Former West Ham United, Queens Park Rangers, Portsmouth and England Under-21 midfielder Martin Allen spent 35 years in the professional game between 1983 and 2018.
But in all that time, across three and a half decades, he never once came across another footballer who would eschew a pre-match warm-up in place of a couple of Coke cans and a mouthful of Mars bars.
Julian Dicks, the legendary West Ham United captain, may be best remembered for his ‘Hard Man’ reputation. His bludgeoning penalties, his smooth skinhead, and that ‘Terminator’ nickname. Even a teenage Joe Cole did not escape Dicks’ famously full-blooded tackles on the training pitch.
But underneath that tough cookie visage was a natural-born talent few in a claret and blue jersey could match. Frank Lampard feels Dicks remains criminally underrated, at least outside of West Ham.
And Martin Allen, who played alongside the former left-back between 1989 and 1993, remembers watching on in disbelief as Dicks’ warm-up consisted of little more than a few long-range screamers and enough teeth-melting junk food to fill a vending machine.
Martin Allen recalls the bizarre way Julian Dicks would train at West Ham United
Speaking on the latest edition of the Ironcast podcast, Allen remembers watching on in a mix of awe and bemusement as Dicks hammered shot after shot into the net at Chadwell Heath, all permitted by an adoring Harry Redknapp.
“He’s a unique character. An unbelievable character,” says Allen.
“10.20am, we would come out of the door at Chadwell Heath, onto the first team training pitch. The balls from the coaches had already been put in the centre circle. We would wait for the coaches to come out before doing the warm-up, a jog down the side of the rail track into the corner and maybe do our calves and then a jog down the side fence.
“I can remember this like it was 20 minutes ago! We would do our hamstrings, increase the jog to go along the top by the houses, then we’d do thighs, hamstrings, and calves.
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“But in the middle of the first team training pitch, all the balls had been emptied out. On his own, with his skinhead and his attitude, he was smashing shots from 30 yards. He’d have one touch with his left foot and smash it.
“We were going through the hamstrings, calves, mobility, getting ready, doing your shoulders. Just us warming up like we did. And there he was smashing balls! None of us could do that.”
“Anyway, it came to training and the coach had already put the two goals out. It would be maybe a 60×40 pitch, two teams of eight or nine, and the game would start. After five minutes, the score would be 5-0 or 6-0, and Dicks would have scored six goals.
“Each time he used to shoot and score, he just used to laugh because he could do that and none of us could, and he was the best player still. We couldn’t stop him,” Allen smiles.
“Harry said to us all, “Leave him, let him be, let him do what he does. Let him do it.” And these weren’t little chips to hit the crossbar, these were pile drivers with his laces and they’d smash into the goal. It was like hitting the post and going 30 yards back. And we were all watching.
“Unbelievable.”
Cans of coke and a couple of Mars bars fuelled Dicks’ pre-match preparation
When matchday came around, Dicks was – if it was possible – even more laid-back.
“Matchday at Upton Park, ten past two, the coach would say, ‘We are going out in five minutes. Everybody be ready.’
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“Everyone goes out, sometimes the goalkeepers would go out early. You looked in the physios room and in there was Julian Dicks laid on the physio’s bed. If you know those little silver metal things in a hospital where they put their utensils? That was right next to the bed.
“So Julian had lined up on that rectangle piece with wheels on the bottom, he put a Mars bar, a can of Coke, a Mars bar, and a can of Coke.
“He’d lay there barefoot because he hated wearing flip-flops. We had to wear flip-flops but he didn’t like them, so he didn’t wear them!
“He’d drink the two cans of Coke. We’d come in and the two cans were there, the two empty packets. He’d jump up, put his shin pads on, his shirt would be hanging out, and he would be ready!
“I don’t think I’ve ever known that.”
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