Don Tricker

Donald Francis Tricker {{post-nominals|country=NZL|ONZM|size=85%}} is a former player and coach of the New Zealand national softball team (Black Sox) and senior advisor of high performance coaching at the New Zealand Academy of Sport.

Family background

Tricker's grandfather was one of the country's leading softball umpires and played a key role in introducing the game to the Wellington region.{{cite news|title=Softball: Seriously good coach shares the funny side |author=Julie Ash|date=Oct 27, 2001|newspaper=New Zealand Herald|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=224719}}

Sporting career

=Player=

Tricker played softball for Porirua until he was 22 then moved to Poneke Kilbirnie, claiming regional and national titles with both clubs, and played for the Black Sox on and off between 1986 and 1991.{{cite news|title=Softball: Tricker picks his successor|author=Julie Ash|date=Jul 16, 2004|newspaper=New Zealand Herald|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=3578615}}

=Coach=

Tricker began his softball coaching career at Poneke Kilbirnie in 1996, while he was still playing, and was named Black Sock coach two years later. He coached the team to two world championship wins in 2000 and three consecutive world titles.{{cite news|title=Our top ten sports stars|date=Dec 18, 2004|newspaper=New Zealand Herald|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=9003784}} He retired as national coach in 2004, being replaced by Eddie Kohlhase.{{cite news|title=Black Sox reappoint coach|date=Dec 1, 2009|newspaper=New Zealand Herald|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=10612799}}

In 2002, after six years in the information technology sector, Tricker was appointed as senior advisor of high performance coaching at the New Zealand Academy of Sport, a unit of Sport and Recreation New Zealand.{{cite news|title=Softball: Tricker appointed to Academy of Sport|date=Feb 11, 2002|newspaper=New Zealand Herald|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=889708}} Tricker and Auckland lawyer Mike Heron prepared a report into the All Blacks early World Cup exit.{{cite news|title=We're sorry, NZRU chairman tells fans|author=Mike Houlahan|date=Apr 18, 2008|newspaper=New Zealand Herald|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10504785}} In 2010 the New Zealand Rugby Union has appointed Tricker as the High Performance Manager.{{cite web|url=http://www.rugbyrugby.com/news/story_91110070259.php|title=Softball man gets All Black job|date=September 2010|accessdate=20 February 2011|publisher=Rugby Rugby|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110715212653/http://www.rugbyrugby.com/news/story_91110070259.php|archivedate=15 July 2011}}

Honours and awards

Tricker was named coach of the year at the 2000 Halberg Awards, after leading the team to a world series victory in South Africa In the 2004 Queen's Birthday Honours, he was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to softball.{{cite web |url=https://dpmc.govt.nz/publications/queens-birthday-honours-list-2004 |title=Queen's Birthday honours list 2004 |date=7 June 2004 |publisher=Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet |accessdate=30 May 2020}}

References

Category:Living people

Category:Year of birth missing (living people)

Category:Sportspeople from Porirua

Category:New Zealand softball players

Category:New Zealand softball coaches

Category:Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit