Although the dust has barely settled on Euro ‘24, the new season of non-league football is already upon us. With clubs up and down the pyramid and across the length and breadth of the country seeking to hit the ground running, Steve Sharman spent some time at Isthmian League North side Heybridge Swifts to hear their aspirations for this season and beyond from manager and West Ham legend Julian Dicks and club chairman Steve Spreadbury.
Nestled on the Saltmarsh Coast, a few miles off the A12 and bisected by the picturesque Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation, is the village of Heybridge, home to Isthmian League North side Heybridge Swifts.
Formed in 1880 as Heybridge Football Club – ‘Swifts’ wasn’t adopted until football restarted after World War 2, in 1946-47 – the successful villagers bounced around various Essex leagues for the first 100 or so years of existence, before moving into Division 2 (North) of the Isthmian League in the 1984-85 season.
They were promoted to Division 1 in 1989-90, and to the Isthmian Premier in 1995-96. After two defeats in the end-of-season promotion play-offs in 2003-04 and 2005-06, Heybridge were eventually relegated back to Division 1 at the end of the 2008-09 season, where they have been ever since.
After enduring years of near-misses and promotion frustration, the man currently charged with leading Swifts out of the North division is former Birmingham, West Ham, and Liverpool defender Julian Dicks. An uncompromising full-back known for tough tackling and a hammer of a left foot, Dicks is no stranger to this corner of Essex – his current spell in charge is his third time at the club – and his previous experiences have left him acutely familiar with the bitter aftertaste of disappointment.
Dicks’ first spell in Heybridge took the club to the brink of promotion; in the 2018-19 season, after beating Aveley 2-0 in the semi-finals, Swifts faced local rivals Maldon & Tiptree in a dramatic play-off final. After racing into a deserved two-goal lead, Swifts were pegged back to 2-2 before eventually emerging victorious from a nerve-wracking penalty shootout.
However, in the coming weeks, Swifts were cut down by the cruel sickle of non-league bureaucracy. The average points-per-game record over the course of the season of all the clubs that had triumphed in step four play-offs was calculated. Only the top five were promoted; Swifts had the sixth-best PPG record so they were denied promotion, a decision Dicks describes as “an absolute load of bollocks“. ‘The Terminator’ also had a short spell at the helm in 2021, but left after a poor start to the season.
Motivated by previous disappointments and inspired by some behind-the-scenes changes – including the installation of a 3G pitch to reduce costs and increase commercial revenue – there is a quiet sense of optimism around the club at the start of the 2024-25 season.
Speaking to Hammers’ Legend, Julian Dicks
Hopper’s Guide caught up with Dicks before the final pre-season friendly, a home game against Isthmian Premier Division side Canvey Island, to get his perspective on returning to Heybridge Swifts, hopes and expectations for the coming season, and thoughts for the afternoon’s final pre-season friendly.
Coming back for a second stint in charge isn’t entirely unusual – think Mourinho at Chelsea, Moyes at West Ham – but a third spell is not so common. So what is it about Swifts that keeps Dicks coming back, and what changes has he seen between his spells in charge?
“It’s a good club. I mean obviously, now the facilities are very good, the pitch is good, the bar area – it’s a good club and it’s about pushing it in the right direction. The ground has changed, gone from grass to astro, which means you can rent the pitch out and it generates more money. Like I said the club is better – to be fair everything about the club has moved on for the better.
But it’s just about us doing the bit now on the pitch which is what it’s all about. Doesn’t matter if the clubhouse is good, or the pitch is good. If the team ain’t that good then it’s pointless, so it’s about getting the right team, the right players, to push the club forward.“
When pressed on what that means for the team, and what his hopes and expectations are for the coming season, Dicks is very clear about his ambition:
“For me, as an ex-player, and manager, it has to be about promotion, otherwise there’s no point in being involved in a football club. Can it happen? Yeah of course it can but there’s a few factors you have to rely on; players staying fit, players staying injury-free, and the players working hard enough, and they will work hard enough as I’ll make sure they work hard enough, and if they don’t then they won’t be here.“
Lofty ambition indeed and a goal made all the more challenging when there is a high level of player turnover within the squad. Heybridge lost a number of key players over the summer including centre-back Quba Gordon to Hashtag United, winger Rob Harvey to Brentwood, and striker Ross Wall to rivals Maldon & Tiptree. So, an equally large number of players have had to be brought in. How does a manager integrate new players into a squad and a system of playing?
