DAVID RALPH’S hugely successful Scotland playing career means he retains a wide network of friends and contacts north of the border. Some days, though, he finds himself more popular than others.

“I loved my time in Scottish hockey. And you end up making friends for life…until I started coaching England and some of them disowned me,” he laughs.

Ralph was promoted late last year to become the head coach of both the England and Great Britain women’s hockey teams after nine years in the system in a number of supporting roles.

It has meant a natural evolution into the top job for the former Kelburne player, one that comes with additional responsibilities but also perks.

“The new job is going well so far,” he said. “Everyone has been really nice to me over these last few months and I’m slowly finding my feet. I’ve been here for the best part of a decade now and in that time I’ve had to step into this role on several occasions so a lot of it has been familiar to me.

“But as the permanent head coach now it is a bit different in places in aspects like the relationship with the players. It’s nice to be the one who has the final call now but of course that means the buck stops with you too which is fine.

“I’ve worked with a lot of good coaches throughout my playing and coaching career and you definitely get shaped by those experiences, both good and bad.”

The long-term target with his GB hat on is the 2024 Paris Olympics but before he can get his teeth into that he has England matters to deal with, including a home Commonwealth Games.

“This is quite a full year for us,” adds the former Loughborough Students player and coach. “As England we have the Pro League, the World Cup, the European qualifiers and the Commonwealth Games. And that’s all before the end of August.

“But Paris is already in the back of our minds, especially with the cycle just being three years this time. It will be on top of us before we know it.

“The players change between England and GB which means the personalities and the dressing room dynamic change a little too. So there is a definite switch. But this year it’s nicely split with the GB stuff taking place from around September onwards once the England commitments are out of the way.”

The surprise omission of Alan Forsyth from the men’s squad for the Tokyo Olympics again underlined the difficulty facing Scots and Welsh athletes when it comes to forcing their way into what many perceive to be a primarily English set-up.

Ralph insists the door will always be open for those from the Celtic countries to make the case for British inclusion.

“It’s definitely a Great Britain set-up rather than an England set-up as we train as a GB squad,” adds Ralph. “The girls from Scotland and Wales are with us too and we all work together before going off for spells to compete as the separate home nations.

“I know there is an argument that it’s harder for the Scottish and Welsh players to force their way in but the English players could argue it’s not a level playing field for them either.  

“It’s tricky as the Scottish and Welsh athletes don’t always get to compete at the higher levels of home nation events consistently compared to the English players.

“Other nations actually think the set-up works in our favour as we get more girls exposed to international hockey earlier which means they have that experience when it comes to putting together the Britain squad.

“But the door is always open to Scottish and Welsh players. And in some ways that door is open longer than it is for some English players.

“If you don’t break into the England set-up by 23 or 24 then you struggle as there’s no other pathway. Whereas if you’re a Scottish or Welsh player who’s not broken into GB by that time then you’re still playing international hockey and still being seen. So that window in theory remains open longer for the non-English girls.”

This is a big year for Ralph in a number of ways. As well as his latest hockey commitments, the 49 year-old will celebrate a landmark birthday not long after the conclusion of the Commonwealth Games. If it all ties up nicely he will get to mark the big day with another gold medal in his pocket.

“I’m not sure there will be much celebrating for that birthday! Turning 40 was alright, turning 50 just feels slightly different. My wife has a big birthday as well so it’s a big year for the family. If we could win the Commonwealth Games then that would be the best present.”