Netball Mar 29, 2026

England Netball: Tracey Neville admits she is 'absolutely not' right choice for head coach job after Jess Thirlby's departure

👤
By Admin
Sports Journalist
England Netball: Tracey Neville admits she is 'absolutely not' right choice for head coach job after Jess Thirlby's departure

Tracey Neville has admitted she is not the right candidate at this time for the role of England Netball head coach, while Tamsin Greenway has revealed she was not asked if she would want the job. 

Anna Stembridge will be stepping into the head coach position until after the Commonwealth Games in the summer following Jess Thirlby's decision to quit due to family reasons.

However, after the Games all eyes will be refocusing on the Netball World Cup, held in Sydney from August 25 to September 5, where England could find themselves under new leadership.

"Am I the obvious choice? Of course, I'm the obvious choice," Neville, who last month became managing director of Stockport County Women football team, said on Your Site' Off The Court Podcast.

"But am I the right choice? Absolutely not.

"Before I even got the Stockport County Women's job, I've had some great conversations with Sue Campbell [England Netball chair] and Fran Connolly [England Netball CEO].

"And Sue Campbell is very clear about where I am in my career, what my intentions were, and from my perspective now, the challenge I have in my particular role is exactly where I want to be.

"I absolutely love working at Stockport County so she would 100 per cent have known that [returning to England Netball] would not have been the next step."

Neville had been a popular choice to return long before Thirlby's decision was announced, as she was the only coach to lead England to a Commonwealth gold medal before stepping down in 2019 to start a family.

Meanwhile, Greenway, who coaches London Mavericks and would be another popular choice, revealed she was not contacted at all about the decision and believes no coaches in the Netball Super League were spoken to.

"No, I wasn't asked," Greenway said.

"I think maybe my phone's dead or something, there's no reception in London, that's why.

"I don't think there was any phone calls put to any of the current England coaches in the Super League at the moment - I don't believe there was anyway.

"Do I think that should have happened? I don't know. I don't know what the protocol was.

"I don't think anyone saw this coming, I think it's all been a very quick turnaround to whatever's happened."

On Friday it was announced that Greenway had signed a long-term deal with London Mavericks where she will continue to lead the NSL side but also help with the development of the club's performance environment and player pathways.

Tags:

netball news

Share this article

Related Posts

England's Vitality Roses well beaten by South Africa in netball series decider

England's Vitality Roses well beaten by South Africa in netball series decider

England fell to a 65-50 defeat against South Africa in their series decider in Johannesburg on Sunday.The Vitality Roses had bounced back from a loss...

England vs South Africa LIVE! Stream Vitality Roses' three-game Netball International Series on Sky Sports

England vs South Africa LIVE! Stream Vitality Roses' three-game Netball International Series on Sky Sports

Goalkeeper Cox shutting out noise about futureLatest from Your Site' Dan Long:Brentford goalkeeper Matt Cox - who is currently on loan...

Pakistan netball: Meet the team who are backed by Super League club Birmingham Panthers and are inspiring change in the sport

Pakistan netball: Meet the team who are backed by Super League club Birmingham Panthers and are inspiring change in the sport

In the space of a week, Farah Hasan went from playing netball to not being able to walk.In June 2017, when Hasan was 21-years-old, she was diagnosed w...

England's Vitality Roses beat South Africa in Johannesburg to set up netball series decider on Sunday

England's Vitality Roses beat South Africa in Johannesburg to set up netball series decider on Sunday

England bounced back from defeat to South Africa in their series opener by winning match two in Johannesburg to make Sunday's final fixture, live on Y...

Tracey Neville and Tamsin Greenway team up on Sky Sports' Off The Court netball podcast in huge year for the sport

Tracey Neville and Tamsin Greenway team up on Sky Sports' Off The Court netball podcast in huge year for the sport

Your Site has announced a HUGE new signing with an expert called Neville providing unrivalled analysis this season.Former England Netball head coach T...

Helen Housby: Whenever England play South Africa it's always a grudge match

Helen Housby: Whenever England play South Africa it's always a grudge match

England star Helen Housby is looking for the Vitality Roses to make a statement in a “huge” series against South Africa this week.The first match agai...