Dressed in blue, we kicked off the game on a crisp evening at Halifax Road Stadium.
Our first chance came quickly, as a lofted ball over the top found Matt Briggs in space. He brought it down brilliantly but couldn’t generate enough power to trouble the keeper.
Not long after, Briggs found himself in the box again and slotted the ball neatly into the bottom corner. Unfortunately, the referee had already blown the whistle for offside, nullifying the goal.
Maintaining the pressure, Brennan Camp delivered a superb ball over the top to captain Charlie Carter. Carter reached the byline and cut back a precise cross to Alfie Rutherford, whose close-range shot was bravely charged down by Hemel’s keeper. The rebound fell to Morgan Williams, but his follow-up effort went wide of the target.
The Tudors registered their first attempt midway through the first half—a tame shot from the edge of the area that was comfortably collected by Harrison Foulkes.
Jimmy Muitt was next to threaten for the Wanderers. Latching onto a through ball from Morgan Williams, he fired a powerful shot on goal, only for the keeper to palm it away for a corner, which was subsequently cleared.
We finally took a well-deserved lead in the 38th minute. Following a corner, a flurry of attempts from Wanderers players ensued, but it was Brennan Camp who made the breakthrough. Turning sharply on the edge of the area, he struck a bouncing shot that nestled perfectly into the bottom-left corner of Hemel’s goal. 0-1
Half Time: Hemel Hempstead 0-1 Dorking Wanderers
Brennan Camp was back in the thick of the action immediately after the restart. A cross found its way to him, and he hooked a shot goalward, but the keeper was able to gather it. Moments later, we were back on the attack. Rutherford’s shot-turned-pass found Jack Young, who calmly tapped it home to double our lead. 0-2
Keeping on the front foot, we carved out another excellent chance as Carter broke in behind the defence, only to be denied by a sharp reaction save from Wilkinson in goal.
It was the Flying Quaver himself, Jimmy Muitt, who delivered our third goal in spectacular fashion. Jimmy showcased his acrobatics, connecting with a cross to execute an improvised bicycle kick—a brilliant finish. 0-3
We didn’t have to wait long for our fourth. Alfie Rutherford found space between two defenders, expertly controlled a lofted ball over the top, and slotted it past Wilkinson with ease. 0-4
Following the goal, manager Marc White made his first substitutions of the game, bringing on Jordan Norville-Williams and George Francomb in place of Matt Briggs and Rob Milsom.
Hemel then launched their first meaningful attack of the half, forcing a superb save from Foulkes, who deflected the shot onto the crossbar. Unfortunately, amidst the action, Brennan Camp picked up a knock and was replaced by Will Randall. From the resulting corner, Foulkes initially saved the effort but was unlucky as the rebound fell to a Tudor attacker, who tapped the ball into an empty net to deny us a clean sheet. 1-4
Frustrated by conceding, we wasted no time getting back on the front foot. This time, it was Morgan Williams who scored his maiden goal for the Wanderers. Picking up the ball on the edge of the area, he dribbled centrally past defenders and placed a precise shot into the bottom corner. 1-5
Shortly after, Charlie Carter made way for James McShane, marking McShane’s second appearance since returning from injury.
In the 85th minute, Alfie Rutherford hit the ball for six – sending it bouncing through the only available space, squeezing in on the near post. Alfie was then substituted for Theo Alexandrou. 1-6
Theo made an immediate impact after coming on, finding himself in promising attacking positions almost instantly. When the ball fell to him with space behind the defence, he showed great composure, slotting it between Wilkinson’s legs to make it seven. 1-7
The referee’s whistle signaled the end of a brilliant performance from the Wanderers, culminating in our biggest win of the season. Join us this Saturday at Meadowbank as we aim to build on tonight’s success!
Full Time: Hemel Hempstead 1-7 Dorking Wanderers