How does a team of bus drivers end up gloriously draped in Dulwich Hamlet scarves?

If you’ve spent any time at Hamlet games over the last year or two, you’ll have heard our most dedicated supporters (the Rabble or the Pepper Army, depending on whether you’re at a men’s or women’s game, and highly interchangeable) bellowing inexplicably about the local bus routes. The chant was coined at a Welling United game in January 2023, with one wag coming out with “I get my kicks on the 176”, and others adding their own variations.

As with our recent Hills shirts, the Trust decided to immortalise the chant in fabricated form last year, turning this call-and-response mainstay of the terrace into what would become our fastest-selling scarf. It’s important to stay cosy if you want to “feel top-drawer on the 484” - you won’t “feel alive on the 185”, let alone “live the dream on the P13” if you’ve got a chilly neck. Smartly adorned with said bus numbers in the familiar Johnston TfL font, it quickly became a cult classic.

There was one glaring omission. Wayne Keeble, brother to Clare Keeble, Dulwich Hamlet’s Commercial Manager, drives the 40 bus, and questioned why it wasn’t on the bus scarf. It was left off the first scarf because this “bonny, bonny bus route” has its own song (you’ll find the lyrics to these and other peerless chants in our songbook here). But the time came to do another run, so for v2.0, designer Paul Hamilton honoured the request and included the 40. And to help launch them and say thank you for the inspiration, we took a trip to Camberwell Bus Garage to gift ten scarves to the good drivers of the number 40, who help so many Hamlet fans get to Champion Hill on match days. 

Not every football club is lucky enough to be so well-connected, transport-wise - our location and the wealth of public transport around us has contributed to the amazing growth of the club over the last ten years, so we wanted to show some appreciation to the drivers who keep us moving and ferry us to victory.

There’s an additional connection which made us extra proud to present our new scarves to the Go-Ahead team. Earlier this year, Dulwich was invited to join the Pride in London parade for the first time, and it was made possible in part by Wayne Keeble, general manager Derek Barker, and fellow driver and Unite Union rep Mark Alleyne, who secured a big, beautiful open-top bus for us to adorn with our crest and colours, and fill with Dulwich players, staff, Trust representatives, volunteers and fans. The result was an unforgettable day celebrating Dulwich Hamlet’s LGBTQ+ community, and reaffirming our commitment to them and to the inclusivity, equity and diversity that we believe should be foundational in football.

So, on a sunny afternoon in September we delivered ten scarves, fresh from our supplier, to the drivers of Camberwell Bus Garage. Naturally, the newly added 40 bus was the star of the show, looking resplendent and decked out in its own scarf.

We look forward to welcoming the Go-Ahead crew to some games in future. Next time you’re on the way to the Hill, don’t forget to thank your driver! The Bus Scarf: v2.0 is onsale now, online from this very site, and in the MegaContainer on match days.

Photos: Rob Avis @avis_action_images