Playing to Grow: Teamwork and Determination, the TG’s Way
Updated: 3 days ago
An undefeated season. A grand final pushed into extra time. And a late try that secured the win.
For the Wauchope Blues Ladies League Tag team, it was a finish full of tension, and, as TG’s educator and player Jayde Attkins remembers, a great deal of relief.
At TG’s Child Care, we’re proud to have sponsored the team’s jerseys for a second year. We’re especially delighted to celebrate two members of our High Street team: coach Anna White and player Jayde Attkins.
Their reflections reveal how the skills they bring to football — encouragement, adaptability and working together, also shape their roles as educators. This is Playing is Learning for Life in action.
Helping others find their confidence
At TG’s High Street, Anna is the Joeys room leader, Educational Leader and second-in-charge. On the football field, she coached a squad of 17 players.
In both settings, her approach begins with understanding people and helping them develop.
“I educate my team, and I support them,” Anna explains of her role at TG’s. “I mentor them in different areas that they need help with.”
That support takes different forms. Anna describes giving experienced educators greater challenges, rewording questions to make them clearer, and sitting alongside newer educators to work through questions and explain what things mean.
She brought the same adaptability to football training, encouraging players and tailoring sessions to their abilities.
It is a practical expression of Understanding Our Gifts: recognising what each person brings, then helping them build on it.
Making room for fun
Anna wanted training to be a place where players could develop their skills and enjoy themselves. She tried to include a fun game in every session, and one afternoon paired players up to dress each other in costumes.
There was a purpose behind the enjoyment: creating an environment people wanted to participate in.
For Anna, adapting to different ways of learning is familiar territory.
“The ability to adapt to other people’s learning skills and their abilities is what I do here at work,” she says.
Her experience gives our philosophy a life beyond the early learning environment. Playing offers opportunities to practise, connect and discover what we can do, at any age.
Understanding your part in the team
Jayde works alongside Anna in the Joeys room and plays as a middle forward for the Blues.
Reflecting on her third year of League Tag, she describes how a deeper understanding of the game helped her improve. It involved understanding her own role, what other players were trying to do, and how those contributions fitted together.
“You have a role to do. Different players do different things,” Jayde explains.
That awareness connects naturally with Collective Thinking at TG’s. Each person contributes their skills, while paying attention to the people around them and the shared purpose of the team.
For families, these reflections offer a glimpse of the people behind their children’s care: educators who are themselves learning, listening and growing through their experiences.
Wauchope Blues Coach & TG's 2IC Anna White Wauchope Blues Coach & TG's 2IC Jayde Attkins They start football young :)
Trust and respect under pressure
The grand final tested the team. After finishing regular time level, the Blues fell behind during extra time before scoring late to claim the win.
Anna remembers an intense game from the sideline. She also describes the trust that coaching requires: players need to trust their own abilities, one another and the person guiding them.
“I think you can use the TG’s Way in everyday life,” she says.
Respect and compassion matter, too. Anna speaks about showing respect to both players and educators, and offering encouragement and praise.
Those everyday actions make leadership tangible: helping people feel supported as they work through challenges and develop their confidence.
Proud to support our community
At TG’s, Building Relationships reaches into the wider community. Supporting the Wauchope Blues is another way we nurture those connections, bringing educators, families and local people together through opportunities to participate, contribute and grow.
For Anna and Jayde, TG’s sponsorship also carried a personal meaning.
Anna explains that sponsors help sporting clubs provide uniforms and equipment, and she values TG’s supporting its educators’ involvement in the community.
For Jayde, wearing TG’s on the team jerseys was “quite special”.
We’re proud to support opportunities for local people to play, build relationships and grow together. And we’re proud of Anna, Jayde and the Wauchope Blues Ladies League Tag team for their undefeated season and hard-fought grand final win.
Congratulations to the whole team, from all of us at TG’s!
TG's Child Care locations and contact details:
Urangan QLD
+61 (07) 4184 2282 | urangan@tgschildcare.com.au
61 Miller St, Urangan, QLD 4655
Armidale NSW
+61 (02) 6772 7810 | armidale@tgschildcare.com.au
11 Samuelson Crescent, Armidale NSW 2350
Armidale - Kirkwood St NSW
+61 2 6772 7810 | meg@tgschildcare.com.au
53 Kirkwood St, Armidale, NSW 2350
Uralla NSW
+61 (02) 6778 3369 | uralla@tgschildcare.com.au
23B John St, Uralla NSW 2358
Wauchope - Hastings St NSW
+61 (02) 6585 1033 | HastingsStreet@tgschildcare.com.au
33B Hastings St, Wauchope NSW 2446
Wauchope - High St NSW
+61 (02) 6585 3331 | HighStreet@tgschildcare.com.au
223A High St, Wauchope NSW 2446
Wauchope - Riverbreeze NSW
+61 (02) 6585 2981 | riverbreeze@tgschildcare.com.au
3 Riverbreeze Drive, Wauchope NSW 2446
About TG's Child Care
At TG's Child Care, we believe children begin preparing for life from the moment they walk through our doors.
Guided by TG's Way — Love, Trust, Respect, Compassion and FUN, we create meaningful relationships and purposeful learning experiences that help children grow into confident, capable and compassionate people.
As one of Australia's leading providers of Preschool and Long Day Care, our philosophy, Playing is Learning for Life, recognises that every moment of play, discovery and connection builds the skills children need for school, for life and for the future. Through our commitment to the Stewardship of Children's Future, we partner with families and schools to ensure every child continues their learning journey with confidence.
At TG's, we acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land where we work and live. We pay my/our respects to Elders past, present and emerging. We celebrate the stories, culture and traditions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders of all communities who also work and live on this land.
