Hamlet v Wingate & Finchley (Isthmian League) Tuesday 30.01.24

[Pink Panther]

Don't forget we do it all again on Tuesday night. Why the Isthmian League scheduled one of only 3 full rounds of midweek league fixtures for late January is beyond me, when the briefest of cold snaps could easily have wiped out anything not taking place on a 3G pitch at this time of year. However it looks like we've got lucky with the weather, as no rain or frost seems to be forecast.

We can safely say it won't be a third consecutive capacity crowd, but I'd like to think we'll get more than the 818 who saw the Potters Bar game on a chilly evening 2 months ago.

There will be no trains to East Dulwich due to industrial action, but the Overground via Denmark Hill is running a normal service.

 

[Pink Panther]

A surprisingly comfortable second half and a 3-0 win. The visitors had enjoyed the greater number of attempts on goal in the first half, but Jeffrey and Binnom-Williams made two of ours count while Constable presented a big barrier to stop everything that came his way at the other end. A Parry header completed the scoring midway through second half in which our opponents never really threatened a comeback.

 

[muel18]

So good to watch a performance where we were in a comfortable position and didn’t make it into another episode of the squeaky bum show. Hard work and determination all over the pitch and some great goals. Must be the highest scoring CBs in all the leagues at this rate

 

[Sir Nikolai]

Very strong and comfortable performance. Never in doubt. No weak links. Very promising.

 

[Al Cunningham]

That 2nd half was our best half in my opinion this season considering the problems they were causing us in the first half. As said above, great battling all over the pitch and the value of Scott cannot be underestimated . In both games i liked the look of their number 10, Elliot Long. Wouldnt mind seeing him in a Hamlet shirt.

 

[Sir Nikolai]

Agreed re Long. Looked very good.

 

[Blitzwalker]

Good to see the 382 year old Isaac Newton on the Wingate bench. Must be hard fitting in football alongside a scientific career.

 

[Pink Panther]

Good to see the 382 year old Isaac Newton on the Wingate bench. Must be hard fitting in football alongside a scientific career.

Perhaps he's been preserved for posterity, like Jeremy Bentham, and is no longer capable of a telling late cameo on the pitch?

Auto-Icon | Bentham Project - UCL – University College London

 

[Bugpowder Dust]

That was a positive and professional performance from start to finish. Awesome finishing in the first half to put us into a commanding lead, then some good goalkeeping to keep them at bay as the first half ended.

Second half we just seemed to power on, no real nerves, no 'this is where we screw it up' , just a relentless push for all three points, with a fine Parry header to seal back to back home wins.

Excellent stuff.

 

[Pink Panther]

First back-to-back league wins for well over a year. We need to make that a hat-trick on Saturday at Margate, who crashed 4-0 at Hastings tonight.

 

[Don't Slow Down]

Really enjoyed that performance bar a couple of lapses by Chambers that came to nothing. Constable was excellent in the first half and didn't have much to do in the second.

Wingate reminded me of Rose's team's of years gone by, playing reasonably attractive football which can destroy teams, but it doesn't there is no plan b.

The highlight was at 3-0 Wingate playing it out from the back, getting nowhere and it eating up the clock!

 

[AveryDave]

We're in an interesting place with the squad at the moment - it's the lightest it's been all season, including five dedicated defenders and three out-and-out strikers, yet we've just turned in the first back-to-back league wins in over a year and are not far off play-off form over the last six to eight games.

Without going through every team in the league there's considerable transfer activity going on out there, including numerous loans from higher up (when was the last time we got this far into a season without taking someone on loan?) - yet Hayrettin seems to only be picking off the players he really wants, like Hatfull and Egan, rather than taking a chance on supplementing the squad with players who might be able to make a difference but he's not 100% on. A more mobile, dynamic striker, for example, being something that a lot of people would agree could take the team to the next level.

Of course, that's not to say he's not trying to bring players in and just hasn't been successful, or there could be players training with the squad that he's waiting to make a decision on, or he might just be keeping his powder dry until he really needs it - but it feels less like he's willing to take some gambles to make a charge for the play-offs, and more like he's trying to build the foundations to go for it properly next season with any success this year being a bonus.

And yet we're winning games and playing well - so maybe he knows exactly what he's doing with a more settled squad, and doesn't want to bring in players he's not sure of in case it upsets all the hard work done so far.

As with all things, time will tell - and ultimately, how nice it is to enjoy watching the team at the moment after the last few years.

 

[Pink Panther]

In both games i liked the look of their number 10, Elliot Long. Wouldnt mind seeing him in a Hamlet shirt.

14 goals in 28 games this season. I haven't been able to dig up much information, other than that he turned 23 last month. He doesn't appear to have had any other senior clubs.

At first I thought his teammate Will Seager had phenomenally big hair when looking at the squad photos on their website but it turned out he was standing in front of a tree.

 

[AveryDave]

14 goals in 28 games this season. I haven't been able to dig up much information, other than that he turned 23 last month. He doesn't appear to have had any other senior clubs.

At first I thought his teammate Will Seager had phenomenally big hair when looking at the squad photos on their website but it turned out he was standing in front of a tree.

Can see he was playing for Takeley at the start of 2020 with a last mention of him there in February 2022, so assume he joined from them when he signed for Wingate in August 2022. Can also find a couple of mentions that he was at Brentford at some point before then, but can't find anything else to confirm his time there.

Excellent find from the Essex Senior League for them.

 

[editor]

Max pics!

In photos: Dulwich Hamlet in tenth place after impressive 3-0 win over Wingate & Finchley, Tues 30th Jan 2024

Dulwich Hamlet continued their recent upturn in form with a convincing 3-0 win over Wingate & Finchley on Tuesday evening. Max braved the nippy temperatures to snap some scenes:

www.brixtonbuzz.com

 

[Pink Panther]

Highlights:

 

[bkbk]

absolute thunderbastard from JBW

 

[editor]

absolute thunderbastard from JBW

Foot like a traction engine.

Shame there's no commentary on the highlights.