Scottish goalie trend (part 2): Jamie's thoughts

Next up in this series of Q&A's is Jamie Cachia who I had the pleasure of asking his thoughts and experiences of Scottish goalkeeping based on his own experiences. Hidden in his thinking are a few jems that should be of worth for young goalies looking to follow their own rise to the top tiers of goalkeeping in hockey. Jamie will be in action over the coming weekend in the EHL (you can watch him live on their site!).

Jamie in action with new club Beeston.

1.       How did you find playing in the Commonwealth Games in front of a home crowd?

Playing in front of a home crowd was without a doubt a once in a life time experience. The crowd’s reaction to our work/goals/saves was surreal and it was amazing to be a part of. The people of Glasgow were incredible and I will look back at the games fondly once I’m retired. Unfortunately there was disappointed as we failed to achieve our aim of being the best placed Scottish team ever and personally I didn't play as consistently over the 5 games as I have been for the last 2-3 years.  

2.       How have you found taking over from Allan after his decision to retire from international commitments?

I’ve worked with Allan for a long time and he's been very good to me. We have always worked well together and his input has been invaluable. I was fortunate to take over the number 1 role before he retired and even then he helped and guided me. I was number 2 for a couple of years after which we shared the number 1 role for a year in 2012 for world league and then I took over in 2013 and played all 5 games at the Europeans. We had a great partnership and I was sad that he wasn't involved for Glasgow but I had great experiences with Gavin who is also a very good goalkeeper. I found it easy as there was a progression, from no2 to sharing, to being out right number 1 so it was in stages which makes it much easier. It was something I have worked towards for the last 13 years since I first played for Scotland and something I definitely feel I have deserved. I may not be the most gifted goalkeeper but I’ve worked very hard for a long period of time. 

3.       Do you think he was an inspiration for achieving what you have, and do you think Ali McGregor’s rise to play in the Beijing Olympics will have inspired future challengers to your throne?

I don't have a hero or people I aspire to be like as I just want to be myself and that's important. I do however aspire to achieving what others have and what Ali did is a great example as he was an Olympian and voted as the best goalkeeper in the world. Both Ali and Allan have been huge for me in my development. They both supported me and mentored me when I was young and they have continued to do so today and I owe them a lot. 

I hope that people are inspired by Ali's achievements as that's what we need to do as a country is produce more players that go on and represent GB. It should be the reason that youngsters play hockey as it's the pinnacle of our sport and it's that dream that has motivated me for the last 10 years. 

4.       Do you think more Scottish hockey playing youngsters will be inspired to play in goal thanks to the recent boom in first team starters in the Premier league?

Unfortunately I don't think that it will have much of an effect on youngsters in Scotland as they don't see or hear much of the English premier league. I’ve trained with some players from Scotland who'd never really seen me play and I’ve been involved with Scottish squads for the last 13 years. Even though Galvanised Hockey do a great job, there still isn't a lot of exposure for hockey and I don't think people from Scotland will take much notice of what goes on down here, I maybe badly wrong on that point though. 

5.       Do you think there’s any ‘special formula’ for this that has caused this?

I don't think there is a formula that has caused the increase; I just think there are some good keepers in Scotland who are looking to improve. The standard down in England is higher and players that want to develop need to be pushed and need to playing at the highest standard. It's the reason I came to university down here and the reason I’ve stayed down after. It's also great experience to play against all the GB players’ week in week out and gives better exposure to Scottish players looking to push for GB places. 

6.       How do you compare your experiences of being coached in the Scottish system to what you have seen of the English approach?

 I never played any club hockey in Scotland; I played for my school Strathallan and went to university in England after. It's therefore difficult to compare the two as I never got too much coaching in Scotland. I can't remember much of my U16/U18 coaches aside from the goalkeeping work from Murray Carnie who was very good. My under 21 coaches and first 2 senior coaches were all English so my only really Scottish coach is the current men’s coach. My main GK coach was also an Englishmen in Jimi Lewis who completely transformed my game and perception of my abilities. I’ve been indebted to Graham Stuart for his help over the last two years since Jimi left but again there wasn't too much we did differently, I guess it's slightly different for a goalkeeper than an outfield player. 

7.       What advice would you have for junior Scottish goalkeepers looking to follow the same career path as yourself?

It's always difficult to know what to say as there isn't much that hasn't already been said. Something I’ve always said to the really young ones is that it's really important to be yourself; don't try and copy other people or be like anyone else. I’ve taken bits and pieces from other goalkeepers and adapted them to suit my game and my style. I’ve never tried to be anyone else as there are many things that people can do that I just can't. We all have our own strengths and it's important that kids realise this. This can then lead into understanding yourself and your strengthens and weaknesses as you progress, for the slightly older ones 

I’ve used Floyd Mayweather's 'hard work, dedication' philosophy as it’s a hard slog to play any sport at international level, it's important that young adults appreciate and understand this. Therefore to help it’s vital that they have and understand their own reasons/ambitions/goals for playing the sport. The reasons for playing change from person to person; for me, it was the chance to win an Olympic gold medal so all the work and sacrifices didn't faze me as I had my target and it got me through a lot of the hard days.   

Coming down to England is tough, it's really important that anyone that wants to makes the right move for them. I had a choice between Loughborough and Durham and if I’d gone to Loughborough I may not have had the opportunities to play first team and progress like I did. It was important for me that I earned the right to play in the premier league by gaining promotion. The 4 years I spent in North Premier really helped me and I learnt a lot from them and it made the transition to the Premier League easier. It's important that anybody that wants to move down moves to a club where there are opportunities to play. That doesn't mean you shy away from the challenge of another keeper but you learn a lot by just playing so sitting on the bench doesn't help. It also helps to choose the right club, I’ve been so fortunate that Durham, Sheffield and now Beeston have looked after me so well, I m indebted to all of them.  

8.       How have you found taking over and filling the shoes of George Pinner, with the added levels of responsibility and expected performance week in, week out?

Coming in for George is a massive challenge as he was an integral part of Beeston’s success of the last few years. For me, I’ll only be able to answer how successfully I’ve filled his shoes after EHL and the playoffs where he always performed at his best. George is rightly the best ’keeper in Britain and a few levels above me but that doesn't mean I can't be effective in helping Beeston continue their success. I made a conscious effort to be myself since arriving here, I haven't tried to play like him and we’ve had to make small adjustments to suit my style of goalkeeping and vice versa where I’ve made changes to suit the Beeston way. The responsibility and expectations aren't an issue as nobody has higher expectations than I do for myself and my only responsibility is to keep the ball out of the goal; luckily it never changes. 

9.       How have you found upping your game for, and the chance to play in, the area of the European Hockey League?

EHL will be a great challenge and I m sure I’ll learn more about myself and my abilities. I haven't really upped my game in terms of preparation as working hard has been something I’ve always done. The big question will be how I handle the occasion and playing against the best players in Europe. I m confident in what I can and can't do so I know I can compete at this level it is just a case of going out and proving it. Either way, it's really exciting and we can't wait to get started with Daring on Thursday.