E10: Inspiring Minds with Andy Halliday Team GB Hockey Manager. ex-police firearms / riot shield

Hi, I’m Roberto Forzoni, Welcome to the latest episode on Inspiring minds and what an episode it is. 

I started the podcast chatting to people I have had the pleasure of working with over the past 25 plus years, and there are lots more conversations to come – but as I had hoped, some fabulous recommendations have been coming through. 

 If you enjoy the podcast please subscribe and share through your own social media, Any comments or reviews are really appreciated as they really do help get the podcast to a wonderful audience. 

Our guest today has quite a unique background for his sporting success. You’ll hear how a thirty-year career in the police force, including on the riot shields and more so on the firearms teams, helped develop a stoic resilience that helped him immensely in dealing with the unique pressure of international and Olympic sports – his knowledge, experiences and wonderful manner will truly inspire you. 

This is a fantastic and resourceful episode.

I am so pleased to introduce our guest today, he is the manager of the Team GB Hockey team preparing for the delayed Olympics in two months’ time.  Get a pen and paper there are some wonderful nuggets you’ll want to remember. 

Welcome Andy Halliday

 what a fantastic story and as with all of our guests so far, what a nice person! Humility and inspiration a wonderful combination. 

Biography

After a career spanning three decades policing London whilst balancing the demand of international sport, he is able to reflect on a wealth of experience working with high performing teams. 

As a young Metropolitan Police Officer, he developed his policing skills in the pressured environment of the 1980s. After initial training, these skills were to underpin a working life in specialist roles throughout his career. For many years, he was a Specialist Firearms Officer, a frontline role in the fight against armed crime and terrorism. He participated in nearly 3000 firearms operations during an 18-year stint with CO19. As both an instructor and operator, the role saw him lead firearms operations in the UK and abroad. By his own admission, it was a steep learning curve. 

“The unpredictability of the environment tested situational awareness and pressured decision making both as an individual and as a team. Thorough planning, the ability to think ahead, adapting the plan and reacting accordingly were constantly under scrutiny. We accepted that things didn’t always go to plan, but encouraged an honest and robust approach to briefing and debriefing. We were able to create an environment where tough conversations were made possible in pursuit of bettering the team.” 

A former international hockey player and coach, he now manages the GB Men's hockey team as they prepare for the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020. 

“I’ve been fortunate to spend most of my career in pursuit of best practice alongside like-minded individuals. After so many years working in high performance, It’s incredibly rewarding to be able to support other individuals, businesses and teams as they strive to be the best they can be.” 

In his spare time, he claims to have invented “extreme hockey dribbling” and his dribbling challenges in the UK and the Himalayas have raised thousands of pounds for charity. 
He is a TRIM Practitioner, a mentor on the Pathfinder scheme at Help4Heroes and an ambassador for Hockey4Heroes, Access Sport and Disability hockey. 

#GBHokey #hockey #performance #inspiration