Tracey Neville suffered miscarriage day after England won Commonwealth gold

‘[The doctors] go down the route of: ‘Well, we’re preparing you for the fail’. I don’t prepare my team for the fail’

Tracey Neville has revealed she suffered a miscarriage one day after leading the England netball team to Commonwealth gold.

The coach who led the Roses to their first major title in April 2018 spoke of how she then entered a three-hour press conference to discuss the victory, something she’d been “waiting something like 30 years for”, she told BBC Breakfast.

“You think to yourself, this can’t be right. You see other ladies who have been through traumatic situations take time off work, but I just wasn’t willing to do that,” she said.

“This was my family, this was my commitment. I didn’t want to miss this journey that the Roses were on because, in a way – and it’s awful to say – the Roses were my priority.”

Neville, who suffered another miscarriage at Christmas, then made the decision to leave the Roses as head coach to focus on family, a choice she described as “one of the most difficult of my life”.

The 42-year-old sister of Phil, head coach of the England women’s football team, and Gary, a football pundit and businessman, recently announced she is expecting her first child with partner Michael Timmins, but dismissed the stigma attached to older mothers.

“We know the stats. We know that I’m 42 and the risks are high, but it creates a fearful environment,” she said.

Instead, Neville wants the conversation on older mothers to be more positive.

“[The doctors] go down the route of, ‘Well, we’re preparing you for the fail’. I don’t prepare my team for the fail.

“Why is pregnancy not targeted like that? Why is it not given that positivity?”

Ruth Bender-Atik, national director of the Miscarriage Association, which offers support to those affected by miscarriage, told The Independent: “Emotional recovery after miscarriage varies.

“For some people it helps to get back to routine as soon as possible and maybe to try for another pregnancy quite quickly. Others need more time, not only to grieve but also to think about when, or even whether, to try again. It can really help to talk to others who understand,” she said.

For advice and support on miscarriage, contact The Miscarriage Association at www.miscarriageassociation.org.uk