Club news
Written by: Joe
Lewes FC can confirm the signing of midfielder Tyrique Hyde.
The 23-year-old is boss Tony Russell’s latest recruit and will be part of the playing squad that faces Margate in today’s 3pm kick off at the Dripping Pan.
Hyde has previously played for Dagenham & Redbridge and Colchester United, as well as Dartford and Dulwich Hamlet.
Discussing the signing, Russell said: “Tyrique fits the bill. He’s the sort of profile we look for – an outstanding talent.
“Whether he hits the ground running or whether it takes us two or three weeks, we will get him firing I know that. I’m excited about having him in.
“As a centre midfielder he’s got all the tools – box to box, good energy, good size, good on the ball and a powerful runner. He’s also got an eye for a goal.
“He’ll go straight into the squad for Margate.”
‘He said he’d earmarked us’
Hyde was part of the Dartford side that played Lewes last season. And Russell says it was the player who first identified the Rooks as his ideal club.
“I came across him a few years ago at Cray,” says Russell. “He was a pro at Colchester and he went on loan to Maldon & Tiptree, and was part of that side that did really well. We played them in the FA Trophy that year and we had a really good Cray side yet he still ran all over us. We couldn’t get near him.
“I knew then what a good player he was and thought he would play high levels of professional football, he was that good.
“I followed his path and his progress, and Colchester loaned him to Dartford, where he then followed Steve King about, and it hasn’t quite worked out for him this year.
“The beauty of it is simple. I don’t know him personally, but he phoned me because he’d played against us last year when we played Dartford in preseason and was part of the squad we played at Welling this preseason.
“He said he’d earmarked us and felt he wanted to play for a team that plays the way we do. He feels he’s lost his way a little bit and that we’re the team that can get him back on track to where he wants to be, and to be enjoying football and playing with a smile on his face.”
Lewes face Margate at the Dripping Pan at 3pm on Saturday, with tickets still available online at a discount.
Photo Credit: Welling United