Daily WHUFC News - 12th October 2015

Boleyn Memories - Don Hutchison
WHUFC.com

Don Hutchison enjoyed two memorable spells with the Hammers making 110
appearances and scoring 18 goals during a successful period for the Club.
Hutchison first arrived at the Boleyn Ground in the summer of 1994 from
Liverpool and scored on his debut for the Club against Newcastle. The former
Scotland international netted 14 times in his first two seasons at the Club
but left to join Sheffield United in January 1996. But the talented forward
made a return to the east London Club in August 2001 for £5m which was the
Club's transfer record fee at that time. Unfortunately a serious knee
ligament injury disrupted his return to east London and he was unable to
regain his best form for the Hammers. But Hutchison still enjoyed many
enjoyable moments over his time with the Club and keeps a close eye on how
the Hammers are faring – especially since the appointment of his former
team-mate Slaven Bilic. West Ham TV caught up with the 44-year-old and took
a trip down memory lane to recall his best moments from both the Boleyn and
training ground.

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Tomkins thrilled to see Valencia and Carroll back in action
WHUFC.com

West Ham United defender James Tomkins is thrilled to see Enner Valencia and
Andy Carroll back in action and feels Slaven Bilic has a wealth of talent to
choose from in the Hammers attack. Valencia made a successful return when he
played the final 20 minutes of a behind-closed doors friendly against
Reading at the Boleyn Ground on Friday. The talented forward has made a
speedy recovery from a serious knee and ankle injury he sustained against
Astra Giurgiu in the Europa League at the start of August. Carroll also
stepped up his fitness and moved closer to making a first-team return after
he played the full ninety minutes and got on the scoresheet during the 4-3
defeat.

With Dimitri Payet, Manuel Lanzini, Diafra Sakho, Michail Antonio and Nikica
Jelavic all battling for a place in the Hammers attack, Tomkins feels there
is real competition for places and they have a number of different options
to choose from. Tomkins said: "It was good to see Andy back among the goals
and get ninety minutes under his belt after being injured for a while. "It
is good for him to be back out there and it was also great to see Enner get
some match fitness. "He is ahead of schedule which is good for him and us as
a team. If we can keep him fit he is an added bonus and the squad is looking
very strong. It is nice for the players who are just coming back. "I think
we have got a good mixture in our attacking players. We have got physical
presence and skilful players up there. "We have got a nice mix and it is
great for the gaffer if he needs to bring someone off the bench. Attacking
wise we are looking really strong at the moment."From someone playing at the
back you know we are going to score goals."

Tomkins is now hoping the Hammers can extend their five-match unbeaten run
in the Premier League when they play Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park next
Saturday. But the Hammers defender is expecting one of their toughest
challenges of the season when they travel to south London.
Tomkins added: "Palace are going to be a difficult team to beat, especially
at their place. They have had some great results and are sitting nicely in
fourth which they thoroughly deserve. "They are going to be as hard as
anyone we have played this year."

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U18s connect four!
WHUFC.com

West Ham United secured their fourth Barclays U18 Premier League victory in
a row by beating Aston Villa 2-1 at Bodymoor Heath on Saturday. In their
past three games, the Hammers have pulled off impressive victories over
Chelsea, Southampton and Reading and made it four when an own-goal was
followed by West Ham substitute Jahmal Hector-Ingram's first goal of the
season to secure the points. West Ham made three changes to the team that
beat Reading at Little Heath a week earlier. Tim Brown replaced England U19
call-up Sam Howes in goal, while Jake Eggleton and Grady Diangana moved into
the starting XI off the bench in place of Marcus Browne and Matty Carter.
Over the course of the season to date, the Academy players have impressed
with their ability to keep their shape and frustrate opponents, although
they have not always picked up the result to match their efforts. It was
that shape and formation that were causing Villa all sorts of problems from
the start, forcing Tony McAndrew's side to spend plenty of time with the
ball but unable to break down the Hammers back line. They did find a way
through though and took the lead, however. Undeterred, the in-form West Ham
were soon back on level turns when a home player again found the back of the
net, albeit at the wrong end from a Villa perspective.

The match was turned on its head completely in the second half when England
youth international striker Hector-Ingram returned from a number of weeks
out on the sidelines with a well-taken finish to give the Academy the lead.
The result takes the Hammers into sixth place in the Barclays U18 Premier
League South with 14 points from their nine games. West Ham will be hoping
to continue their fine run of form this week when they host Brighton & Hove
Albion at Little Heath on Thursday 15 October 2015 at midday.

