HAMILTON – Gareth Terrett (GAIR-ith TAIR-it) has been named Colgate University's new head field hockey coach, Vice President and Director of Athletics
Yariv Amir '01 announced on Monday.
Arriving in Hamilton with more than 20 years of high-level coaching experience, Terrett spent the last five seasons as an assistant field hockey coach at Cornell. There, he helped the Big Red climb into the top-20 national rankings with 48 victories over the last five seasons.
Terrett, a member of the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Regional Coaching Staff of the Year in 2023, aided the development of Cornell's first two-time All-American, a Northeast Regional Offensive Player of the Year, an Ivy League and ECAC Offensive Player of the Year, 21 All-Ivy League selections, and 10 All-Region honorees.
"Coach Terrett brings proven success at the Division I level and a deep commitment to student-athlete development that aligns with Colgate's values," Amir said. "Throughout his career, he has demonstrated the ability to elevate programs competitively while fostering excellence in the classroom and community, and we are confident he will have an immediate and lasting impact on our field hockey program."
Terrett's tutelage has led to success far beyond the pitch, as Cornell landed more than 60 student-athletes on the NFHCA Academic Squad and five Academic All-League honorees since 2021.
Terrett's most successful season saw Cornell set a program record for wins (12) and reach No. 17 in the national rankings in 2023. The Big Red led the nation in scoring average (3.21), assists per game (3.65), and points per game (10.47) – all single-season program records. Cornell was also second in Division I in scoring margin (1.99) and second in the Ivy League and 15th nationally in scoring defense (1.22 goals allowed per game) with five shutouts.
"I'm incredibly excited and genuinely honored to have the opportunity to lead the field hockey program at Colgate University," Terrett said. "It's a program I have admired for a long time as it has such great potential, strong academic values, and a community that really supports its student-athletes."
Prior to Cornell, the veteran leader served as the Head of Hockey at Swansea University in Swansea, Wales, where he oversaw all aspects of the high performance and participation levels of hockey. While at Swansea (2019-21), he led the women's 1st XI team to a promotion to the England Hockey Premier National League, marking the first time a Welsh team was promoted to the UK's top league.
Since 2019, Terrett has spent time coaching the Wales U21 program while assisting with the U23 team. With Terrett in the program, the Wales U21 team won bronze in Alanya, Turkey, at the 2019 EuroHockey Championships B Division. With the third-place finish, the team was promoted to the A Division for 2022, playing against the best teams in Europe.
Showcasing more success at the Division I level, Terrett helped lead the University of Pacific to three consecutive conference championships as an assistant coach from 2017-2019. While at Pacific, he was responsible for tactical planning, player development, recruiting evaluations, scouting, travel operations, and analytics.
From 1999-2017 he was the Head of Hockey at the Oundle School where he increased participation and oversaw the installation of three floodlit AstroTurf pitches and supporting facilities. Managing over 60 staff, he organized five international tours and led fundraising efforts for the program. He also taught Physical Education and was the Head of Boys Games.
As a player, Terrett won twenty-five caps for Wales and represented them at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. He also competed with Cannock HC, St Albans HC, Old Loughtions HC and Peterborough HC throughout his stellar career collecting multiple Premier League and National Cup titles.
Terrett is a graduate of the University of Wolverhampton where he earned a degree in Sports Science and later attended Cambridge University where he completed the Graduate Teaching Program.
"Ultimately, we're going to work hard, be consistent, and build something that people believe in," Terrett said. "I'm incredibly grateful for the work that has been done before me to build this program and for the foundation that's already in place."
