Football fans were bemused by Nelson Suburbs striker Lennon Whewell’s goal celebrations on a chilly Sunday afternoon at Saxton Field.
He scored a hattrick as Suburbs swamped Northern AFC 11-0, and the Englishman ticked off another goal as well.
Lennon was so determined not to miss Sunday week’s Chatham Cup quarter-final for disciplinary reasons that he deliberately sought to earn a yellow card for removing his shirt after each of his goals.
“The ref (Ralph Clink) missed it the first time, but I was finally booked,” reveals Lennon, who was subbed off soon after his third goal and subsequent yellow card.
Despite the cold conditions, he was only too happy to stop for a chat on his way around to the changing rooms for an early shower.
He was briefly interrupted when Suburbs skipper Cory Vickers got in on the goal scoring action, finding the back of the net right in front of Lennon.
“I was sitting on four yellow cards for the season, and I didn’t want to risk missing the cup match. If you get five, you receive a one game penalty and miss a match, but more importantly, a reset after that. I think it was best to miss our next league match against Selwyn United before the cup.”
He was just as cunning on the field with his third and final goal, a cracking shot after he had turned, twisted and fired the ball in on the angle to beat the hapless Dunedin goalkeeper.
Lennon couldn’t remember exactly when he struck his last hattrick.
His first two strikes were just two minutes apart as Suburbs scored 10 goals in the second half after just one in the first.
“Skippy (coach Ryan Stewart) gave us the hairdryer treatment at the break. I think, after last week’s 5-0 win over Northern, we thought we could just turn up and win today. We just had to wait and be patient,” says Lennon.
They sure turned it on in the second spell with midfielder Ben Polak also snaring a hattrick.
American Johnny Reynolds, who opened the scoring, got one in the second half as well to join Lennon on 11 Southern Premier League goals this season, tied for second on the Golden Boot leaderboard.
“Johnny’s fitter now and really enjoying his football and it’s good to have Trev (fellow American Trevin Myers) back on the pitch as well after injury,” declares Lennon.
He’s sharing the leadership with Cory who is the official on-field captain.
“Cory likes to talk on and off the pitch.”
And given the skipper’s role, the English midfielder is less likely to get offside with match officials.
“We have finally clicked now after a slow start to the season. It’s going good. The boys are excited to get revenge on Auckland United in the cup quarter-final. Auckland beat us up there 3-0 in the semis last year, but home advantage is massive. We can beat anyone here,” insists the sharpshooter.
The seventh win, and huge goal differential, lifted Suburbs to fourth in the league ahead of Nomads United.
And spare a thought for Northern. Down 11-0, the visitors missed a late penalty goal attempt and then another rare chance as they conceded 16 unanswered goals in two games at Saxton Field.