U18s: Brown, Eggleton, Akinola, Rice, Pask, Borg, Dobson, Sylvestre, Powell,
Diangana, Kanu (Hector-Ingram). Subs not used: Longelo, Barrett, Lewis.

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Sam Allardyce 'feels loved' after warm Sunderland welcome
Last Updated: 11/10/15 3:01pm
SSN

Sam Allardyce says Sunderland fans have made him feel loved again after his
experience with West Ham's "moaning" supporters. Allardyce has abandoned his
sabbatical to take charge on Wearside after Dick Advocaat decided to call
time on his long managerial career. And the 61-year-old, who had to put up
with 'Allardyce out' campaigns from some supporters during his time at
Newcastle and West Ham, admits it makes a pleasant change to feel wanted. He
told the Sun on Sunday: "When I was at West Ham my wife would constantly
read the supporters' websites to see what new insults were being fired. It
upset her but she couldn't keep away from the screen. "Now she's been
reading the Sunderland fans' sites and she tells me the reaction has been
very positive, which makes me very excited to get going. "Everyone wants to
be praised and to feel wanted and I just hope I can give the Sunderland
supporters some of the excitement they are looking for. "It's nice to be
loved, but at West Ham and Newcastle I was faced by passionate fans that
made themselves heard if they weren't happy. "It wasn't just me at West Ham,
it was every manager that was there. I got it because I was manager at that
time, but before that they moaned about Avram Grant, Alan Curbishley, Alan
Pardew and Harry Redknapp." Pardew more recently struggled to win over
Newcastle's fans and eventually left for Crystal Palace, where he has
overseen the club's rise to an early-season top-four place. "Look at how
Alan Pardew's career has transformed," Allardyce said. "They gave him a hard
time at Newcastle and he moved to Palace, where the fans love him. The
turnaround has been scary."

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West Ham legend Julian Dicks hitting all the right notes with former
room-mate Slaven Bilic
0 COMMENTS 22:30, 10 OCT 2015
BY ANTHONY CLAVANE
The Terminator may seem like a polar opposite to the sophisticated Croat,
but Dicks says he's loving his return to Upton Park and reunion with Bilic
The Mirror

The Terminator is back - which is music to the ears of all West Ham United
fans who worship the very ground Julian Dicks stands on.
With the club sixth in the Premier League, and getting ready to move into
the state-of-the-art Olympic Stadium, Dicks and his old room-mate Slaven
Bilic are hitting all the right notes. Even if they are a bit ear-piercing.
Next month new boss Bilic and his assistant coach will be at a Megadeth
concert in London. "The gaffer's got me and him tickets," smiled Dicks. "He
put on a couple of their songs at Liverpool. It seemed to lift the mood of
the dressing room." That magnificent 3-0 win at Anfield, alongside superb
triumphs at Arsenal and Manchester City, have convinced supporters the heavy
metal football is working. Dicks and Bilic - who appear in West Ham's film
talking about how they, like many fans, have returned to the club they love
- are the dream ticket. During his 11 years at Upton Park, the Englishman
was revered as a tough-as-nails hardman - whereas Bilic revels in his
reputation as a sophisticated, multilingual, international coach. But Dicks
explained that they clicked as soon as they met. "We both used to smoke and
drink and we both liked heavy metal music," he said. "We were good
room-mates. We just hit it off from day one. I've still got the Everton
shirt he gave me after I played against him. People say to me he's a
miserable so-and-so. But he's not. He's got a good sense of humour. He's
good fun to be with."

Some eyebrows were raised when the Croat appointed the man whose nickname
alludes to Arnold Schwarzenegger's movie assassin. "The gaffer knows what he
will get from me," said Dicks. "Which is truth. He can ask me any single
question he wants and he knows I will tell him the truth." As a player this
no-nonsense approach made him a cult hero. He said: "The fans could count on
me to go through brick walls. There's no-one like me today. If I was playing
today I wouldn't be on the pitch." "I remember my first game when I elbowed
an Everton player. The crowd went mad. He was laying on the floor. That was
my initiation." When Arnie said he'd be back, he drove a car through the
doors and killed a few of his enemies. Dicksie's return has been less
melodramatic. He said: "Training is fun. Players have a laugh and a joke. I
remember coming to watch training here under Avram Grant. It was a dire
place. No-one was smiling or joking." "There's a bond between me and the
fans. They are coming back. Certain fans had left, whether it was because of
managers or because they couldn't afford to go." "But it's going to be a lot
cheaper at the new ground. To go from 33,000 to 55,000 at the new stadium
the team have to be doing well. It will be a big wrench to leave, but to go
to the next level you need a bigger stadium. West Ham stands out to me from
any other club. Our pride and our passion is back."

