I rose to the volatile hatred that was aimed at me, says Hyde - EXCLUSIVE

Veteran goalkeeper Paul Hyde, 44, wasn’t impressed with the reaction he received from Dover Athletic fans during Hythe Town’s FA Cup giant-killing yesterday, writes Stephen McCartney.

The former Dover Athletic stopper made a fantastic double save to prevent Craig Wilkins equalising from two power headers after 54 minutes of yesterday’s pulsating Cup match.

Wilkins, recently returned after a short spell with his home-town club Maidstone United, had given the Kent Leaguers the lead after just 265 seconds of the second qualifying round clash, by scoring an own goal.

Hythe doubled their lead through Lee Winfield’s penalty with fourteen minutes remaining, scoring his fifth goal of the season.

But Dover Athletic defender Matt Bourne, who had fouled Joe Neilson to give away that penalty, scored a late consolation for the Ryman League Division One South giants, scoring from a powerful header.

“I always enjoy banter, you know me. The louder and more volatile they get, the better,” Hyde said EXCLUSIVELY to www.kentishfootball.co.uk.

“I must admit I was a little bit miffed by some of the names I was called and some of the hatred that came out from them, hence my reaction at the end of the game, because I don’t think anyone deserves to be called what I was called out there today.”

Hyde, playing his tenth game for Hythe Town, was expecting a much better reaction.

“Eight years at the club, 350-400 appearances for the club, captain when they were top of the Conference, I don’t under stand it,” he fumed. “But it drove me on to do better and bigger things.

“Hopefully we can take it further now and hopefully Dover supporters will see me in a different light.

“Because what I do out on the pitch is I’m a professional goalkeeper and I’ve put my profession first.

“It’s a shame that some of the supporters feel that way about us because I’ve never done anything wrong to that club and it’s a lovely, lovely club.”

Hyde, now living in Ashford, explained the reasons why he dropped out of playing Blue Square South football at Welling United into the Kent League.

“Paul Fisk, purely,” he said. “I used to drink with (the Hythe Town manager) on a Sunday afternoon in New Romney (where I used to life) and I’m friends with Paul and I said one day that I’ll play for him.

“I was thinking about going back to Welling this year and then I thought “No!”, too many family commitments with my boys and girls and it was time to bail down to the Conference level.”

And Hyde thought Hythe Town deserved to inflict the Whites’ first defeat of the season, and to be in Monday’s draw for the third qualifying round - just two wins away from a place in the first round proper.

“The performance from the lads today was absolutely second to none,” he said.

“We’re a small club and to take on the might of Dover, and it is the might of Dover, albeit the league they’re in, (in front of) a massive crowd, it was superb,” said the former Leicester City and Wycombe Wanderers keeper.

Every Hythe player won their own personal battles all over the pitch and didn’t allow Dover’s star players to perform.

Hyde said: “The players in front listened to everybody and everyone worked so hard from the front to back.

“We defended well, we attacked well and we looked as equally as good a side as Dover did at times and we created many a chance.”

Hyde believes having players that have played for Dover Athletic, or against them for Ashford Town and Folkestone Invicta, spurred Hythe to a famous Cup victory.

“Massively, massively,” he replied. “It’s a derby for us, it’s a derby.

“I mean you’ve got Andy Hessenthaler as well out there strutting his stuff and it’s a big game locally, having played at Gillingham for so long and being a manager and being the player that he’s been. He’s been a great pro.

“And for our lads today to play against that quality of player is an achievement in itself.”

Praising his team-mates, Hyde said: “They’ve not shrunk, they’ve grown today and we’ve got to take that on board. We’ve got to take that now further on in the league and the Cup competitions when they come along.

“A great bunch of lads, enthusiastic and they play down here for the will of it and that’s why we’ve dug in.

“They’ve grown up, they’ve really grown up some of the players that were at Dover, myself included, and enjoyed today. We’ve really grown up as a team.”

Visit Hythe Town’s website: www.hythetownfc.co.uk