Course: MEng (hons) Architectural Engineering, 5th year
Club: HWU Hockey Club
Position: Goalkeeper

How did you get into your sport?

I started when playing when I was 12 with a local club, Dunfermline Carnegie. I played many sports when I was younger; Karate, Basketball and Tennis as a few examples. However, I found that I much prefered team sports. After a year or so, one of the coaches asked if I wanted to try playing in goals, which I deceided to do as I never back down from a challenge. I very much enjoyed the experience and it set me on the path I am currently on.

What are the best and most challenging things about your sport?

Hockey is a great sport, the team spirit and camaraderie are amazing when playing. Even when watching, it is very fast paced and always has twists and turns which makes is extremely exciting. Being a goalkeeper is also tremendously fun and excites me every time I step onto the pitch. However, goalkeeping in my opinon the most difficult position to play which brings with it many hurdles to navigate. The hardest thing I personally find is being able to pick yourself up after a mistake, as a mistake from a goalkeeper almost always results in a goal. A positive outlook and mindset has allowed me to combat this as I have developed.

What have been your biggest achievements to date?

My proudest moment is closely contested. I have achieved two major milestones that I am the most proud of. With the U21 Scotland Hockey squad, I won and helped achieve promotion from the European Championships II, to the top competition within European country competition. The other moment I am most proud of is playing in the highest level of club hockey in the world, the European Hockey League. Besides these big achievements, I am proud every time I step onto the pitch for either my club or country and will always think of any game as an honour and an achievement.

What are your goals in your sport?

In the near future I am hoping to break into the full senior Scotland team and achieve my first full cap for my country. Thankfully Covid hasn’t impacted this massively as it is allowing me time to get my fitness and strength up which will ultimately help on the pitch and towards this goal.

In the long term, I want to play abroad in one of the top leagues in the world, whether that be in the Netherlands of Germany or somewhere else. I also want to maximise my potential and maybe even strive for a place on the GB squad.

What do you do to relax when you’re not training or competing?

Unfortunately besides sports, I am not very talented. However, I do enjoy experimenting with food and making lovely meals as well as playing some games.

Who is your sporting icon, and why?

I dont really have a sporting icon, when I was younger, there wasnt anyone in particular that I would look up to and say “I want to be like them”. Instead I was brought up in an active, sporting houshold where playing sport and enjoying it was a major part of life. This enjoyment of sport is what inspires me to keep playing.