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New Sunderland boss Sam Allardyce set to raid former club West Ham for James
Tomkins
1 COMMENT 22:30, 10 OCT 2015 UPDATED 15:13, 11 OCT 2015
BY CLIVE HETHERINGTON
Tomkins signed a five-year contract in February and may set the Black Cats
back £10m PLUS: West Ham looking at £10m-rated Besiktas midfielder
The Mirror

New Sunderland boss Sam Allardyce will make West Ham defender James Tomkins
a January transfer target. Big Sam, who agreed a two-year deal with the
Black Cats to replace Dick Advocaat, has been guaranteed a sizeable kitty by
chairman Ellis Short to recruit in the new year.
Strengthening Sunderland's leaky defence is a priority and centre-back
Tomkins, 26, fits the bill, having played under Allardyce at Upton Park. The
Hammers would be reluctant to sell Tomkins, who signed a new five-year
contract in February, but could be tempted by an offer of around £10million.
Sunderland's bitter rivals Newcastle – where Allardyce was boss for eight
months before his sacking in January 2008 – are also keen on former England
Under-21 international Tomkins. Allardyce is expected to move for former
Toon and West Ham skipper Kevin Nolan, 33, who is now a free agent. French
midfielder Morgan Amalfitano, 30, whose Hammers contract was cancelled this
week by mutual consent after a bust-up with Slaven Bilic, could also
interest Allardyce. Ex-Sunderland, Newcastle and West Ham striker Pop Robson
has backed Allardyce to rescue the second-bottom Wearsiders from the threat
of relegation. Robson, who played in the same Sunderland side as Allardyce
in the 1980-81 season, said: "Sam's a very good appointment. If anyone can
keep Sunderland in the Premier League, Big Sam can. "Sam has the experience
to get the best out of that squad." Meanwhile Slaven Bilic is lining up a
West Ham reunion with Besiktas star Oguzhan Ozyakup. The Hammers boss is a
big fan of the £10million-rated Turkish midfielder and could raid his old
club in January.
Ozyakup was poached by Arsenal from AZ Alkmaar as a teenager but failed to
make the grade. The Holland-born player, 23, was instead given his big break
by Besiktas after a bargain £300,000 switch in 2012. Ozyakup, who switched
allegiances to represent Turkey, could now head back to England if Bilic
gets his way.

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Tomkins, Sunderland and the Curtis connection!
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 11, 2015 in News, Whispers
C and H

There are many good reasons for believing that James Tomkins won't be
joining Sunderland! He has a new five year deal in his back pocket; he
would cost an awful lot of money which Sunderland probably haven't got and
the lad himself – an 'ammer to his backbone – is hardly likely to want to
miss out on the OS adventure. When the suggestion first filtered out this
week the first thing that sprung into my mind, however, was that his agent
is a certain Mark Curtis (above right), who also acts for Sam Allardyce –
and this time last year appeared to be a massive Boleyn power source with
Kevin Nolan, Andy Carroll, Joey O'Brien, Jussi Jaaskalainen and Adrian on
his books

Indeed there was a big conspiracy theory doing the rounds that Agent Curtis
would be de-stabilising his various players were his No 1 client , the
manager, not to get a new Upton Park deal. In fact, the man may have been
badly misjudged, because one of last acts before Sam's long goodbye was to
negotiate the Tomkins deal, hardly the action of a man who is planning to
upset any apple carts. There's a second good reason for believing that
Curtis is more than happy to negotiate deals with his players to remain in
east London – Adrian!

By organising the recent two year West Ham deal for him rather kicks any
conspiracy theories out of the window and suggests too that James Tomkins
will continue his Irons career. Should Sunderland arrive with a £10 million
fee for him we enter an entirely different playing field but it seems
unlikely. Interesting times!

