HAKAN HAYRETTIN was probably only half-joking when he asked the assembled Press if they were going to argue with Braintree’s loan defender George Elokobi whether he’d got a hat-trick.
It’s fair to say the 30-year-old knows about weights in the gym the rest of us barely know exist. As boss Hayrettin posed the rhetorical question, the powerful defender was completing his warm down clutching the match ball.
Evidence enough for the Iron boss that the former Premier League man had claimed an unlikely treble as the National League side dished out a FA Cup first round 7-0 hiding to Eastbourne Borough.
At the time, the doubt surrounded his second – and Braintree’s third – and just how the ball ended up in the net was dividing opinion among the Press corps.
Thankfully Elokobi, on loan from League Two side Colchester United, was soon up to explain he was taking the matchball home.
“Just a little bit – I don’t know how much contact, but it was enough,” he smiled, when asked how much of a touch he got on Oli Muldoon’s free-kick.
Unsurprisingly, it was the first of his career. Hat-trick aside, Hayrettin is pleased to have someone like the ex-Wolves and Nottingham Forest man in his ranks to pass on valuable experience, along with the likes of other new signing Sean Clohessey.
Happy
How long he will be about for remains to be seen, but he has extended his initial month-long loan and says he’s loving life in front of Iron supporters, who are already singing his name.
“Extremely, I don’t know if you can tell?” he said. “I’m so desperate to do well, most importantly, I’m so desperate for the team to do well. We seem to be improving, so I’m enjoying my time here. That’s why I’ve extended my loan to make sure I can help Braintree Town Football Club.
“I haven’t got a future at Colchester, so when the opportunity came for me to come out and play football, I jumped into it. It doesn’t matter what level you’re playing at. At the end of the day, it’s men’s football. I enjoy being out on a pitch at 3pm. That’s why you train hard throughout the week – to make sure on Saturday you are there helping your club.”
It’s been a tough start to the season for the Essex club. Other than hot property Sim Akinola, striker Michael Cheek and England C midfielder Chez Isaac, last season’s third-place finishing squad has moved on.
There has also been the early season management change with Hayrettin replacing Jamie Day, but Elokobi sees good signs.
“I’m glad the youngsters here are willing to learn,” he said. “They listen, they take things on board and they’re going to get better. You can see that from their performances they are improving.
“They’re going to make mistakes, don’t get me wrong. But it’s up to us – the experienced players in there – to keep encouraging them to do the right things on the pitch and enjoy it.”
Elokobi is one of many Dulwich Hamlet success stories. He moved to England from Cameroon when he was 16 and ended up signing for the Ryman Premier club.
He spent a season under the tutorship of boss Gavin Rose before he was snapped up by Colchester United and then onto Wolves, where he won the Championship and League One, either side of playing in the Premier League.
He remembers his time in south-west London fondly, saying: “Dulwich are doing extremely well under Gavin Rose. He’s a great coach. I think he’s capable of coaching in this league and above us in League Two. That’s my honest opinion – hopefully he’ll get the chance to prove what a great manager he is.”
And he has sage advice for any player hoping to follow the path he took.
“You’ve got to listen and work hard every day,” he said. “Be one of the first in, work hard, and be one of the last out. It’s hard work, it doesn’t take a miracle.”
Nor, apparently, for defender’s to score FA Cup first round hat-tricks.
