Graduating from UTS with a Bachelor of Human Movement (Hons) and PhD, Dr Tom Lovell is now Head of Performance for the Penrith Panthers, where his passions for sport and science help drive success. Working closely with athletes and coaches, Tom plans training, assesses player performance and integrates expert teams. His efforts have seen him share in the glory of an unprecedented four consecutive premiership victories.
Tom Lovell didn’t want to study behind a desk. He wanted to be out in the field, applying science where it mattered most.
When Tom began his Bachelor of Human Movement (Hons) at UTS, he wasn’t sure where it would lead.
“I liked sports, I liked science, maybe sports science will be the right fit,” he shares.
Today, as the Head of Performance for the Penrith Panthers, Tom works with the team's athletes and coaches to plan their training and assess player performance. He’s also responsible for integrating the expertise of the organisation’s physical preparation, sports science and medical support teams to maximise team success. It’s a role that combines everything he loves about sport and science in one.
But back in his early university days, he didn’t even know such a career existed.
“I knew there were exercise science professionals working with elite athletes, but the integration of sports science in team sports such as rugby league was still in its infancy, and it just seemed a bit abstract and too far away to imagine that possibility for myself," he says.
From the classroom to the field
That changed during his final year of his undergrad, when a UTS lecturer helped him secure an internship with the Parramatta Eels.
Initially, Tom assisted with pre-season data collection. What started as a short-term placement turned into a year-long honours research project, helping him build industry connections and opening doors for future opportunities.
He also discovered the power of academic research in becoming a better sports scientist — capturing, measuring and analysing data to drive improvements in athlete performance.
“A sports scientist’s job is to try and solve problems in the field, which can be especially challenging with team sport athletes,” he says.
You’ve got to find novel ways to solve problems, and combining hands-on practical experience with scientific research can help you do that.
As his honours degree wrapped up, Tom started thinking about his next step. He wanted to expand his expertise and create more career opportunities.
“A PhD program seemed the next logical step to progress my career, not only from having more of an academic grounding to solve those challenges but also in terms of the relationships I could forge in the industry,” he says.
The power of connections
At UTS, those relationships were already flourishing — Tom’s honours supervisor, Distinguished Professor Aaron Coutts, is one of Australia’s leading sport and exercise science researchers.
Through his connections, Professor Coutts helped Tom find a co-funded PhD project that would continue expanding his skillset. The focus was on long-term athletic development, this time through the lens of early sports experiences for children and young athletes.
The PhD experience gave Tom the chance to engage with different challenges beyond rugby league, and it pushed him to build the soft skills and personal capabilities that have helped to progress his career.
“To do a PhD, you’ve got to be self-sufficient, you’ve got to be a self-starter and you’ve got to be driven,” he says.
But his passion for professional sport never faded. As he neared the end of his PhD, a UTS peer, also supervised by Professor Coutts, reached out with a job opportunity. The Penrith Panthers were looking for a sports scientist. Was Tom interested?
It was the moment where every part of his UTS journey — his undergraduate studies, PhD and industry connections — came together.
Leading the next generation
Since completing his PhD in 2017, Tom has risen to Head of Performance at the Panthers, playing a key role in their four consecutive premiership victories. He also contributed to the NSW Blues across five State of Origin series from 2019 to 2023.
Looking back, he sees a direct line from his studies and professional experiences to where he is today.
“Without UTS, I would never have had the experiences or connections to get the position to start with,” he says.
For Professor Coutts to see me wanting to progress my career through a PhD, as well as taking on all the professional experience I could get, it showed that I was hungry to set myself apart from other people who want those kinds of jobs.
Now, Tom is paying it forward by supporting the next generation of UTS students to find their feet, just as UTS supported him. Recently, when a job came up in the Panthers sports science team, Tom looked to his networks. A recent UTS graduate is now filling the role.
At UTS, Tom trained for the most important group project he has ever been part of.
Because it’s not just a university — it’s blood, sweat, and teamwork.
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Dist Professor, School of Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation
