Returning to her netball roots, Donna Wilkins will head back to the Mainland next year having been appointed as head coach of the Trident Homes Tactix.
Wilkins replaces Marianne Delaney-Hoshek and will guide the Tactix in the 2025 ANZ Premiership.
“It’s pretty exciting and it was too good of an opportunity not to have thrown my name in the hat for the coaching role,” the former dual international said.
“I think the biggest thing is having been involved in that environment for the last three years, in a smaller capacity, I’ve seen how hard the girls work and how in tune the Tactix are as a franchise. It’s always been a pretty positive environment to be in.”
Wilkins (nee Loffhagen) grew up in Rangiora and represented Canterbury before heading south in 1997 to pursue her game at the elite level.
She represented the Silver Ferns in 56 Tests, including one World Cup and two Commonwealth Games, and also has 95 caps for the Tall Ferns basketball team, playing for the national team at the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games.
Since switching her sights to coaching, she has been involved with the Tactix for the last three seasons as a specialist coach.
The Deep South became her home after marrying Southland farmer Mike Wilkins but with her three children heading to Christchurch for their secondary school years, Wilkins believed now was the perfect time to return to her roots and give back to the region.
“It is really cool to come back. I played my first netball here, trained on those Hagley courts, played for St Nic’s and then represented Canterbury. It is a good feeling – it would be nice to give back as this is where I started and there’s a lot of my family there. It will be pretty special.
“My parents are pretty excited to be fair, and I’ll have all my kids in Christchurch at school, so it seems to fit nicely.”
Wilkins will move to Christchurch to fulfil her commitments as head coach during the preseason and competition phase of the 2025 ANZ Premiership.
It will be her first coaching assignment in the Premiership, but she got her first taste of coaching an elite team in the former trans-Tasman league when she was assistant to Robyn Broughton.
Since then she has also been called in as a specialist shooting coach for the Silver Ferns in their build-up to the 2019 World Cup and guided the Southland Men’s team from the national B grade to A grade, as well as coaching at grassroots level – developing Year 7 and 8 players in Eastern Southland.
“I haven’t had an elite team like the Tactix, but this is a great opportunity for me to get immersed in the environment and learn the role as well,” Wilkins said. “I think I’m ready for it, I’ve been around those elite players for a few years now and it will be good to test my skills.
“I’m pretty direct, my plan is to get the best out of the team and be a team. I think you can have a team full of amazing talent but it’s how you hold them together. I really want to bring the defensive component to the team and maybe look a wee bit outside the box and use some of my basketball background.
“The Tactix have been amazing and growing every year which is awesome to see. They were very unlucky in 2024 not to be in that ANZ Premiership final, so hopefully we can mould the team together and get through to the final which is the aim.”
Tactix general manager Kate Agnew was delighted to have Wilkins at the helm for the next chapter of their club’s history.
“It is a full circle moment for Donna who started her netball here in Christchurch and is now back leading our elite players in New Zealand’s premier league,” she said. “It’s an exciting time for netball in our region and I know Donna has a wealth of netball knowledge and experience to bring to this role. I’m looking forward to seeing what next steps the Tactix can take under her leadership.”
