In memory of Dave Hawkins
Part 2
31st March 1970 ~ 27th November 2001
R.I.P.
Contributions that Dave made to the D&R unofficial website
Many people responded to my request for thoughts of our escapade with Cahrlton Athletic. Dave's scribes were eloquent, intelligent, well written and gave myself and many others much pleasure.
Below that is a Fan in Focus questionnaire that Dave filled in for me in April.
Some memories Dave wrote after our matches against Charlton.
Dave H.
Blimey where to start....?
I think the Lincoln game was where the "magic" begun for me. Janners goal crept over the line and then for a few moments came the kind of feeling that people go to football for decades for, pure unbridled joy. Add into that the level of excitement where some of your best friends are smashing you to a pulp as they leap around in a frenzy.
Coach home listening to 5 live telling us that we were one of the shocks of the day, desperately trying to listen above the coaches shitty static radio. Match of the day interviewing Janners who ends in his ultimate quote "Huuuhhhh" Then Sunday papers and all due praise, again no lucky victory, we outfought and outplayed Lincoln.
Fast forward to the draw...come on Man U, come on Man U....
Charlton....versus Dagenham and Redbridge (WAHEY! its now mandatory to
cheer when you hear the name on telly or radio) and then YES! excellent
draw!!! Then two things set in...
1. out of all the draws this was a beauty, away to a Premier Club means a
great day out (local too) and lots of money for the club, which is a major
factor for us non leaguers.
2. Oh my God were are gonna play a league team, Oh My Goddddd ! Skip past
the huge queue for tickets where we arrive two hours before the doors
opened, to the day of the match. Me and my mates queued for hours with
1000's of people you'd never seen before. Daggers tickets sell out, a
feeling of immense expectation and gratitude that we got some tickets.
Sadly I didn't get any coach tickets, so I drove and parked a long way away. Walking towards the ground my stomach was doing flip flops and then I saw the coaches, loads of coaches, great stuff the Daggers are out in force. Then I saw the club, well its not Old Trafford but compared to our ground it's the Death Star !
As we approached the ground my mate, my dad and I were all muttering statements of the calibre of "Do well to keep it down to 4" and I feel no shame in that because in honesty that was realism. We were due to play the team that had beat Arsenal the week before. A premier League team with internationals and a ground that held 20K. Curbishley's team, the possible future England manager.
We got into the ground, saw a few familiar faces (swapped excited looks) and then met our mates in the seats. I call them seats but in reality they were just allocated standing spots - No one sat down. You would have to say that the atmosphere was electric, simply because I felt like a current was running through me. I kept grinning at my mates. I was jumpy and nervy and very very happy. A man in a Pink Panther costume walked by, there were balloons everywhere and confetti and streamers and the Daggers fans were loud and proud. It was a huge scary party.
I won't go into the actual action because those with better memories have already described it well, but the chants and the songs were a great signal of how the match progressed. Your obvious Dagenham supporters chants began and then as the game continued WE were TAUNTING CHARLTON ! - Can you believe it? Can we play you every week? Are you Purfleet in disguise? You're not very good!, etc.
We scored....Ok lets say that was an understatement. We had been improving and playing the football of the game (if we remember one thing let us remember that we played some good flowing footie, great balls up to Junior and Shippy who brought people into the game, some lovely passing and some great tackles that I thought harshly penalised at times by a clear Homer of a ref) Shippy battled and battled and headed out of my line of sight, the ball floated over to the back stick. There was Junior (who if anyone deserved to score it was him) on his own to header the ball in. I am trying to describe for posterity what it was like and sadly I cannot, and this is why people go back week after week to games all over the world, because if you could sell the feeling that we lucky Daggers with tickets experienced, you would make Bill Gates look like a beggar.
The best way I could describe it is that it was a combination of a bomb going off, going to a fantastic party at the height of the pogo and being in a state of shock and disbelief. It was amazing. We had achieved the impossible, seriously I was in shock, like I could see it all happening my mates and my father jumping and laughing like loons but deep down was the feeling like it couldn't be real.
