Narelle Gosstray

Sports Hall of Fame Inductee

The name Gosstray has been well known in Shepparton sport for many years. John Gosstray was a top line cricketer who was selected to play for a Victorian Country eleven against the touring English cricket team at Deakin Reserve Shepparton in 1962.

Tonight we will induct John’s daughter Narelle as a member of the Hall of fame. 

Narelle grew up in the Goulburn Valley and played Basketball, Volleyball, Badminton, Tennis, Indoor cricket, Netball and Softball, representing Shepparton in each as she was growing up. Narelle started playing Softball at 14, representing Shepparton at under 17 and senior levels. However when she moved to Melbourne to study she became involved in baseball and used her softball skills to help her succeed at baseball.

Women’s baseball was in its infancy in Victoria, Narelle enjoyed the game and worked hard to be a good player. She was selected in the inaugural Australian Women’s Baseball team in 2001 to play in the inaugural World Series in Canada. The team won a bronze medal in that series and followed up 2 years later with a Silver Medal at the World Titles on the Gold Coast. Since then she has donned many representative caps as a player, Coach and as an Administrator for Victoria, New South Wales, NT and Australia.   

She has travelled internationally representing Australia as a player and has been a coach at world level. Narelle has been passionate about developing the game for girls since being asked to coach a women’s baseball team in N.S.W. Since then she has been helping girls and women chase their baseball dreams around the world. Narelle aims to develop confident women and leaders of those she coaches and works alongside.

Following her playing days she took to coaching and became head coach on the Nightcliff Baseball Club, with 3 men’s teams in the Northern Territory competition. She has been the only female to have coached in that League. As a coach she has won a Bronze Medal at the 2014 Women’s Baseball World cup and for 4 years has been coaching at the World Children’s Baseball Fair.

Narelle is a co – founder of the Aussie Hearts program enabling more than 200 girls to play baseball around the world. She is creator of “Diamonds in the rough program, empowering Indonesian girls through baseball. Narelle drove the program in which 30 Australian female coaches and players acted as role models to over 600 Indonesian girls. She has coached the NT, and SA combined team in the Australian women’s championships. As an administrator she is a member of the World Softball Baseball Confederation Women’s Baseball Commission. She is also a member of the Australian Baseball Federation advisory panel and has been a technical commissioner for International tournaments.

Narelle Gosstray’s commitment to her sport at national and International level has been incredible and to honour that commitment we now induct her into the Shepparton Sports Hall of Fame. Congratulations Narelle.