take on the Net Blacks this season. “As a sports coach, you want the best opportunities for the people you work with – the equity piece is around ‘Can every person have an opportunity to play the sport they’re passionate about?’” she says.
“In a lot of sports, that’s about supporting women to play the sport that they love. And in netball, because it’s a predominantly women’s sport, my role is supporting the men to play the sport they love.
“It’s not a gender issue. And when you look at sport through an inclusive lens, you learn so much about how sport can be a vehicle for social good. And I think that’s what I’m bringing to netball.”
