4 Nations Ultimate: Team England
Thanks to the 4 Nations Ultimate committee, we’ve been granted early access to the team rosters, allowing us to type up some initial thoughts about each of the teams taking part in this new groundbreaking tournament. We also took the liberty of highlighting some players we think will make big impacts on the 4 Nations pitch.
Keep reading for more intel on Team England!
Captains Lewis and Naden went down the most unique route out of the other 4 Nations teams for selecting Team England. Rather than holding a trial or hand-selecting athletes, they implemented a ranking system whereby, essentially, 5 of the best UK club teams in each division ranked the signed-up athletes. This ranking then formed the basis of team selection. With so many athletes eligible to represent Team England (requirements include: born in England; parent/grandparent from England; lived in England for at least 3 years), this ranking system seems fair and probably easier than holding a trial or seeking out references.
First impressions
Wow. What a team! We knew Team England was going to be strong, but seeing it written down makes it all the more stunning. If you follow UK ultimate, there will be very few names on this roster, if any, that you won’t already know. And that’s mostly because the volume of national experience on this team is bonkers (there’s no other word for it). All bar two players have represented Great Britain/Ireland at senior level, being the highest level before World Games, so they’re already off to a roaring start. Speaking of which, Link and Naden were both selected for the World Games squad back in 2022, with Haines, Thompson and Denniston joining them on the training squad. With most of the Team England athletes having faced intense pressure on the ultimate pitch before, it’s unlikely they’ll falter under the bright lights of the 4NU stage.
Like the Irish and Scottish teams, there’s plenty of connections already in existence on this squad. Hall, Haines, Allen and McHale were teammates on the Great Britain Open team at the World Championships in 2024, plus there’s current and previous Reading and Deep Space connections. We can see the existing chemistry more so on the female-matching side. Whilst Link and Thompson paired up on the most recent Great Britain mixed cycle, each of the other Team England women (including reserve, Sloan, née Thompson), were a part of the women’s cycle. And speaking of the female-matching players, it’s this side of the roster we’re most excited about. We mentioned in our Team Ireland rundown that it’s often the female-matching players who make or break a game of mixed ultimate – if we’re right in our assessment, Team England will streamroll the competition for that exact reason. Captain Naden will be a primary option in the endzone, exercising her typical role as a lethal deep receiver, with Thompson unleashing her excellent hucks and perfect inside-break throws. Intensive defensive pressure will come from all players, but especially from Klima, Denniston and Gibson, who are known to regularly make significant layout blocks.
On the male-matching side, captain Lewis has been a dominating force for Reading Ultimate since helping to establish the club, and he’s made his mark on mixed ultimate not only in the UK but across Europe. Lewis knows the game like the back of his hand; a central handler for Reading, he’s one of the best huckers around and will protect the disc at all costs. If he’s not wearing his glasses, you’ll know he means business. Complementing him on the squad is Bristol Open player, Allen. Whilst he may not be known for his big plays, he’s a great utility player for whichever team he’s on; on offence, he’s reliable and will keep the disc safe, and when on defence, he’ll completely shut down his mark. The same can be said for Haines, an ideal player for the team being able to slot in where you need him thanks to his high athleticism and ultimate intelligence. Hall, known to most as ‘Woody’, with 17 years of ultimate experience, and having represented Great Britain from Juniors all the way to Masters level, isn’t afraid to get horizontal in pursuit of a block, as captured by N Kolakovic. Last year’s Ultiworld Breakout Player of the Year, Halkyard, demonstrates that Senior national experience isn’t everything by rising to the occasion with Deep Space last season – he’ll bring strong receiving skills and good body control, helping him toe in the trickiest of discs.
We’ve ascertained that each of the Team England players deserve their spot, but that won’t stop us from taking interest in who isn’t on the squad. Firstly, there’s barely any Clapham representation, which frankly is where we’d have expected a chunk of the male-matching side to stem from (although it’s nice to have representation from more clubs). The cream of the crop such as James Mead, Oli Gordon, Justin Foord and Tom Abrams (the list goes on) are notably missing, but with Great Britain missing out on the World Games this year, maybe they’ve decided to embrace having some extra time. There’s also plenty of celebrated female-matching athletes to choose from who aren’t on the squad, such as Becky Thompson (Helen’s twin), Kate Gibson (Heather’s sister), plus Hannah Brew, Karen Kwok, Bex Palmer and Fi Kwan, to name a few. Molly Wedge is also unfortunately unavailable due to World Games commitments with Team Canada. The depth of eligible athletes for Team England means that even without these big names, the team in its current form will thrive nevertheless.
For each of these ‘rundowns’, we’ve been considering both the strengths and potential weaknesses of the squads. But we’ve come up a bit short with Team England on the weakness side. With most male-matching players currently playing with open teams, they’ll have to adjust quickly to the different style of play to ensure the female-matching players are front-and-centre. So the chemistry might be a bit worse off than of the Irish and Scottish teams, considering there are a number of players who may not have existing chemistry, but there’s still enough club and GB crossover that they should be fine.
