Murphy joins Roses’ backroom team as technical coach
LOUGHBOROUGH Sport’s Olivia Murphy has joined the England Netball backroom team as its new technical coach.
While remaining in her role as Head of Performance Sport at Loughborough University, Murphy will also help to develop and prepare England players through expert coaching and support on training camps and in competitive series.
Murphy, who is also a Loughborough alumna and a member of the university’s Hall of Fame, joins the England coaching team having amassed 95 caps across 15 years playing internationally for England, with six years spent as senior captain. With over 20 years of coaching experience, Murphy has helped players on the developmental pathway to their international careers as England Netball Technical Coach for the U17 age group since 2014 and at many a club setting, including Loughborough Lightning, where she is currently the Vitality Netball Superleague side’s assistant coach.
“It’s a privilege and an honour to be involved with the Vitality Roses in this role,” said Murphy.
“With the netball season firmly under way it has been a great showcase for the athletes but also for me to start to look at ways to help them develop. Ultimately, I’m so excited to work with the talented staff and players and cannot wait to get started.”
Murphy will join Sonia Mkoloma (assistant coach) and Liana Leota (technical coach) in head coach Jess Thirlby’s new-look backroom team.
All three coaching additions are experienced medal-winners at multiple Commonwealth Games and Netball World Cups and will work with the Vitality Roses until after the 2023 Netball World Cup.
As the countdown to the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham next summer begins, the appointments bring huge experience and netball DNA to the heart of the off-court team supporting the Vitality Roses as they look to repeat history on home soil.
Thirlby said: “If you know netball, you know Liv, Sonia and Liana.
“Their passion and collective experience from playing and coaching at the highest level over many years in multiple highperformance environments across the world will be a huge asset for the Roses as we prepare for Birmingham 2022. “I’m so excited about what they will bring to our team.”