FORMER IRISH hockey player Shirley McCay, MBE, has been appointed to a lead club coaching and director position in Belgium.
The Drumquin woman, who is the most capped international in Irish sport having played 316 times for Ireland, has taken up a new role with Lara Hockey Club Wavre.
Her new role is three fold. The World Cup silver medallist and Olympian has been installed as head coach of the ladies and U19 men’s team and will act as a director of the girls’ section from under-12 to under-16 level.
McCay, a former Ulster and Ireland Schools’ Cup winner with Omagh Academy, was headhunted for the position and in accepting the role, which officially begins on August 1, she becomes the first female from Ireland to coach in Europe.
It’s a huge step for the experienced campaigner although she insists the move has come at a good time in her coaching journey.
“Taking the next step in my coaching journey by moving to Belgium and joining Lara Hockey Club is something I’m really excited about,” she said.
“It’s a fresh challenge in a new environment, and one I’m ready to fully embrace.
“What excites me is the vision of the club — it aligns strongly with my own values, particularly the ambition to support and develop homegrown talent while also building an environment that others genuinely want to be part of.”
As a player the Drumquin native enjoyed a hugely decorated club career while playing with Ulster Elks, Pegasus and Old Alex in Dublin.
Internationally she playing a starring role for the Ireland senior team for the best part of 15 years and was instrumental in the women in green reaching the final of the World Cup played in London in 2018. She, too, played for Ireland in the 2022 Olympic Games in Tokyo before retiring.
That same year she was awarded a MBE for services to hockey and community in Northern Ireland and since 2013 has been the Talent & Pathways Manager at Ulster Hockey since 2013.
Lara Hockey Club Wavre are a Division 1 (second tier) club in Belgium, who, according to McCay, harbour ambitions of promotion to the top flight in next couple of seasons.