Discovering the Journey and Vision of Our Newest Teammate in the APAC Region
In the dynamic world of sport, Nick brings a wealth of experience and dedication to long-term athlete development with experience in playing, coaching and management. Nick’s journey, spanning from the GAA fields of Ireland to the busy stadiums of Australia is testament to his commitment to the sporting community. Nick’s resume includes pivotal roles with GWS Giants and St. Kilda Football Club… Beyond his professional endeavors, Nick’s commitment to mental health and wellbeing shines through his creation of the AFL Coaches and Players’ community program, Tackle Your Feelings.
As we warmly welcome Nick into his new role in the APAC region, let’s delve into his background and his motivations driving him towards this exciting new chapter.
1. What was your experience prior to joining Teamworks?
I have been fortunate to play and coach at both Amateur and Professional levels both in my birthplace, Ireland, and for the last 15 years in Australia.I studied Sports Coaching at the University of Ulster, Belfast before going on to a MSc in Performance (Science) via Setanta College.
I am passionate about long-term athlete development and coach education, and having held key roles in Gaelic Football and more recently within Australian Rules Football Teams at GWS Giants and St. Kilda Football Club, I am a big believer in the role technology plays in sport. Around 2008, the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) in Ireland brought Smartabase on board, mainly for participation and data gathering purposes, but in roughly 15 years Smartabase has become a standalone product. I have experience using Smartabase at the Giants and Teamworks Hub at my most recent sporting role as High Performance Manager at St. Kilda.
I also have a strong passion for mental health and wellbeing, having developed the AFL Coaches and Players’ community program called Tackle Your Feelings.
2. What is your experience with sports?
I grew up playing Gaelic Football and Hurling and by 16 had represented and captained Ireland to an under-17 series in a hybrid game versus Australia. It was through this international rules game, as a 17 year old I was recruited to play for the Melbourne Football Club.
I was in Melbourne’s squad for 3 years and returned back to Ireland in 2004. Whilst injuries stalled my career, I went on to play a further 8 years with my club Cavan Gaels and represented County Cavan, a small landlocked county on the border of Northern Ireland.
I returned to Australia at the end of 2011, to pursue a coaching career mainly in athlete development with the GWS Giants. I spent 7 years at the Giants in Sydney performing a number of roles in the High Performance and Assistant Coaching space.
As a previous High Performance Manager, having data at your disposal but data that can be broken down in so many easy and effective ways to inform the on-field coaching staff is critical. The ability to store it somewhere in the very fast paced world of elite sports is critical to the role practitioners play.
3. Why have you decided to join Teamworks?
Teamworks Hub saved me a lot of time in my coaching life. Not only the time saved factor, but a product so easy to use sparked interest for me to research it further and where it stood in the world of sports leaders. That, coupled with the amazing people I have dealt with directly but through to today coming on board and feeling that sense of cohesiveness – team but most of all the feeling of value and being valued.
4. What’s the most exciting thing about joining Teamworks?
One of the most exciting things about joining Teamworks is Zach and the Leadership teams’ vision for growth, expansion and scale. In sport, we often say it’s about taking risks. That’s what the public sees. The public don’t see the endless hours of practice, game plan implementation and strategy by these teams. I feel this is not too dissimilar to the leaders at Teamworks. Their clarity, organization and ability to grow in different markets with different products will enable teams and clubs to streamline their approach in a much easier and efficient way is another aspect that excites me.
Nick’s Vision for Teamworks
For me, being part of a world leading sporting tech company is what I am looking forward to the most. Is it possible to have a crystal ball? I’d love to see where we might be in another 15 years as our sports and athletes evolve, the game continues to produce better spectacles year on year and clubs, coaches and practitioners utilize our products to essentially get more update to date and accurate data, but more importantly, efficient ways of working to have more time back in their days to spend with family and loved ones.