The game went on and I was proud that we didn't just sit back and punt the ball away because I think we was playing the best football and that was what was winning us the game. It was getting to the last 10 mins when it dawned on me that we were gonna make history. This wasn't an upset, this was a massive, massive shock. Possibly the biggest result in football history. And it wasn't a fluke, a jammy goal and frantic defending. We played really well and you could see the teams confidence grow from Garry Hill's (kiss his baldy head) famous philosophy of not conceding in the first 20 mins means anything can happen. This was true at Lincoln and it was true at the Valley.
Actually thinking back to Lincoln for a moment, here is something that made me smile when I remembered it. We drew Lincoln away, so I get onto the website, Oh its near Nottingham , they are 20th in Div 3, Oooooooh maybe just maybe I thought. Fast forward to Charlton - no research needed :) It's as I said to my pal, the draw should we succeed pits us against Spurs. Tottenham, Hoddle, Ardiles and Ricky Villa, Sol Campbell etc. etc. Its mad I tell you mad. We may as be playing a Mars All Star XI. It feels crazy. Back to the game, we tire, we pick up an injury, Ashley gets cramp and we miss a good chance. And then yeah they scored, I didn't see it very well but it was a cruel deflection. But then a moment that made me very proud. The fans took just a moment to exhale and sigh at their misfortune and then back to the support. Stronger than ever. With gusto we supported the team as before. There's only one team out there Dagenham and that's you. The announcement for 6 mins of Extra time was a shock as the players were clearly getting tired. The final whistle was in many ways a moment of pride and of anti climax. The team stripped to their shorts, we cheered them and they cheered us back. They went on a lap of honour where the Charlton fans rightly applauded them. I didn't like that and you can take that as a sign of how well we did. I expected them to do a lap of honour after battling hard and going down by three. But we were so much better than that it seemed patronising, we should have applauded Charlton out of sympathy! Then we left the ground to a chorus of statements of "amazing, so close, Oh I don't believe it, I am so proud, where do you think the replay will be? Yes its a shame but you would have taken it before the start, we were SO good, f@cking hell we nearly beat Charlton, I think it has to be Upton Park, the best result after getting a Premier League club is to play them again for more money, We're in the hat for the 4th round!!" and so on.
Walk back to the car, thousands of very quiet Charlton fans and loads of jubilant coaches went past us in a convoy and we waved dazed and happy to them. The radio and television coverage was insane. Cobby calling 5 live from the team coach. Trevor Brooking getting in a little quip that Danny Shipp was an Ex-Hammer. Next day we were all over the back pages, the News of the World had 4 of our players in the team of the week. The Daily Mirror had just two but I pissed myself when I looked. Left Back Stuart Pearce - West Ham and England Legend, Right Back Tim Cole - Dagenham Legend. Tim's comment about the foreigners all failing to understand each other as they argued was priceless. All the papers and media confirmed that Charlton were well lucky to get a replay and that we played and battled them off the field. Then the draw for the next round. Dagenham and Redbridge (Wahey !) or Charlton, at home to, Tottenham. OH MY GOD ! This is just crazy! My grandad's favourite team! Premier League Spurs! if we can beat Premier League Charlton. Since then the announcement that Sky are gonna televise the replay, More Telly, Papers and Radio coverage than you can keep up with.
I'm looking forward to seeing the ground on Sky (when I get back of course) crammed with 5000 people right next to the pitch. I really hope they do that thing pre game with the little photo's of the team in formation, that will be great. The important thing is that the money and prestige and fame continue to roll in. The ticket allocation has caused a fuss but I think its fairer than just first come first served that the glory boys jumped at. So now we wait, a usually immense game in the trophy is being dished up as a trailer before we can buy Willy Wonka's golden tickets.
Of course talk is dominated with one question --- Can We ? Can we beat them?
On the listen to my heart side - It's at home with 1000's of Daggers fans screaming at them from a foot away, the changing rooms are like Parsloes and we outplayed them last time.
