Tuesday 21 May 2019

Hamlet legends on paper

Have you ever been writing or typing something whilst conducting a conversation, only to realise that you have accidentally written some of the words the other person said instead of what you intended to write?

I think that is what may have happened in this loose sheet from a 1930s autograph book currently available on Ebay.


The sheet contains the names of nine of the triumphant Dulwich Hamlet team who won the FA Amateur Cup in 1932. The match, played at West Ham United’s Boleyn ground, saw a rampant Hamlet side destroy Marine of Liverpool by seven goals to one. It was a record equaling score in the final. Six of the Dulwich strikes arrived in a fertile twenty minute spell just after the hour mark. Jack Moseley scored four of the goals, George Goodliffe one, and the legendary Edgar Kail bagged a brace.

The autograph collector, who probably attained the signatures of the Hamlet players after the game, put little boxes round the individual autographs and neatly noted some of their playing positions.

The two columns of names consist of WG Goodliffe, LB Morrish, HS Robbins, E Kail, T Hamer, AJ Hugo, CF Murray, AS Aitken, BE Osmond and AH Hamer. The eagle eyed will notice that R Miles and HC Moseley are missing – one of them has obviously been removed from the bottom left corner. Oddly, club captain Hamer’s name is recorded twice and in different hands. 

As I mentioned at the top of the article, my guess is that either Miles or Moseley wrote Hamer’s name instead of their own. In my scenario the player is about to sign the sheet when the collector asks, “Who was the best player today?” “Taffy Hamer” he replies. And as the words leave his lips he automatically signs ‘T Hamer’ by mistake. I say this because it is without question that Hamer would have put his actual initials in keeping with everyone else. Also, the Welshman never ever referred to himself as Taffy, and it is known that he was not fond of the nickname.

Of this great set of players Edgar Kail retired at the close of the following season, Jack Moseley immediately joined Millwall, while Cecil Murray, Horrie Robbins, Jack Hugo and Leslie Morrish each collected a further two Amateur Cup winners medals in 1934 and 1937. George Goodliffe was a member of the family business that later owned the Champion Hill ground and did so much to keep Dulwich Hamlet alive during the darker post-war days. 

Brief cinema footage of the Marine v Dulwich Hamlet match can be seen here.

The two teams are set to meet again. Dulwich Hamlet have been given the great honour to play a friendly match against Marine this summer as part of the Merseyside club’s 125 anniversary celebrations. The match will take place on Saturday 13 July 2019 in Crosby.

Wednesday 8 May 2019

John Everitt - RIP


We were saddened to learn of the death of former Dulwich Hamlet inside forward John Everitt, who passed away on Saturday 20 April. Our sincere condolences to family and friends.

He joined Dulwich Hamlet straight from school and was still in his mid-teens when he made his debut during the 1950/51 season. And what a start it was, a 5-1 victory over Corinthian-Casuals and the young Everitt boy with two of the goals.

He was also a member of the Dulwich Hamlet team that faced Corinthian-Casuals in the semi-final of the FA Amateur Cup in March 1956. Fifty coaches ferried thousands of Hamlet fans to Stamford Bridge but Dulwich lost the tie 3-1.

Everitt, one of a number of Hamlet men who worked for the Goodliffe family’s New Century Cleaners and Office Cleaning Services, made over 300 appearances for the club scoring 177 goals including seven hat-tricks. One of his greatest goals was a volley from the halfway line!

He also represented London FA, Surrey FA, the Isthmian League and the Army.

The funeral takes place today at Hither Green Crematorium.


Six decades separate these two pictures of John Everitt (right) and Ron Eastland.