Episode Three:
"Not long after Eddy’s tenure in Alkmaar came to an end, Ajax were getting ready to play their very last match at the old Wooden Stadium. The Amsterdam club was moving to their new home, a modern spectacle in steel and concrete called De Meer, the same name as that most humble and un-modern of football grounds in Volendam."
This episode covers the "middle third" of Eddy's coaching career, at De Kennemers in Beverwijk, and also describes the last game of Ajax at the old Wooden Stadium.
In 1934, Ajax moved to De Meer, which spelled the end for the venerable old Wooden Stadium.
An Ajax game at the Wooden Stadium in its final season, 1934.
Source: Amsterdam Archives (OSIM00007000644)
Demolition of the "Wooden Stadium" later in 1934.
Source: Amsterdam Archives (HVVA00027000135)
The first game ever played at De Meer was a friendly between Ajax and the Parisian club Stade Francais, on 9 December 1934. The new stadium’s official capacity was 22,000, but that number would swell to nearly 30,000 for the biggest matches. You can watch newsreel footage of that first game on YouTube:
In the podcast, I ask: Is this Eddy Hamel? We know Eddy played often for the Ajax veterans (Lucky Ajax) throughout the 1930's. At 01:25 of the above video, we see the veterans walking together. This player looks very much like Eddy.
Alas, it's not him.
Turns out the players we see here are the ones who won the club's first championship in 1918, just before Eddy's time. Ajax won their first two championships in 1918 and 1919. Then, nothing for twelve years. So these were the 'Golden Boys' from the past. (Thanks for setting us straight, Menno.)
De Kennemers club newsletter, noting that the previous and current trainers are both from Ajax. The captions read: "Trainer Willem de Bois, 21 December 1931 to 22 May 1934. He who started building. Trainer Eddy Hamel, 10 June 1934 to present. He who completed the work."
Source: De Kennemers. All rights reserved. Do not download or re-distribute without permission.
The ever stylish Eddy Hamel, as coach of the division champions De Kennemers, in 1935.
Source: De Kennemers. All rights reserved. Do not download or re-distribute without permission.
