12/10/2026
Being a coach is one of the most rewarding things you can do, but it can also be one of the most exhausting.
Competition days are about so much more than just what happens on the mats. As a coach, you’re dealing with nerves, emotions, difficult decisions, bad calls, wins, losses and everything in between. Sometimes you have to be firm when all you really want to do is put an arm around an athlete and console them. You have to manage your own emotions while making sure theirs don’t get the better of them.
Doing that on your own is incredibly difficult, but having a team of dedicated coaches around you makes all the difference.
This weekend, we took a team of 20 fighters from the club to Belgium to face some fantastic opponents from across Europe. We had a mixture of experienced competitors and athletes taking their first steps into international competition.
And I want to give a very special mention to two people who made an enormous difference to our weekend.
Nate Cheetham and Megan Thyer.
Both have a wealth of experience competing in Fighting Jujitsu, and they put that experience to work helping every athlete who stepped onto the mats.
But what makes their efforts even more remarkable is that they were both competing themselves.
They had their own fights to prepare for, their own nerves to manage and their own tough matches to get through. Yet, throughout the entire day, they were there for everyone else. Cornering, encouraging, advising, supporting and making sure every member of the team had the best possible chance to perform.
And even after their own fights, when they could have quite easily taken a well-earned rest, they were straight back to supporting the next athlete.
This wasn’t a token gesture or simply helping out. This was going above and beyond, putting the needs of the team before their own and showing what being part of a team really means.
Kathryn and I have always wanted to provide our athletes with opportunities to gain valuable experience. Not just through winning, but through losing, facing different opponents, competing in different countries and learning how to deal with everything that competition throws at them.
Those experiences are what develop athletes, build resilience and ultimately make better fighters and better people.
But none of this would be possible without coaches who are willing to give up their own time, often at the expense of their own weekends and family time, with absolutely no financial reward. They do it because they genuinely care about the athletes and want to see them succeed.
And that deserves recognition.
Nate and Megan, Kathryn and I want you both to know just how proud we are of you.
Not because of the results you achieved in your own matches, but because of the people you showed yourselves to be throughout the entire weekend.
Your dedication, selflessness and commitment to your teammates were incredible to witness, and I genuinely don’t believe we would have achieved the success we did without you both.
You were outstanding both on and off the mats, and I hope you realise just how much your efforts meant to us and to the athletes you supported.
We are incredibly lucky to have you both, and even more grateful that you choose to give so much of yourselves to help others.
You should be immensely proud of yourselves, because Kathryn and I certainly are.
Thank you both.
