A perfect weekend as Tudors win two out of two
Boss Bobby Wilkinson was a happy man after Hemel Hempstead town continued their unbeaten start to the season with a 2-0 victory on the road against Weymouth – and followed it up with a 1-0 success at Aveley on Monday.
A towering header by Kyle Ajayi and a goal from substitute Joe Iaciofano proved to be the difference between the two teams on Saturday, alongside a deserved clean sheet.
And Monday night then saw Ricardo German’s first-half goal prove enough to make it two in a row.
Having started slowly in last week’s draw at home to newly promoted Salisbury, the Tudors were able to take control of proceedings at Weymouth, resulting in Ajayi finding the back of the net in the 12th minute.
When asked about the way Wilkinson set his team up to play, he said: “I want the boys to be brave. I thought especially in the first-half we were clinical”.
Despite the hosts applying pressure in the second half, the Tudors were able to withstand the threat of Weymouth, and were eventually rewarded with Iaciofano’s finish in the 78th minute, creating the important two goal cushion.
Wilkinson added: “There are some very good players here but I just knew we would know how to adapt to that.
“We went the extra mile [with preparation] this week.
“The travelling support was brilliant. They didn’t realise that they drove us on in the last 10/15 minutes.”
The Tudors then saw a quick turnaround ahead of going to Aveley, with Wilkinson adding: “You can see why I built a powerful squad because when you play Saturday then Monday, you might have to rotate it.”
The hosts had two men sent off in the closing stages of the game, but Wilkinson was pleased to see the game out and claim another three points.
He said: “I didn’t ask the players to win here tonight, I challenged them to win, because we had a really difficult game on Saturday with a tough journey, then we’ve had to get back, recover last night and do our homework for Aveley.
"But the boys took the challenge and to come here and win 1-0 was brilliant for everyone at the football club.”
Hemel host Worthing on Saturday before going to Enfield Town on Bank Holiday Monday.