Sunday 25th April

Some days it don’t come easy. I promise not every match report will begin with a tenuous lyric, least of all from Meat Loaf, but we have our reasons. Anyone who has followed this team’s progress since they adopted the pink and blue in 2019 will be used to seeing them hold their own against most opponents, enjoying two dominant seasons with a bird’s eye view of the rest of the table, but QPR have proved a challenging opponent thus far, with wins and losses peppering their history against the Hamlet, including Dulwich’s win over them in the 2019 memorial game for beloved late manager Farouk Menia. The two teams join four other clubs in 2021’s new Spring Round Robin tournament, and their budding rivalry is palpable. As Dulwich took to the field with a team that combined reliable regulars with some fierce new blood, QPR descended on Champion Hill determined to concede nothing and take everything.

QPR set out their stall early. Grabbing their first chance in the 3rd minute, their distribution presented Dulwich with twin challenges, keeping their own half closed down while piling on the threats in Dulwich’s half. Sarah Walters set up an opportunity for Lucy Monkman within minutes, but QPR had the box well-guarded and defused it smartly. A free kick for QPR near the corner could have given the visitors a chance, but they bounced it straight off Sarah Milner; moments later a corner for QPR’s Ellie Searle – who would cause the Hamlet a great deal of trouble later on – was cleared away by Dulwich.

QPR maintained their battering ram approach, with a shot that new Hamlet keeper Mia North caught cleanly. QPR continued to hammer at the Hamlet stronghold along the left wing, but right-back Liz Berkeley’s vigilant patrolling kept them thwarted. It started to look good for Dulwich; finding their feet, with new signing Madi Parsonson keeping things mobile in midfield and providing crucial connections, the hosts started to build the pressure. Searle broke for the border with another dangerous shot, but North was wise to it, returning the ball to Dulwich who pushed forward again. Parsonson sent a soaring ball into the box but saw it punched away by QPR keeper Lucie White.

The tension ramped up, each team testing the other’s defenses with some caution. Monkman and Sas Philp sought chances to get a crafty ball around White, and a long pass by Searle threatened to hand Kasha Petit an opportunity - but North was straight off her line to meet it first. Petit came back minutes later for another try, prompting an impeccable save from North who sent it sky-high and out of danger. Hickman’s foul on a charging Tiffany Skinner on the edge of the box handed QPR a free kick, but they sent it clear over the crossbar. A long-ranging cross from Parsonson offered a tantalising chance for Dulwich, but Milner couldn’t quite get a handle on it.

If the first half was a story of thwarted chances and near misses, with Dulwich subtly on the ascendancy, much of the second half belonged to QPR. As both sides returned with triple substitutions, the visitors renewed their determination to topple their hosts, with North springing into action to defend another strike in the opening minutes. Hannah Baptiste and new signing Eman Kessem brought some fire to the right wing, and the Hamlet defence looked solid, until catastrophe struck – North saved a shot but then seemed to lose sight of the ball, and in what felt like slow motion, Ellie Searle rolled it past her to break the stalemate and put QPR one up.

With Kessem picking up an injury, Monkman returned to the field, while Philp and Parsonson continued to seek holes in the QPR defence, but the West Londoners were buoyed by the new advantage and piled on the pressure, with Searle and Milly Cutler pushing relentlessly for a second goal. North was tested again, and seemed rattled, but held the line, while Monkman, Philp and Brit Saylor worked to turn the tide in the last minutes.

As the whistle approached, QPR’s Hayley Peacock crashed to the ground with a knee injury. Milner, who is also a physio, and had sustained a nosebleed herself in the first half, helped attend to Peacock until she was stretchered off. By the time play resumed, the Hamlet were into a rangy eight minutes of stoppage time, and the chilly air tasted of desperation, with Dulwich seeking redemption and QPR determined to lock down their victory.

Parsonson put a long ball just past the post; it seemed the Hamlet had exhausted their last hope - and with the referee reaching for her whistle, Monkman appeared out of nowhere, zigzagging around the back of the last defender to rocket the ball through the outstretched arms of the dismayed keeper in the last touch of the game and claim the goal she’d been seeking from the jump. A writer with no shame might liken Monkman’s soul-saving equaliser to a bat out of hell, but of course we’d never do that.

With Dulwich facing QPR again next weekend in the Cup, there are lessons to be learned by both sides; Dulwich will need to up the ante to dismantle their rivals’ near-impenetrable strategy, but QPR underestimate the Hamlet’s tenacity at their peril. Here was a side that never gave up, fighting for survival to the very last and changing their fortunes with one perfectly seized opportunity. They go again in a week’s time, and we can be sure both sides will seek an emphatic, vengeful victory.

Attendance: Behind closed doors

Dulwich Hamlet
1 Mia North; 4 Liz Berkeley; 5 Rosie Stone; 3 Madi Parsonson; 7 Saskia Philps; 8 Brit Saylor (capt); 10 Daniella Tyson; 13 Ceylon Hickman; 14 Lucy Monkman; 17 Sarah Milner; 6 Sarah Walters;
Subs: Harriet Crofts; Hannah Baptiste; Eman Kessem; Phoebe Read

QPR
1 Lucie White; 2 Ellen Wardlaw; 3 Ellie Searle; 4 Ailish Carolan; Vicky Grieve (capt); 6 Merle Redhead-Ling; 7 Kasha Petit; 8 Natalie Skiverton; 9 Tiffany Skinner; 11 Melanie Hall + 1 trialist

Subs: Katie Akerman; Milly Cutler; Mollie Dench; Afiya Johnson; Eshe Johnson; Hayley Peacock; Demi Edwards

Referee: Lucy Clark

Photo: Liam Asman