The British Softball Federation and Head of Performance Gary Anderson have today announced the 2024 Great Britain Women’s Fastpitch Coaching Staff for the Senior and U-22 teams. This year, the Senior Coaching Staff, led by Olympic Head Coach Tara Henry, will lead both teams at their respective European Softball Championship competitions, with Bench Coach Patrick Lewis, Hitting Coach Lincoln Martin, and Pitching Coach Pattie Ruth Taylor joining her to complete the staff.
“I am absolutely delighted to have secured the staff for this coming season,” said Anderson. “When we started planning for our 2024 performance campaign, we identified key competitions that will enable us to benchmark our trajectory towards LA2028. Consistency in our coaching staff across both the U-22 and Senior teams is so important, especially as we have a large number of players who are eligible to play in both tournaments. By utilising a core coaching staff, we are attempting to build a seamless strategy and synergy to support our players.”
Tara Henry returns for her second season at the helm of the Great Britain Senior Women and will coach the U-22 teams for the first time. Henry, a former NCAA college champion with the UCLA Bruins in 2004, earned her Master’s degree in Sport and International Development from the University of Brighton (UK) in 2017. Her coaching career started with private instruction and Academy sessions after graduation from UCLA in 2007, with her first Great Britain experience coming at the 2018 Canada Cup with the GB Under-18 Women’s Team under Head Coach Robbie Robison.
Henry’s debut as Head Coach came last year at the Softball World Cup Pool A in Balbriggan, Ireland, with GBR Softball victorious over Olympic competitors Australia, then-world-ranked number 3 Chinese Taipei, and hosts Ireland in her first three games at the helm. Great Britain finished the Softball World Cup in ninth place, their best-ever finish, and currently rank 13th in the WBSC World Rankings.
Patrick Lewis returns to Great Britain for his second season as the team’s bench coach, and his first time coaching the U-22s. Prior to joining GBR, Lewis coached the Bombers Fastpitch Organisation in Georgia with fellow Great Britain coach Lincoln Martin. Lewis has more than 15 years’ experience developing elite softball players, including members of the USA Softball National Team Programme.
Lincoln Martin enters his second season with the programme, and his first coaching the U-22s as well. Martin started his career as a professional player with four seasons in the Baltimore Orioles system before transitioning into coaching. He then spent 11 years as an MLB scout, working for the Houston Astros and Miami Marlins, and opened Top Tier Sports, a high-performance baseball/softball facility in Douglasville, Georgia, USA, in 2012. Martin is also an ambassador for Blast Motion, the wearable sports analysis tracker used throughout baseball and softball, and has been a guest instructor at many elite training camps and facilities, including The Hitting Vault.
Pattie Ruth Taylor rounds out the coaching staff, entering her first competition season with the Great Britain programme. Taylor joins the Great Britain coaching staff in addition to her role at the University of Texas, where she is in her first season as an assistant coach. Prior to joining Texas’ staff this year, Taylor spent two seasons with Lehigh University from 2022-23. In 2022, Lehigh’s pitching staff helped the team secure their 15th Patriot League tournament championship, and first since 2017.
“With our focus set on long-term development, our objective remains steadfast: foster a culture of excellence and stability,” said Great Britain Olympic Head Coach Tara Henry. “The consistent presence of our staff at the helm of the U22 and Women's National Team program gives us invaluable time with the athletes—often in short supply during international competitions. It is a great privilege to spearhead this summer's journey alongside an exceptional cohort of women, complemented by top-tier coaches and staff, as we strive to sustain and further elevate Great Britain’s upward trajectory.
The Great Britain U-22s will play in Kutno, Poland at the U-22 European Championship from 5-10 August, while the Great Britain Senior Women will compete at the European Softball Championships in Utrecht, The Netherlands, from 1-8 September 2024.
Follow the Great Britain Women’s Team on social media at Facebook.com/GBWomenSoftball, @GBWomenSoftball on X, and Instagram, and on the British Softball Federation website, britishsoftball.org.