“Volunteers are crucial at this level”, states media volunteer Aimee-Lou Caldecourt when asked to reflect on both her role and the involvement of other club volunteers this National Volunteer Week. 

 “As part of the media team we all work extremely well together to provide the fans with high-quality content every matchday. This isn’t just the media volunteers, but everyone at the club that I’ve spoken to have Dulwich running through their blood, they’re the absolute backbone of the club, and in non-league in general.” 

Starting at the beginning of the season, Caldecourt has undertaken a number of match-day media roles since joining, contributing to the team of media volunteers who connect the fans to football every week. 

One of the main streams for this is the commentary broadcast, with a team going live for both the men’s and women’s fixtures each week to bring those at home closer to the action. 

“It's funny actually because if you had told Aimee-Lou from a year ago that she’d be anywhere near a microphone and commentating on football, I genuinely would have laughed. But it has actually been one of the most enjoyable parts of the season for me.”

Her dive into commentary also created one of her fondest memories of the season and one she will continue to look back on with pride.

“The women’s cup final game against Arsenal was a particularly proud moment. I was leading the commentary for the game and, although the result wasn’t what we wanted, the atmosphere was electric, with so many of the Pepper Army out on that Tuesday night in Uxbridge. It might be my favourite game of the season!”

Commentary, however, was far from the only measure in which Caldecourt’s voluntary experience has pushed her out of her comfort zone, with the entire experience being a platform for her to grow as a journalist while completing her second year at university. 

“I’ve developed a lot of different skills this season. One personally for me is interviewing people. I struggled a lot with confidence and had really bad imposter syndrome, but since I had the chance to interview Ryan Dempsey and Lucy Monkman for a university assignment, I have become much more confident in the craft.”

When asked about her passion for sports media, Caldecourt acknowledged that it has not been an area that she was always interested in, but that her volunteer role at the club this season has certainly facilitated her enthusiasm. 

“It wasn’t until I started applying for universities that I started looking into working in the football industry. Originally, I was looking at teaching courses! So I’m relatively new to all of this, but I have loved every second of it. My journey really started with supporting the growth of the women’s game and has grown to actively gaining experience, which Dulwich have supported this season.

Obviously, the club has a huge reputation in non-league and as soon as the opportunity presented itself to me, I thought it would be silly to let it pass. The club aligns with my personal values and I knew instantly it would be a perfect fit for me.”

Having now completed the campaign, Caldecourt has taken time to reflect on such an opportunity, and how the voluntary experience at the club has better prepared her for her future career. 

“This season was my first full season in football and has taught me that football is unbelievably unpredictable. I love the unpredictable nature though, no two match days will ever look the same which really excites me.

“I’ve learned to expect the unexpected. I went in quite naive to begin with, but since seeing out this season I’ve learnt that anything can happen in this field of work, and just by getting myself out there in the community and volunteering at the club I’ve had so many other opportunities come my way which I never expected to happen.”

Looking ahead to another season at the club, Caldecourt said: “I really just can’t wait to get stuck in again, hopefully get to more away games, travel to new places. I also definitely want to talk to the fans a bit more next season about how much the club means to them, and just be more involved!”

Finally, Caldecourt commented on what she would miss the most if her time at the club was coming to an end. 

“I’d miss absolutely everything! I’d miss working with so many amazing people every week because they are really what makes the whole experience so enjoyable and memorable for me. I absolutely love creating content for fans as well, and listening to all the positive feedback I get from them all genuinely makes my week.”

Interested in volunteering at Dulwich Hamlet FC? Email our community team with what you'd like to get involved in. Whether it's media work or helping us with ground maintenance we're always looking to add to the team. Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.