When Guy Cathro arrived in America last year, bound for Syracuse, he didn’t get a typical ride back to his hotel room.

There at the airport, dressed head to toe in Syracuse gear was Orange field hockey players Shannon Taylor, Lindsey Conrad and Lena Voelmle, holding a sign that said ‘Guy,’ waiting to meet their new assistant coach for the first time.

‘His flight was a little delayed, and we were sitting on the floor, holding a sign so he could be able to see who we were,’ Taylor said. ‘It was kind of awkward at first, but then we just jumped up like ‘Hey!’ and it all worked out.’

Because of NCAA transfer regulations, Voelmle, Taylor and Conrad were not able to travel with the team during road trips so they were Cathro’s official welcoming crew.

‘He was a nice guy right off the bat,’ Taylor said. ‘We took him to where he lived and got him comfortable before the team was able to get back.’

In his second year as an assistant coach for No. 2 Syracuse, Cathro’s tough, hands-on coaching style has helped Syracuse steadily rise in the national ranks.

Cathro arrived in Central New York from his native Scotland, a place where he built a strong reputation for himself in the field hockey scene. As a player, Cathro reached the professional ranks at the age of 15, picking up the game from his parents – both avid field hockey players.

‘Both my parents played, so I was always on the side of the field when they played just messing around with the hockey ball,’ Cathro said. ‘I started doing well when I was young and I started playing more and more.’

After a string of injuries, Cathro then moved to the sideline, coaching both men’s and women’s club before mentoring international men’s Scottish players.

But his big break came by chance after a phone call from fellow field hockey coach at Albany. Cathro’s friend notified him of a job opening posted by Syracuse head coach Ange Bradley and before long the two were on the phone, discussing the game they love.

‘We just talked hockey for over an hour,’ Cathro said. ‘We just talked tactics and philosophies on the game, and how we approach coaching and our ambitions, and we both had very similar thoughts about the game so it was a really enjoyable conversation.’

After that phone call, Bradley knew she found the right man for the job.

‘When I read the resumes there was a certain pool that we liked and conducted interviews with, but when I met him I knew what we needed, and my gut just sensed it,’ Bradley said. ‘I knew he’d be a good fit for us. And he’s been awesome for us – he’s really helped our program.’

So far, Cathro has had an immediate impact on the Orange, Bradley said. On any given day, one can find Cathro in the middle of scrimmages, teaching his players the best way he knows how. Having a former professional men’s player active in scrimmages has helped the team develop much faster, Taylor said. Although, she admits, it’s not always fun.

‘Sometimes it’s really frustrating because he’s so quick,’ Taylor said. ‘He’s really quick off his feet but if your patient sometimes you’ll get lucky and get a jab in there and steal the ball. But after, you’ll usually be right back on your butt.’

But sometimes the players do get the best of Cathro, whose ACLs have vanished from the wear and tear of his professional playing career.

Earlier in the season at a practice, sophomore forward Conrad approached a defending Cathro during a scrimmage and put a 360-degree spin move on him.

Cathro was frozen solid by the move as he fell over watching Conrad head for the goal.

‘Lindsey has spun him a couple times,’ Bradley said laughing. ‘He has to bail out of situations quite a bit if he has to get into turns because he can’t turn so you know when he bails out and hits the turf and gets rolling, it’s pretty funny.’

In a way though, seeing the progress the team has made is gratifying for Cathro, even if it means getting embarrassed at times.

‘Yeah they can show me up when they want now – if they decide to turn it on they can show me up,’ Cathro said. ‘I love it. I still try to win, I still try to push the girls to be the best the can be.

‘I think they realize that I’m pushing them and tackling them for the right reasons. I think they secretly enjoy me making tackles.’

ctorr@syr.edu

Published on September 30, 2008 at 12:00 pm