Tango Netball Club coach Scott Waddington fighting bowel cancer but has returned to the sidelines
SCOTT Waddington has four children, four grandchildren and a “little baby” – his netball coaching. But the veteran Premier League mentor had been forced to step away from the sidelines for the past month while he battles bowel cancer.
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SCOTT Waddington has four children, four grandchildren and a “little baby” – his netball coaching.
But the veteran Tango Netball Club mentor had been forced to step away from the Premier League sidelines for the past month while he battled bowel cancer.
The 55-year-old bricklayer was diagnosed on May 26. Four days later he had surgery to remove the tumour.
Waddington, also a former senior coach of Matrics, Harlequin and Cougars, will this week undergo his first fortnightly bout of chemotherapy as part of a six-month program.
In the lead-up to the treatment, he has returned to coach Tango for the first time since round one, steering the club to a 14-goal loss against Oakdale in Kadina on Saturday.
“Coaching netball is something I really enjoy doing,” Waddington says.
“It’s like my little baby.
“But my energy levels (to coach) are just nowhere near they’ve needed to be.
“It’s amazing how quickly the cancer’s rocked me. I haven’t had much time to really dwell on anything.
“But I’m battling it and I know I’m going to beat it – that’s for sure.”
Waddington visited a doctor two-and-a-half years ago complaining of fatigue, cramps and a dry mouth, only to be told he was not getting enough electrolytes in his system.
A trip to a different doctor last month ended with news he’d had a tumour in his bowel for nearly three years.
“(The diagnosis) absolutely blew me away,” he says.
“They’ve removed the tumour but unfortunately it’d already broken through the bowel and got into my lymph nodes.” Waddington blames himself for not finding out about the disease earlier.
At 50, he was too embarrassed to undertake the Federal Government’s free bowel cancer test.
“The reality is I haven’t done the right thing,” he says.
“I’ve been telling all my mates and friends and other male coaches … and if I can make a couple of people aware that they’ve got to go do this stuff, don’t rely on being bulletproof.”
Waddington says telling his players about the news was difficult but everyone at the Hope Valley club has been incredibly supportive, as has the wider netball community.
After calling on his assistants to take the reins of the team for four games, Waddington was feeling strong enough to make his coaching comeback last weekend.
“I’m a fighter and I’m going to battle this, not sook in a corner.
“My surgeon’s said if I stay on top of it for the next two years, there’s a good chance it (the cancer) won’t come back and I’ll live a healthy life.
“With my coaching background and being involved in sport, having a plan and working out how to tackle something is basically how we plan our seasons.
“So I’m taking that advice and thinking these surgeons and doctors are like my coaches.
“They’re telling me what I need to do and I’ve just got to stick with it.”
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