Marcelle Keet has been appointed head coach of the Canberra Chill Women’s team. Photos: Hockey ACT.
In many aspects, the appointment of Marcelle Keet as the Canberra Chill Women’s hockey team is a telling move.
Telling because most head coaches in the Women’s Hockey One League in 2024 were male, with only the Brisbane Blaze having a female in charge, while Susan Brooks and Tim Strapp shared the role with the Tasmanian team.
The Canberra Chill Women’s team, until this appointment, had a female as a co-coach, so Keet’s selection is effectively history in the making.
Meredith Bone and Paul Sureda had been the Chill Women’s team co-coaches in the 2022 Hockey One League before Keet’s appointment.
Keet, a former South African international hockey and water polo player, comes into the Canberra Chill head coaching position with an impressive CV.
She was an assistant coach with the South African team at the Paris Olympics last year, before joining Hockey ACT as the pathways manager straight after the Games.
She then played a key role in the game-day preparation of the Chill team in the 2024 season.
There will undoubtedly be expectations after the Chill Women made the grand final in 2023 but struggled to make an impact on the ladder in 2024.
In comparison, the men’s team, which had been in the shadow of the women’s side, emerged to make the grand final before going down.
Marcelle Keet with a young Canberra Chill fan.
Matt Cook, the 2024 Chill Women’s coach, believes Keet has the ability to bring out the best in the Canberra squad.
“Her energy and passion for the game is infectious and we are excited to see where she takes the program,” he says.
Keet’s challenge will be to bring the next generation of players into the top squad.
Her appointment as the ACT Under 21 coach alongside the Canberra Chill position will provide a first-hand insight into the emerging talent in Canberra hockey.
Keet said the focus in the Hockey One off-season was to deal with player retirements and work with the upcoming players to build a strong team-first culture.
While honoured to be appointed as the first female head coach of the Canberra Chill Women’s team, Keet is clearly well qualified and experienced enough to steer the team through anything it faces in 2025.
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