Hyatt hailed for decade of service

The former Chelmsford City, Slough Town, Hayes, Wokingham Town and Hendon midfielder, pictured, celebrated his milestone as Hendon's assistant manager at the end of February.

After originally joining the Greens back in August 1997, the skillful Hyatt went on to score 18 goals in 163 appearances over three seasons before moving on to spend the 2000-2001 campaign at Chelmsford City.

A member of the Wokingham Town side beaten by Hendon in the 1994 Carlsberg (Puma) Cup Final, the 48-year-old also collected two winners medals with the Greens in the same competition. He returned to the club in 2005 when McCann took the helm and was appointed as his assistant in February 2006.

McCann, who has been good friends with Hyatt since long before they were teammates at Hendon from 1997 to 2000, said: “Freddie has been my best mate ever in football, and family apart, he’s my best mate outside of football too. He has been very loyal to me and to the club.

“He has shared his great experience as a player at this level and has been great training the players. We have enjoyed great times together, and the more difficult ones too. He’s been very loyal to me and also to the club. We both love Hendon and we work well together.”

In the interview with the club's David Ballheimer, the charismatic Hyatt also looked forward to exciting times ahead with the Greens preparing to move into their new home after years of playing in exile.

Hyatt said: “I have enjoyed myself. It is a nice family here at Hendon and everyone is pulling the right direction. And it is not just the board who deserve the credit, it is all the people involved with the club who deserve a huge pat on the back.

“We have had loads of highs and lows. But, where the club is now, things are looking brighter. We have a new ground coming and have hopes for promotion in the near future, as we showed last season.

“The best thing about moving into the new ground at Silver Jubilee Park, with the 3G surface, is that we will be allowed to play the way we want – passing the ball, keeping possession and enjoying ourselves on the pitch."

He added: “What people don’t realise is the fitness required to play on a 3G pitch. We will have to be the fittest team in the division for our plans to work, but I am very excited.”

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