Dublin, November 14: Hockey Ireland are delighted to announce the successful candidates who will make up the coaching teams for the U16 & U18 Boys and Girls for the season ahead.
Niall Denham will lead the Ireland U16 Girls and brings extensive experience to the role, having previously held the position of Head Coach at Three Rock Rovers, where he led the Men’s Team to Three successive EY Champions Trophy wins along with three Irish Senior Cups. Denham also held the role of Head Coach at Old Alex and has coached in some of the world’s most prestigious hockey nations, including the Netherlands, New Zealand, and the UK. Finally, Denham brings a wealth of player development expertise having worked within the Pathway programmes as Head Coach of the U16 & U18 boys over a five-year period before his move to New Zealand.
Niall will be joined by Assistant Coach Michael Fulham.
The Ireland U16 Boys will be led by Ross Hetem. Hailing from South Africa, Ross represented his national team at both Junior and Senior level as a player, and has enjoyed a fantastic club hockey career that has seen him play in South Africa, Australia, England, and now Ireland. His time playing around the world has exposed him to a variety of playing styles, something he credits as a key influence in his own coaching style. This coaching style has proved extremely successful in helping to the growth and development of Portrane Hockey Club, while also making a significant impact in the development of players as the Irish U16 Girls assistant coach last year.
Ross will be joined by Assistant Coach Julian Costelloe.
Ali Meeke will lead the Ireland U18 Girls. Meeke has spent the last 15 years developing as a coach. She has enjoyed successful stints coaching at school level, with Leinster Hockey where she recently led the U16 girls to the 2024 Inter Provincial Series title, and with Hockey Ireland where most recently she was Assistant Coach for the U18 Girls during 2023/24 cycle. As a player Ali was prominent figure in the Ireland Senior Women’s Team during their most successful period in history.
Ali will be joined by Assistant Coach Matthew Tracey.
The Ireland U18 Boys will be led by Ronan Hickey. Ronan has been involved in the Ireland Pathway program for several years now, holding the role of U16 Boys Head Coach since 2020, leading the side at 8 Nations competitions in Frankfurt, Granada and Walcz, and at the BearingPoint 4-Nations in Cork in 2024. Ronan spent several years working as an Assistant coach for both the Ireland U16 and U18s prior to this and has also coached at Inter Provincial level with Leinster.
Ronan will be joined by Assistant Coach Joel Cathcart.
Commenting on the appointments, Pathway Development Manager, Simon Lowry said:
“We are delighted to be able to appoint such a strong group of Pathway coaches who no doubt bring a diverse wealth of expertise and experience to their roles. We look forward to working closely with them in the coming year, to help maximise player development opportunities within the U16 and U18 programs.”
Hockey Ireland are also recruiting for the dual position of U21 Women Head Coach& Senior Women Assistant Coach, with full details available on https://hockey.ie/vacancies/