Adelaide Rush have announced the signing of their new head coach for the 2025/26 Australian Women’s Ice Hockey League (AWIHL) season.
Jeremy Friederich will step into the hot seat following the departure of Jeff Fode in July who guided the Rush to the minor premiership during the 2024/25 season.
Friederich, has recently spent time as the Rush goaltending coach and now becomes head coach at 23-years-old.
Futhermore, a highly talented goaltender, Friederich has spent time with both the Adelaide Adrenaline and Avalanche in the AIHL and defunct PHL.
“It’s a huge honour to be given this opportunity,” Friederich told andrewkmacdougall.com.au
“So much time and effort has gone into making the Rush what it is today.
“We have a really talented group of players and I look forward to pushing them to be the best versions of themselves.”
A continuous journey for Friederich, who has been working his way through the ice hockey coaching system in South Australia.
The current head coach of the SA U18 Tange team, Friederich now advances to a head coach position in Australia’s elite women’s competition.
As a result, Friederich is excited to take up the role, living in full ice hockey mode.
“It’s tough to really quantify,” said Friederich.
“It’s a really exciting time in my coaching journey and I’m definitely going to struggle to switch the brain off and focus on other things like work during the day.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to work with this group for the last few years and I’m really excited to get back to work with them.”
As we inch closer to the 2025/26 AWIHL season, Rush are starting to piece together all the components on and off the ice for a successful season.
The work for Friederich begins immediately, settling into the new position and getting the roster primed for a big campaign.
“Not sure work ever stopped, obviously the committee and the club have been working hard behind the scenes, but for me it’s been a couple of weeks already,” continued Friederich.
“Planning, meetings and just generally trying to get everything from my brain onto paper.
“The playing group starts off ice trainings and tryouts this week, and we skate for the first time in September, so things will definitely ramp up then.”
Each season the level for the Rush has continually risen, a bronze medal in 2023/24, followed by a minor premiership the following year.
However, Friederich will be looking to get a blueprint down early with a strong brand of hockey.
The message from the new bench boss to Adelaide Rush fans is simple, get excited.
“Nothing more than this: I am really excited for this season and I hope they are too,” said Friederich.
“We’re going to prioritise establishing our brand of hockey early in the season and will aim to play our best hockey come finals in March.”
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