'We can be successful': Regina tackle football team breaking barriers with all female coaching staff
The Regina Victorias are led by an entirely female coaching staff for the first time in the team’s history.
“That’s been my sort of project is to have female coaches coaching females. So as years progressed I kept adding more female names as best I could and eventually here we are with all females,” said head coach Claire Doré.
The Victorias were the first female tackle football team for grades 7-12 in Regina. Doré has been with the team since its inaugural season in 2018 but took over as head coach in 2020.
“It’s pretty cool to see. I don’t think there’s ever been a full female staff for a tackle football team,” said assistant coach Shantel Englot.
“If we’re the first (in league history) we’re happy to be so and hopefully we’re not the last,” said Doré.
The coaching staff consists of nine women who all know they are breaking barriers, especially in a male-dominated industry.
“It’s funny to watch the refs, they’re always looking for the male on the sideline and they don’t know who to approach when it’s all females,” said offensive line coach Trisha Jattansingh.
“When I started out, it was predominantly male coaches. Now just to know there are so many women like me who want to come out and grow the sport is amazing,” said linebacker coach Danae Nicholson.
Nicholson was on the first Regina Victorias team and played throughout her entire high school career. She is now in her first year of university but wanted to come back to coach the game she loves.
“I envision a world where women in football is just the same as men in football,” said Nicholson.
The players have been very receptive to the all female slate of coaches.
“I can be open with all the things I’m going through or how I’m feeling this day. I don’t have to hide anything like I would with a male coach,” said Victorias quarterback Emilie Gatin.
“They’re definitely understanding. They know who you are, what you’re going through and how to make it better,” said defensive lineman Ryan Zimmer.
“It’s been a great privilege to be coached by all of these women. I’ve always kind of believed in ‘you can’t be what you can’t see,’ and now to have a full staff of female coaches, I can see me being that,” said Abby Ounsworth, who has been on the team since the inaugural season.
As for the coaches, they are using their experience as females in the sport to help make a difference for the young women.
“All of us have been through this in the way they have. A lot of times you hear male coaches asking females to do things that just aren’t realistic to them and this way I know all of the coaches have been through this and know exactly the experience that these young women are having,” said Doré. “We can be female lead, and we can be successful.”
“We were young girls at one point. We know what it was like to be teenagers. I think we might be a little bit softer. Our approach to football is different. The girls always want to know ‘why’ we are doing something,” said Jattansingh. “They come out of their shells a lot quicker.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
2 children dead, 6 injured after city bus crashes into daycare in Montreal suburb Laval, driver arrested
Two children are dead and six others are injured after a Laval city bus crashed into a daycare Wednesday morning. The driver of the bus, a 51-year-old man, has been arrested and faces charges of homicide and dangerous driving, police say.

How much Canadians have fallen behind amid high inflation and who's hurting the most
Inflation has eroded purchasing power for many Canadians, but the experience with rapidly rising prices has been far from uniform.
Awkward moment or conscious message? Political experts weigh in on Danielle Smith-Justin Trudeau handshake
An 'awkward' attempt at a handshake between Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and the prime minister Tuesday is another example of leaders from the western province hesitating before shaking Justin Trudeau's hand, say political experts.
China says it was smeared in Biden State of the Union speech
China says it was smeared in U.S. President Joe Biden's State of the Union address that repeatedly mentioned competition between the two countries.
Turkiye, Syria quake death toll surpasses 11,000
With the hope of finding survivors fading, stretched rescue teams in Turkiye and Syria searched Wednesday for signs of life in the rubble of thousands of buildings toppled by a catastrophic earthquake. The confirmed death toll from the world's deadliest quake in more than a decade passed 11,000.
'Crypto king' associate operated parallel Ponzi scheme while living lavish lifestyle, court documents allege
An associate of Ontario’s self-described “crypto king” was operating his own fraud scam parallel to the multi-million dollar Ponzi scheme, court documents allege.
opinion | Before you do your taxes, take note of these tax credits and deductions you may not have known about
Many Canadians are experiencing strains caused by the increased cost of living and inflation. In his exclusive column for CTVNews.ca, contributor Christopher Liew shares some of the top credits and deductions that you may be able to claim on your income tax return to help you save money.
opinion | Tom Mulcair: This is why the federal health-care proposal is so disappointing
Justin Trudeau has thrown in the towel in the fight to maintain the federal role as gatekeeper of a public, universal, accessible and fair health-care system in Canada, writes former NDP leader Tom Mulcair in an exclusive column for CTVNews.ca. 'That could have tragic consequences for folks on the lower rungs of the social and economic ladder.'
A Conservative government would uphold federal-provincial health-care funding deals: Poilievre
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says that if he becomes prime minister he would uphold the 10-year deals Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is looking to ink with provinces and territories that would inject $46.2 billion in new funding into Canada's strained health-care systems.