Players to Watch
Carla Link
Link has been making waves in UK ultimate since 2007, so it’s no surprise that she’s been able to develop her skills to such an elite level. A central piece of Bristol Women’s offence, the club team she never sways from, Link has been a part of many different iterations of Great Britain teams, including the gold-medal winning mixed side at the European Championships in 2019, and the 2022 World Games team. She was a part of the most recent Great Britain senior mixed cycle, and is now taking her talents over to the masters level for Great Britain women. Link is a consistently dependable handler, providing solid structure at the back and throwing pretty much whatever she wants to. Her years of experience playing elite ultimate allow her to remain level-headed on the pitch in all instances and she utilises her deep knowledge of the sport to the advantage of her team – Link can seamlessly transition into a cutting position, easily finding space on the pitch and losing her defender with a single step. Link is a bona fide asset to Team England and we’re looking forward to seeing her skills on show.
Hannah Quinn
Starting out with AirBadgers before making waves with Leeds Ultimate, Quinn is on a huge upward trajectory; the epitome of a ‘rising star’. Co-captain of SMOG Women this year, a huge feat in itself, Quinn found herself representing Great Britain Women at the World Championships in Australia last year, despite initially being on the training squad. She’s the co-captain of the women’s under-24 Great Britain team at the World Championships this summer, having previously been a part of the under-24 mixed squad in 2023. Watching her play, it’s no surprise she’s achieved all of this already – Quinn is a competent handler with a wide range of expansive throws available to her, allowing her to run the offence whilst remaining composed. You’ll often see Quinn using her speed and smart footwork to best her opponents, both in up and downfield positions, putting her body on the line when necessary. We expect to see her on the defensive line for Team England, helping to get some blocks and maintain structure afterwards. We’ll definitely be seeing a lot more of Quinn in the future, this is just the beginning!
Alex Plant-Hately
Whilst we’ve highlighted the depth of national experience on each of the squads, we also recognise that it doesn’t make or break you as an ultimate athlete; what you bring to your club team speaks volumes, too. Plant-Hately will be getting his first taste of playing on the national stage with Team England. A tall, athletic receiver, he’s been putting in a shift to help lead SMOG open to glory this year. Since his standout days at university playing for Liverpool, Plant-Hately has grown tremendously as a player, taking himself from D-line cutter to a primary O-line receiver. We expect to see him as a main O-line downfield target at 4NU, although he’s a threat wherever he is on the pitch and isn’t impartial to unleashing a pitch-length huck or two. Plant-Hately also has extensive experience playing mixed ultimate with the mixed iteration of SMOG, thanks to which he already has connections with a few of the female-matching players on Team England. We’re excited to see more of him!
Connor McHale
If you’re playing ultimate in the UK and you’ve not heard of McHale – crawl out from under that rock! McHale is arguably the face of ultimate in the UK – he’s repping as the only Brit on the ‘Tokay SuperTeam’ this year and is making connections across the globe through his Advanced Ultimate Coaching platform. But he’s not got to this point without putting in years of dedication and graft. McHale has been crowned as Ultiworld Runner-Up Player of the Year in 2023, plus Defensive Player of the Year in 2021 and is a several-time European Champion with Clapham Ultimate. He dabbled in mixed ultimate as a part of the Great Britain Mixed European Championship squad in 2023 before moving over to the Open side for the 2024 World Championships, meaning he’s got connections with lots of players on Team England already. We expect to see McHale take on a primary offensive handler role at 4NU, however we may see him crossing over a lot like he did during WUC with GB Open. McHale is a solid handler, able to direct play and take control in the handler space with a mix of small ball and big hucks, and is also capable of wreaking havoc on defence. He’s an example of a peak ultimate athlete and a force to be reckoned with, but you probably didn’t need us to tell you that.
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Will this English side dominate as expected, or will one of the other nations get the better of them? We’re counting down the days until August 9th to find out!
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Four Nations Ultimate marks the first-ever showdown between the national mixed teams of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales.
Following the passing of Matt Tomlinson, a pillar of the Scottish Ultimate community, a fundraising page was put together by his family to support ultimate in Scotland. With portions earmarked for youth development, discussions also took place to do something with an impact and lasting potential.
COVID served as a roadblock to getting anything off the ground, but the organising committee (Cameron Mackie, Shaun Webb and Becca Hardman Carter) were determined for an event to take place in 2025. Whilst a few ideas were floating about, they kept coming back to a rugby style four nations tournament, and so 4NU was born. They, together with members of the Scottish ultimate community, have now turned the tournament into a reality.
Four Nations Ultimate, or 4NU, will be held this year in Glasgow at Hillhead Sports Club, home to Hillhead Ultimate, on 9th August 2025. The tournament will be played using World Games rules with a mixed gender 6v6 format, and in true Scottish fashion, who knows what the weather will be like?