KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 17th September 2011
By: Staff Writer
West Ham United legend Billy Bonds celebrates his 65th birthday today. The
Woolwich-born defender, who also played in midfield for a while played
almost 800 first team games for the Hammers between 1967 and 1988, when he
was forced to retire from professional football at the tender age of 42.
Considered by many Hammers to be the finest home-grown defender never to
receive a full cap for England, Bonds was called up for the national side by
former Hammers boss Ron Greenwood in 1977 but only made the bench. A tough
tackling, no-nonsense defender, it was Bonds' never-say-die attitude that
endeared him to the Boleyn Ground faithful from the moment he made his first
tam debut at the beginning of the 1967/68 season.
In 1974, upon the departure of Bobby Moore to Fulham, Bonds was granted the
captaincy by John Lyall - a position he was to hold for the remainder of his
career at the club. As a result, it was Bonds who lifted the FA Cup at the
1975 and 1980 finals and he who captained United in the 1976 Cup Winners Cup
final and the 1981 League Cup Final.
Born in Woolwich in 1946 shortly after the cessation of war, the young Bonds
started his career with local club Charlton for whom he made 95 appearances
between 1964 and 1967, before Ron Greenwood paid just £50,000 to take the
young hopeful across the Thames. Between 1967 and 1971 he was a regular
feature at right back, but was then promoted to a midfield role alongside
the mercurial Trevor Brooking. In the 1973/74 season he finished as the
club's top scorer with 13 goals to his name.
Billy Bonds: a proper legend
1967/68: Pld 42, Gls 1
1968/69: Pld 47, Gls 1
1969/70: Pld 45, Gls 3
1970/71: Pld 40, Gls 0
1971/72: Pld 56, Gls 5 (League Cup semi-finalist)
1972/73: Pld 43, Gls 3
1973/74: Pld 43, Gls 13 (leading goalscorer)
1974/75: Pld 42, Gls 9 (FA Cup winner)
1975/76: Pld 32, Gls 4 (FA Cup Winners Cup finalist)
1976/77: Pld 46, Gls 3 (Selected for England squad)
1977/78: Pld 32, Gls 2
1978/79: Pld 41, Gls 4
1979/80: Pld 48, Gls 1 (FA Cup winner)
1980/81: Pld 58, Gls 2 (League Cup finalist, Second Division champion)
1981/82: Pld 35, Gls 2
1982/83: Pld 39, Gls 3
1983/84: Pld 30, Gls 0
1984/85: Pld 26, Gls 3
1985/86: Pld 0, Gls 0
1986/87: Pld 24, Gls 0
1987/88: Pld 24, Gls 0
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Sam rules out Bridge move
West Ham boss is 'full up' and has no room for new signings
Last Updated: September 18, 2011 1:28pm
SSN
Sam Allardyce has confirmed he will not be making a bid to bring defender
Wayne Bridge back to West Ham on loan. The 31-year-old Manchester City
player was not named in Roberto Mancini's 25-man squad and the Italian has
intimated he would be happy for Bridge to join a Championship club for the
rest of the season. The former England defender has been strongly linked
with a move back to East London after spending time on loan at Upton Park in
the Premier League last season.
He was also been linked with moves to Newcastle and Celtic before the
transfer window closed. But Allardyce admits he's been delighted with the
four players he has managed to sign during the summer and has now confirmed
he won't be bringing Bridge back to the club. He told The People: "We are
full up now. We have filled our squad with all the players we need for the
time being and we have a squad that is good and has strength in depth."
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West Ham boss rues missed chances in Millwall draw
10:20am Sunday 18th September 2011
Guardian Series
By Simon Mail »
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce was left to rue missed chances after his side
drew 0-0 at Millwall. The Hammers hit the bar in the first half through
Henri Lansbury and came close after the break with David Bentley missing an
easy chance. Allardyce said: "We are just disappointed that having scored so
freely before I expected us to score and we should have on the chances we
created. "We got what we expected. They had a very high-tempo start and you
expect that in a local derby. Territorially they got the advantage in the
first half. "Henri had the best chance for us and he has hit the bar when we
would have expected him to score there.
"Then when the game dipped away from them, which we knew it would
physically, we started to open them up more. "We got the subs on and Kevin
Nolan has got a chance we would expect him to score with and instead of
chesting it down and slotting it in he has decided to head it. "David
Bentley then got an unbelievable chance to put the ball in the back of the
net and put it wide."
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