It will taint football if we lose a club like Dulwich

THE saddest — and most infuriating — story of the week has involved Dulwich Hamlet. If you are unaware of the background, the property developers Meadow have withdrawn permission for them to play at the ground they have used for 106 years and hit them with a £121,000 bill. I don’t know the full ins and outs of the story but it will boil down to someone, somewhere spying an opportunity to make money. It always does. Dulwich is now an affluent area in south London and attractive for new homes. But what I do know is what Dulwich stand for. I was sent there, kicking and screaming, as a 17-year-old on loan from Tottenham, but it was one of the most important periods of my career. Dulwich helped me become the man and player I am today. It was tough playing in non-League, but it opened my eyes. I got kicked on the pitch to toughen me up and I got a kick up the backside there to focus my mind. I knew after playing for Dulwich that I wanted to get to the top of football. It was a fantastic experience. They have got a brilliant little stadium and fantastic fans who follow them everywhere — a friend of mine used to go every week. They get big attendances and provide people with an opportunity to watch ‘real’ football again — those who remember how it used to be in the 1970s and 1980s. The future is now uncertain, with the club — who are chasing promotion from the Isthmian Premier Division — in discussions with Southwark Council. I only hope it gets resolved. If we were to lose a club like Dulwich Hamlet it would taint football.