Season: 2022
Brian Connolly
Brian Connolly joined the Fastpitch programme at its inception, assisting Coach Melanie in the organisation and running of the training sessions. Brian has been ever present with the programme since its humble beginning in 2014, travelling with the team to the 2015 European Championships and 2016 World Championships. Brian continues to assist with the organisaiton and delivery of the High Performance Programme training sessions and as an organiser in creating the National Fastpitch League.
Brian has been involved in Baseball and Softball in Ireland since 1991. Brian is one a handul of dual internationals, representing Ireland in both Softball and Baseball and winning medals at a number of European Champioships. Brian has represented Europe at the Slowpitch Border Battle. Brian is a future European Softball hall of famer and is at or close to the centre of most things good in Irish Softball.
Domestically, Brian has won countless league and tournament titles and in 2009 won the European Cup Co-Ed Slowpitch Championship with Dodder Dynamoes.
Brian is a Tournament Commissioner with Softball Europe.
Marcel Wetser
Marcel formally joined the Team Ireland Coaching staff in 2017 but has been part of the family since 2015. Has coached for a number of years in the Dutch leagues and brings a calming influence to the team.
We look forward to welcoming Marcel back to greeting our runners on 1B following the COVID shut down!
Martin De Lange
Martin originally from South Africa joined the coaching team as an Assistant Coach in 2019.
Melanie Cunningham
In today’s world of international sport, not many can say they were there at the origin of a program, having been present from the very inception to where it stands today. And certainly nobody can claim to have brought a program further, and in shorter time, than Fastpitch Ireland WNT head softball coach Melanie Cunningham who has led the programme since its inception in 2014.
From a humble start to top 20 in the World Rankings and 9th in Europe, Melanie has established Ireland as an elite international team capable of competing with the top softball countries in the world. Melanie has emerged as the face of a programme that has grown under her leadership to medal at the 2018 U19 (silver) European Championships, 2018 U22 (bronze) European Championships, 2023 U18 (bronze) European Championships, consistently reach european tournament super rounds at the senior level and qualify for four World Cups.
Domestically Melanie has led the introduction of Fastpitch to the island of Ireland, running a number of introductory days before launching the Fastpitch League in 2019 as she strives to create performance pathways for players to represent their country.
Melanie has also overseen the launch of the Junior High Performance Academy, the goal of which is to develop athletes to the elite level and earn scholarships in the USA.
Melanie has played for Ireland 18 times between 2015 and 2017.
Melanie earned her medical degree from the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland and works as a surgeon in Beaumont Hospital, Dublin.