Anita Keelan appointed NSWIS Netball Head Coach

The NSW Institute of Sport (NSWIS), in partnership with Netball NSW, is pleased to announce the appointment of Anita Keelan as NSWIS Head Coach/NSW Swifts Assistant Coach.

Following a robust recruitment process, Keelan has been appointed to the restructured Head Coach position which will now be responsible for delivering the high performance program for NSWIS scholarship and targeted national/emerging athletes, supporting the development of identified coaches through ongoing mentoring, and perform the role of an Assistant Coach on the NSW Swifts’ coaching staff.

“The NSWIS Netball Program forms a key function in the high performance pathway of both athletes and coaches at a State and National level,” Netball NSW Chief Executive Officer Carolyn Campbell said.

“Athletes identified for the NSWIS netball program are viewed as potential NSW Swifts or even Australian Diamonds, so having an NSWIS program which is more aligned with the technical and tactical demands of these elite athletes can only benefit all parties.”

Kim Crane, Manager of High Performance Sport & Excellence at the NSWIS, echoed Campbell’s sentiments.

“The NSWIS welcomes back Anita after she held a coaching role here from 2010 to 2012. We know the partnership has recruited a high capability coach to this critical sport position, which holds NSWIS, NSW Swifts and Netball Australia responsibilities.

“The Institute’s role is to support athletes to become world’s best, and with the recent benchmark success of the Australian Diamonds we know that to produce athletes of this calibre is a task that Anita is more than capable of,” Crane said.

Keelan is well respected throughout Australian netball and has played an influential role in the development of some of the country’s finest young talent.

Keelan was the NSW Swifts’ Technical Assistant Coach during the 2014 ANZ Championship season, joining the Sydney-based franchise from the Australian Institute of Sport where she was Assistant Coach for two years, as well as Assistant Coach of the 2013 Australian 21/U team that claimed silver at the World Youth Netball Championships in Glasgow.

“Anita’s vast coaching experience at a state, national and international level makes her the perfect candidate to nurture and develop the State’s future netballing talent,” Carolyn Campbell concluded.

This appointment finalises the NSW Swifts’ coaching bench for the 2015 ANZ Championship season, with both Rob Wright (Head Coach) and Megan Anderson (Assistant Coach) continuing in their respective positions.