On the listen to my head side - Curbishley will not let lightning strike twice, they will know us, they will raise their game and they are a bloody Premier League team and we have just been promoted (101 points) to the bloody Conference.
Its David and Goliath only Goliath has thermo nuclear missiles and David has a Britney Spears CD. Which is why we are all so excited, its been a hell of a ride so far, but who knows if this is where it ends, I am far less sure about that than when I saw the Valley. Will we be posting stories about the Spurs game? They say its the magic of the FA Cup and I believe them, We are Dagenham, playing Charlton for a 4th round game versus Tottenham. Frankly all we need is Roy Race playing alongside Junior! I am a very happy and very proud Dagger I hope I never wake up.
We have completed MISSION IMPOSSIBLE
Now lets do MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 2 COME ON YOU DAGGERS!
A couple of weeks later Dave was at it again.
You know if I am honest the replay took so long to arrive that I felt quite differently about it when it finally happened. Originally I was thinking that we had a good chance, then an outside chance and then practically none. The media stirred "war of words" did us no good and suddenly the Daggers were news for perhaps the wrong reasons. The day of the match was once again very special for non football reasons. I arrived at 1-30pm and before I got near the ground there were visual clues. I parked behind a Charlton Coach next to Pondfield Park. Crossing to the ground you could see a huge Crane camera, the training area had been converted to a car park (mainly because the car park was filled with what can only be described as a "media centre" with huge vans and trucks from various TV companies)
Moving towards the turnstiles I saw loads of Police and stewards (far too many) doing sod all. Closer still I saw reps from the Recorder newspaper with those crap cards to wave (I'll be more cynical shortly) and a poxy mascot. Also there was a burger bar outside (excellent idea) the ground. Through the turnstiles, get my program (£2 - hmm) and try to get my usual spot in the Sieve (sorry North Stand).
I didn't get my spot but was close enough. Going round we laughed at the Press Box (Still don't see why it was needed and more importantly why it cost us money - we have Press seats, anyone else could pay as far as I am concerned - still if long term we get more punters as a result then fair enough)
The game approaches and the 'Let me entertain you mix' from the Dj was inspired. I have the clip on my PC mailed to me as "the greatest moment in history!"
I read the program and the comment about Essex radio not covering us previously because of boundary issues pisses me off a great deal. These lot and the Recorder and many others got on my nerves that day. There was a great deal of hangers on and not just the extra 1000's of supporters. I mean what was the mascot about?
I'd like to think that the extra exposure will benefit the club in terms of future support but we will have to wait and see I guess. I was pleased that there were extra facilities but that only underlined the need for them on normal days, where I have given up getting a burger. Also the move along the terraces request was treated (rightly) with disdain. Why the hell should I give up my spot that I arrived early for, so that some latecomer can get in? Again I won't comment much on the game except that I think in retrospect we lost when Jonah came on for Paul Terry (outstanding in both games). While Jonah did ok he is not in the same league as Paul (although he did clear off the line). Janney's miss near the end will haunt me for some time I suspect.
And so we finally lost, but we had done ourselves proud, the fans while not as good as the Valley game were still great and the team played very well and didn't deserve to lose. So we rushed home and watched the highlights on Sky and the dream started to fade. What we need is more of the glory boys to become loyal supporters and for more of the temporary facilities to become permanent ones.
Still Praise where it's due. Garry and the players gave us many many happy memories filled with pride. The chaps behind the scenes deserve a mention too, the postponement was gutting but all in all D&R came through as a shining example of what non league is all about. I also strongly believe that we have struck a major blow for more promotion for Conference teams to the Nationwide League.
Next season I will certainly be getting supporters club membership and I think we need to consider the possibility of League Football. It's not too unrealistic to consider ourselves as "outsiders" and we have not adjusted to the Confrence in terms of infrastructure yet. Work needs doing on the ground where Ryman league was fine but the increase in attendances has made the facilities look very poor and under strain.
Anyway once again a big thank you to Garry and the lads, it was magical.
Along came April and Dave filled in one of the famous FIF forms, this was only because I had let Alan do one!