“Well, one, I give everybody a chance. They come in, they train – my training is very intense, very hard, a few have left because it was too hard. But the boys that are left – there’s three or four that are still trying to get a deal – and if they’re good enough, they will get a deal, and if they’re not they’ll be moved on. So for me, it’s a case of having 17 players that want to work together, have great team spirit, then I think you can push on.“
Finding the right players is a point Dicks refers to on more than one occasion, and he has clear ideas of the specific qualities he and his team look for in players.
“They have to be able to play football! But listen, for me, first and foremost, they have to have ability, they have to have something – whether that’s pace, whether they’re good in the air, whether they’re aggressive, whether they score goals, whether they’re dominant in their position – and they have to have a team spirit. For me, football is about your teammates, because you can’t do it on your own. You have to have your ten other mates to do it, so there has to be a good team spirit and a togetherness in the dressing room.”
Dicks is clearly focused on the process of finding the right players and building a squad able to compete at the sharp end of the league, and the game today is a good opportunity for those involved to show the boss what they are made of. The opposition is Canvey Island, a decent side from the division above, and although Dicks acknowledges the team he can put out today is still missing a few players and contains a few trialists, he predicts it will be a tough game and knows there is still a lot on the line.
“It’s about the players getting out, their fitness, working hard. Yeah I mean listen, it would be nice to win but it’s a pre-season friendly – it’s not the be-all and end all of winning. Yeah I want to win every game. It’s about players getting their fitness, and the players that ain’t got deals showing me that they deserve a deal and the players that have got a deal, showing me that they deserve that deal. Because if they don’t, then they won’t be here.“
There are many great footballers who have not successfully made the transition from player to manager, such as Roy Keane or Alan Shearer, and it’s interesting to consider how an individual’s playing style is reflected in how they encourage a team to play. For Dicks, positivity and moving quickly through the pitch is key to his coaching philosophy.
“My playing style is you have to be positive. I see on TV and stuff like that, players just pass the ball about for the sake of passing the ball, and for me, I’ve said to my players, I want them to be positive, so if there’s room in front of you, travel. Take the ball with you, and go forward, that’s your first option. I want my players to be positive. I want them to take the game to other teams.
It’s not always possible, but that’s how I used to play, when I was playing at West Ham or Liverpool or even Birmingham City, that was the way we played football. So the keeper would throw the ball out to me, if there was 20 yards in front of me, I’d travel with the ball. Players don’t do that now. So they get the ball, they go inside, or they give it to somebody else. I don’t see the point in that. So my style of managing is related to the way we used to play football.“
It is perhaps safe to say we won’t see much tika-taka at Scraley Road this year, and it will be interesting to see how that high-intensity, positive style evolves throughout the season.
Heybridge Swifts v Canvey Island – The Game
Today, the game starts in roasting temperatures. The opening exchanges are a little disjointed as both teams – perhaps due to the number of trialists on both sides – struggle for fluidity. Pacing the touchline, Dicks cuts a frustrated figure as his team is repeatedly careless in possession, frequently giving the ball away. Some of Swifts’ brightest moments come from former youth player Tyrone Kumi, a winger with a touch of Rafael Leao about him; a languid, almost lethargic style but with the ability to ghost past a full-back and make something happen.
Approaching half-time, Swifts’ trialist centre-back Rimmel Daniel receives a second yellow for a clumsy late challenge that leaves the Canvey Island striker in a heap on the astroturf. There are few complaints from the Heybridge players or staff, and it’s difficult to argue the red card hasn’t been coming.
