Sunday 5 September 2021

We open season three for the indomitable women of Dulwich Hamlet. The accomplished side made a comfortable home for themselves at the top of the table during their first two seasons with the club; but for some highly dubious skulduggery, they’d be exploring the uncharted waters of the next league up. But the football world is full of dark doings, and so they enter their third season in the familiar London & Southeast, ready to slay all comers.

Bright weather and a familiar foe greeted them as they returned to the Hill on Sunday. Dulwich and Denham United are familiar with each other, but a number of their fixtures last season were postponed due to the pandamnit, so it’s been a while since these two teams met. They circled each other cautiously in the opening minutes, testing each other’s defences, with Hamlet captain Brit Saylor pinging a shot off the post in the 3rd minute, and Mia North clearing a Denham intrusion a few minutes later. Denham forward Millie Congerton looked to be their fiercest weapon, hammering on the gates throughout the first half, but Dulwich came prepared with a solid backline, including new defender Chana Hinds making her debut seasonal outing and covering plenty of ground from the jump.

Dulwich’s strongest weapon proved to be their communication; creating a strong lattice across the field, they were able to defend effectively while dominating possession and giving Denham keeper Zara Butt plenty of work to do. They measured out the first half patiently, spreading the time ahead of them comfortably and wearing down their opponents. There was bad luck for Madi Parsonson, who recently inked a solid spot with the team. Trialling with Dulwich last season, she became a core part of their defence, but a nasty tumble in midfield saw her subbed off in the 21st minute and replaced with defender Sarah Walters. Dulwich took it in their stride, rotating the line-up and cranking up the intensity. Lucy Monkman and Havana McElvaine, the latter returning in great form after some time away from the team last season, both tested Butt with dangerous attempts on goal. The breakthrough came in the 41st minute, with Saylor catching Butt completely off-guard with a gorgeous worldie that nearly punched a hole in the back of the net.

Denham may have entered the second half with every intention of regrouping and reclaiming ground, but Dulwich’s approach seemed to be, ‘get some, go again’. From the outset, the goals started to fly in thick and fast. Sophie Manzi, who started her tenure at the Hamlet with a flurry of goals, showed the same fire this time round, taking advantage of a busy keeper to whisk the ball around her and bury it in the 45th. New signing Asia Harbour Brown wanted a taste of success too, and four minutes later snapped up a chance in the box to crown her debut by making it 3-0.

Harbour Brown was taken down by Denham’s Danni Holland minutes later; though it ended her first game, with Sas Philp subbing in for her, she secured a free kick for Dulwich. By this point it was a numbers game for a confident Dulwich, who went into demolition mode. Denham did their best to shut the home team down, with Congerton probing Dulwich’s defences fiercely, but Dulwich refused to be contained or thwarted. Manzi confirmed a brace in the 59th, spying an opportunity and wellying it to take Dulwich to 4-0. Denham’s desperation started to show, finding a chance to get into the Dulwich box, but Dulwich wrested the wheel back from them and got back on track. Both teams started to tire, showing heavy legs and the odd clumsy foul, including a silly attempt on Monkman. Dulwich kept control of the game, however. Saylor saw another chance to score, followed by Hannah Baptiste, whose attempt was just a little too wide to get the angle she needed, pummelling the side netting instead.

But under this relentless assault, another goal seemed inevitable - and it was Manzi who delivered it, tying the bow on her hat-trick at 83 minutes. Was she done? No. She was not. The 84th minute ticked around and she was back for more. There are a few unofficial names for four goals scored by a single player - a haul, a poker, a super-hat-trick - and they are all rubbish. We are calling a quartet of goals a Manzinger - and it sealed the deal for Dulwich, as they finished the game at a decisive 6-0.

With a challenging pre-season that saw wins, losses and game cancellations, Dulwich knew they needed to rebuild the stamina that carried them through the last season so triumphantly. They deserve credit for managing this game patiently, piling on the pressure when they found Denham’s weak spots, and making an impact in the middle of the game while they still had the legs to control it. Getting their first four goals in while they had the upper hand in precision and pace made it impossible for the visitors to make a comeback, and set Dulwich up with a beautiful win to declare their intentions for the season ahead. If they don’t make promotion in 2022, we riot - assemble at Promotion Roundabout with pitchforks and bar scarves!

Dulwich play Saltdean away on Sunday 12 September.

Attendance: 284

Dulwich Hamlet:
1 Mia North; 2 Madi Parsonson; 3 Havana McElvaine; 4 Chana Hinds; 5 Rosie Stone; 8 Brit Saylor; 9 Sophie Manzi; 14 Lucy Monkman; 16 Ella Wales-Bonner; 18 Asia Harbour Brown; 20 Harriet Crofts

[b]Subs:[/b]
6 Sarah Walters; 7 Sas Philp; 11 Zoe Elmore; 15 Hannah Baptiste; 19 Jordan Williamson

Denham United
1 Zara Butt; 2 Kodi Spencer; 3 Keira O’Leary; 4 Jo Torr; 5 Ella Greenwood; 6 Bianca Cuzuban; 7 Dadrian Kennedy; 8 Kayleigh Currivan; 9 Millie Congerton; 10 Lauren Cox; 11 Annie Hewitt; 12 Danni Holland; 14 Chloe Smith

Referees:
Mark Lachie-Smith
Robert Redman
James McLean

Photo: Liam Asman