Dulwich got an early reminder of the tasks that face them in the Premier as Alex McLean’s first half hat trick sealed victory for the K’s.

What a difference a day makes as Dulwich succumbed to a heavy defeat at the hands of Kingstonian as old friends became new fiends on a blazing day at King George’s Fields. Having brushed aside the challenge of Carshalton Athletic in Saturday’s semi, Dulwich must have fancied their chances of lifting the Vase, but, though too many of their problems were of their own making, it was a salutary reminder of the strength of opposition they must overcome week in week out if they are to break into the upper echelon of the Isthmian League.

Kevin James, Nassim Dukali, and Dean Lodge were the only members to have partaken in Saturday’s triumph albeit as second half substitutes with Dulwich fielding a complete change of starting line-up. A bright start, Lodge outleaping a towering defender in the opening exchanges but unable to get enough purchase on his header to punish his former teammates. Yet soon the dark clouds began gathering. However, the opening goal was not without controversy even if the Hamlet’s unnecessary clowning in the back office played its part. A back pass caught Phil Wilson far from his line and though K’s Alex McLean had to push over Kevin James to reach the loose ball referee Peter Georgiou saw nothing untoward as the centre forward’s deft chip over the now stranded goalie saw Kingstonian open their account.

Tommy Kavanagh went close to the target with a smart strike on the run after carving his way through the Hamlet defence before Dee Okojie was gifted an opening after aw wayward pass across his own penalty area from the usually surefooted Peter Adeniyi. With Wilson closing him down, he elected to drag the ball back to his fellow striker but, fortunately, this time McLean’s aim was off kilter.

Soon after Jerome Walker ducked and dived his way into the box but from an impossible angle, he lashed as rising shot across the face of Rob Tolfrey’s goal. Moments later Walker would leave K’s left back Bashiru Alimi for dead with a gallop down the left but as his shot fizzed across goal, there was no one close enough to apply the finishing touch. The equaliser came even closer a minute later as Xavier Vidal provided the delivery for Lodge to attempt to lob Tolfrey with a first time chip, only for the ‘keeper to get back just in time to claw the ball over his crossbar.

With Walker in particular the victim of some of the meatier challenges served up by K’s defenders one might have expected a little word in the ear for the perpetrators from the man in black, industrial tackles of unsavoury natures that season proper might see in yellow and red not black and white. Indeed it was Kevin James who was first to feel the smack of Mr Georgiou’s tongue for a tackle born as much of frustration as malice.

Then just as Dulwich had begun to establish themselves in the game a knife to the heart as, on 20 minutes, Marcus Moody hit the afterburners down the left flank, toasting Luke Hickie in his wake before larruped a low cross into the Hamlet area. McLean met it first time, a sweet drive beating Wilson low at his near post.

Five minutes later McLean bagged his hat trick, the finish simple, the delivery from Charles Ofusu-Hene on his toes as he banged the ball home from close in.

With freedom of the box, Okojie might have made it four nine minutes before the break only for Wilson to smother his head. However, though Dulwich did hit the woodwork as Ethan Pinnock met Kevin James free kick and Dukali just shaved the far upright after Vines’ neat touch had sent him through, a Dulwich goal would not come. Indeed more misery courtesy of the K’s seemed on the cards. Twice Wilson kept out decent efforts, Okojie’s close range strike from Ofusu-Hene’s pull back, and Moody’s smart strike from outside the area after Dulwich had failed to clear the resultant corner. Even Tolfrey tried to get in on the act, a free kick from his own half sailing just over Wilson’s crossbar. In the dying moments of the half fortune own more frowned upon the hamlet as Ryan James smacked a low drive against the inside of Tolfrey’s near post the ball rebounding back into play and though Vines managed to drag the ball back across goal to find Lodge, an inexplicable offside flag prevented him from applying the killer touch.

The second half brought a number of changes for the opposition as Alan Dowson dipped into his substitute pool, throwing all bar his replacement keeper into the fray. Dulwich remained unchanged and whilst their opponents gathered their thoughts, the Hamlet set to work on making inroads into the dire deficit. A dancing run from Walker almost set up Lodge as he slipped the ball in but it proved too far in front for him to reach. Moments later Vines drifted out to the right to clip a cross to the back of the box, Kevin James nodding the ball back for Lodge to throw himself into a diving header but straight at Tolfrey.

Matt Pattison had a goal disallowed for offside after a fierce strike by Andre McCollin before a powerful run down the left set up McCollin to meet the cross and dart into the area, his low drive beating Wilson but cannoning back off the far post. Both Lodge and Dukali produced good strikes on the run that forced Tolfrey into saves, though little more than regulation for a custodian of his ilk before luck finally smiled on McCollin. On the hour mark Daniel Sweeny burst through, the frame of the goal once again left shivering as he cracked a shot against it but this time the ball ran kindly and McCollin was on hand to roll the ball home from 12 yards out.

Time for the Hamlet subs and one of them finally gave the travelling rabble from South London something to take home from Tolworth as Junior James was on hand to polish off a left-wing delivery with a lethal finish from eight yards out. As K’s seemed to rock, thoughts of an improbable comeback grew wings. Another of the replacements, young Olu Lapite from the Academy sliced through a porous defence, his cracking shot flicking off the toes of a covering defence to shear a fraction wide of the post. Walker, doing nothing his name suggests, burnt Alimi more than the searing sun but added too much gunpowder to a shot that blazed high and wide. Junior James might have added his and Hamlet’s second but somehow contrived to claw the ball off the line as tried to polish off a big header at the back of the box. Moments later he would give too much welly to a decent opening and miss the target, Lapite did likewise but time ran out leaving Kingstonian worthy winners once more and the Dulwich management with more questions to ponder than the Think Tank.

Teams:
Dulwich Hamlet: Phil Wilson, Luke Hickie, Ryan James, Kevin James, Peter Adeniyi, Ethan Pinnock, Jerome Walker, Xavier Vidal, Paul Vines, Nassim Dukali, Dean Lodge
Subs: Junior James (for Vines 74), Kershaney Samuels (for Dukali 61), James Allen (for Kevin James 74), Aaron Dalhouse (for Vidal 61), Olu Lapite (for Lodge 74).

Kingstonian: Rob Tolfrey, Aaron Goode, Bashiru Alimi, Matt Sommer, Sam Page, Tommy Kavanagh, Matt Pattison, Charles Ofusu-Hene, Alex McLean, Dee Okojie, Marcus Moody
Substitutes (all used): Andre McCollin, Daniel Sweeny, Matt Drage, Mark McKendrick, Billy Hensman (GK)