The sending off leads to a tactical rethink, and Swifts come out for the second half with a formation adjusted to three at the back. Around the hour mark both sides make a flurry of changes and before the game has a chance to settle back down, Canvey take the lead following an error from Heybridge centre-back and new signing Joseph Adewunmi, a lapse of concentration in an otherwise impressive performance.
Canvey miss a couple of chances to extend their lead and pay the price when, after a switch back to a back four, Swifts sneak a late equaliser. Both sides miss late chances for a winner so the game ends 1-1. A decent result for Heybridge after playing for over fifty minutes with ten men in blistering heat, against a team from the division above.
Speaking to Swifts Chairman, Steve Spreadbury
After the game, Hopper’s Guide sat down with Heybridge chairman Steve Spreadbury – who has been involved with the club for over fifteen years – to get his thoughts on the manager, today’s game, the coming season, and what the future holds for Swifts.
“I’ve known Julian for many years. His philosophy of playing is fitness, and to play football through the thirds. I think we proved it today where we’re down to ten men after about thirty minutes, so we’ve played sixty minutes with ten men against a team from a step higher. I thought we gave a good account of ourselves, thought we played some good football. We played a lot on the floor, which I think is a lot at step four, but that’s Julian’s way. You have to be fit to play through the thirds, and I think the boys actually didn’t disgrace themselves today. I thought they did really, really well.“
The chairman’s hopes and expectations extend beyond the current season and he has set out a longer-term vision for progression and ambition for the club:
“The expectation this year – number one is to ensure we stay in the league. Number two, if we can make the playoffs, great – if we can get promoted, even better. You know we want to take this club as far as we can, with the people that we have behind us. We have a group of directors now at the club and their actual vision is to get this club as high as we can. Now we know that step four, the Isthmian North, is the hardest league to get out of. When you look at these facilities that we have, these are not step four facilities, these are step two facilities.“
So what is the chairman’s ultimate ambition for the club? How far does he think they can go?
“Conference South is the level that we want to be at. If anything else happens from there, it happens, but once you get to Conference South level, and you have the right blend of players, that’s when other clubs start looking around your players, and that’s when you can build a foundation. Like Maidstone, sold a player and made 4 million pounds out of a sell-on clause. For clubs like us, that’s huge. If you can get something like that, that just takes the club to another level.“
Finding that diamond in your own backyard – the player that gets snapped up by someone further up the pyramid – can be something all teams strive for, so what structure do Heybridge have in place to nurture young players, and facilitate that progression to the first team?
“We created a pathway, so we have under sevens to under 18s – the age group teams can go training with the reserves – they also get a chance to play for the reserves as well. The young lad who played wide right today, Tyrone, he’s come through the youth academy. The other young lad who played up front, he also played for us at youth level. We want to build that we can get people through our system. With Julian, he’s all about making the progression of players, and that’s where we need to be, and that’s obviously why Julian is back here now.“
After the game, there are fans hanging around to enjoy a beer in the sunshine, kids kicking balls around, and families relaxing together, in anything but a hurry to get home. There’s a sense of community here, so how have the club worked to develop that feeling?
“Basically going back about seven or eight years ago, there was a total dysfunction between the youth section and the main club. So, we decided to try and do something to get that connection back. What we do now is, because we’ve got the 3G, we have four games here on a Sunday, which involves all the youth teams.
We also do food for all teams after the games here, which is free of charge for all the youth which brings it all together. All the parents come in, watch football, get in the bar, so, from a community point of view, that’s a massive plus for us. Now, what we’re looking for is to take it another step further, because we’ve got the local schools, and we’re trying to bring local schools into it, to hire the pitch as well and be part of Heybridge Swifts as a football community club.“
As we sit in the summer sunshine and discuss the club, the atmosphere around us is relaxed and friendly. It feels like everyone here is pulling in the same direction – the manager, the chairman, and the wider club community. Off the pitch, the infrastructure is in place to push the club forward, and on it, the manager has a defined philosophy designed to propel Swifts towards promotion.
Maybe, just maybe, it will be a case of third-time lucky for Julian Dicks and Heybridge Swifts.
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