Name: Dave Hawkins
Place of Birth: Dagenham
Date of Birth: 31-03-1970
Occupation: Team Leader in Employment Tribunals
Non-League Team supported: Daggers
League Team Supported:West Ham
Favourite Book: The Bone Collector by Jeffrey Deaver
Favourite Film: Star Wars
Favourite Band: Bon Jovi / Louise
Favourite TV Programme: Buffy The Vampire Slayer
Favourite Radio Programme: Sports report (5 Live)
Favourite meal: Peppered Steak
Pet Hate/s: Drums at football matches
Desert Island Discs (New Feature)
You are alone (except in Alan's case) on a desert island and can take with
you the following:
8 Records
1 Book (not the Bible or Shakespeare as they are already on the island)
1 Luxury item that is of no practical value (I don't know what this means
exactly, I just got it from the Radio 4 website)
So what would you take?
Records: Greatest hits CD's of Bon Jovi, Queen, Bryan Adams, The Beatles, Elvis, Naked & Woman in Me by Louise and Marshall Mathers by Eminem (I'm not a great music collector!)
Book: Lord of the Rings
Luxury Item: A football
All questions below relate to non-league football.
1. FAVOURITE PLAYER/S OF ALL TIME & WHY?
Paul Gothard - Was amazing during Trophy run, great keeper and penalty
killer
1a. FAVOURITE CURRENT PLAYER/S AND WHY? Junior - in the best form
I've seen him, holds the ball up well and is difficult for defenders to
deal with Tim Cole - great attitude, aggressive and determined. Good bond
with the fans.
2. BEST TEAM PERFORMANCE/S OF ALL TIME?
Obviously at Charlton
2a. BEST PERFORMANCE OF THE 1999/00 SEASON?
The St. Albans games were great efforts. Clinching the title with 9 men
and Keeno in goal was pretty special
3. WORST TEAM PERFORMANCE/S?
Losing 2-0 at Purfleet in the Trophy was a disgrace (no effort)
4. WORST TEAM PERFORMANCE FROM LAST SEASON
I remember coming away from Heybridge last season saying to my mates that
if we defended like that then we had no chance of winning the title.
Conceding 5 was crazy, however many you score.
5. MOST MEMORABLE MOMENT?
The Orient cup game. The Peterboro cup game where the wall broke. Seeing
the Twin Towers ! Thinking I was going to be sick in the last few moments
at Slough (semi final replay) Charlton (nuff said)
6. MOST FORGETTABLE MOMENT?
Aggro from Wealdstone fans. One w**ker in our fans spitting at the oppo
keeper once.
7. BEST COMMENT HEARD FROM THE TERRACES?
"Are you Purfleet in disguise? - To Charlton"
8. WHAT WOULD YOU DO TO YOUR CLUB TO IMPROVE IT?
Fix the leak in the roof of the Shed. Fill the Marie Celeste with kids
from local schools. Build 2 or 3 more Burger bars and some more bogs Build
a new Stand at the Pondfield end.
9. WHAT OTHER QUESTION WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE ON THIS QUESTIONAIRE &
HOW WOULD YOU ANSWER IT?
Who is the most underrated player in the squad? Answer : Mark Keen.
Striker, Defender, Keeper (Top Man) And to think we looked at him in
amazement when he signed too
11. WHY DO YOU SUPPORT A NON-LEAGUE FOOTBALL CLUB?
Local, Cheaper, me and my friends can all go without going through
Ticketmaster!
12. BEST MATCH BEEN TO NOT INVOLVING THE DAGGERS?
West Ham 4-1 v Liverpool in the League Cup.
13. FAVOURITE NON-LEAGUE GROUND?
Aylesbury do great chips! Heybridge has nice weather (barmy I know!)
14. FAVOURITE LEAGUE GROUND VISITED?
Old Trafford and Villa Park and of course the Valley
15. PLEASE ADD ANY FURTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS THAT MAY BE OF
INTEREST.
Worst Non League Ground : Canvey - Pitch and ground a disgrace