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ClaretandHugh's ExWHUemployee column
Posted by Hugh5outhon1895 on October 11, 2015 in ExWHUemployee's Blogs,
News, Whispers
C and H

Well I have spent the last week without much WI-FI and signal away with work
and have had a lot to catch up with on my return.

Big Sam is back in management with Sunderland. The papers did their usual
trick of linking him with a number of ex-players as is the norm whenever a
new manager is appointed. The only player who is likely to join Sam at the
moment is Kevin Nolan. Whilst, believe it or not, Sam realises his influence
as a player is dwindling his power as a captain is still there and is
desperately needed at a club short of leaders and short of morale.

There is a chance that he will also look to bring in Carlton Cole (although
he has been training with Celtic but not signed yet due to an injury set
back and long contract talks). Ricardo Vaz Te is another possible arrival.

The rumours of a bid for James Tomkins were completely wide of the mark.
Bilic has been impressed with him, especially at right back and he sees him
as a decent centre back to, although Ogbonna and Reid remain the first
choice pairing.

James Tomkins and Big Sam didn't always see eye to eye so it isn't the case,
as is with Nolan, that Tomkins would have a massive desire to be reunited
with his former boss. They fell out over the player's insistence on playing
for Great Britain in the 2012 Olympics and also when Sam hit out at the
defender for his "playacting" away at Everton.

Another player been linked with the club is Morgan Amalfitano who was rarely
selected by Sam despite some impressive performances last year. The
midfielder is also unavailable until January having not been released before
the August Window closed as is the case with Emmanuel Adebayor, who will
also become a target for Sam in January.

I would say that James Collins to Sunderland is far more likely to happen
than Tomkins, given that we have tried to move him on and he was more of a
Big Sam player. The appointment of Sam's backroom staff will be interesting
seeing as McDonald, Sheringham and Ian Hendon all have manager jobs
elsewhere.

An interesting development this week has been with the ladies team and they
seem to be getting the publicity they wanted but all for the wrong reasons.
Six players walked out this week with the Captain and figurehead of many
years Stacey Little being told she was surplus to requirements.

It was always going to be a very difficult job for any manager to replace
Julian Dicks as not only is he a club legend but he was popular amongst the
ladies. This could be the reason why a number of ex-players, despite being
initially interested, chose not to apply for the manager's position in the
summer.

The criticism thrown at Marc Nurse is that he has never managed a ladies
team before, only academy teams, but this was also the case with Julian
Dicks. I think it is a very sad moment when a player such as Stacey Little
is released. I know first-hand how much she cares and has done for the club
in previous years and her departure doesn't seem fitting after all she has
put into the club.

The ladies involved have been quite vocal in their disapproval of the
current manager and where the club is going. The club have chosen a quieter
approach and will not put in the public arena their reasons behind certain
decisions. I find myself really keen to sit on the fence with this as I have
always got on well with Stacey and love the passion she has for her
football.

I also get on well with the chairman and a couple of players who decided to
stay on with the club. The result today was embarrassing although the club
did lose 5-0 in the Cup Final to the same outfit last year. Clearly results
need to start taking a more positive turn and positive vibes need to come
out of the club.

The situation is worrying and the good vibes caused by all the sponsorship
money raised seem a distant memory. I hope that they do from the next game
but I also hope that some of the players that have departed either can
return to the club or certainly continue to have successes in the game.

One person associated with the club who has proven a lot of people wrong
recently is Darren Randolph. I suffered a lot of criticism for defending him
when he was called upon to replace Adrian for his three game suspension. Yes
he had looked dodgy in Europe but so did many players and it was way too
soon to write him off, given that he was highly rated before he arrived.

He achieved a MOM award against Bournemouth and two clean sheets away at
Liverpool and at home v Newcastle. He has now gone onto keep a clean sheet
against Germany and even get an "assist".

A number of people I know have been to the Olympic Stadium to watch the
rugby and they tell me how great it is. I was also lucky enough to get one
of them to film the view from my seat and I was impressed and delighted at
my new view.

The club have started to draw up a list of players to scout for potential
moves in January. Players will need to move on though in order for purchases
ro be made. What is exciting for the club is that Ogbonna, Carroll, Valencia
and Song are all at or near full fitness. Having these four back to their
best will be a massive boost to our already impressive start.

I was delighted to get through and be nominated in the football blogging
awards. I now am through to the final and I go against a number of top blogs
with far more followers than I have. I would be delighted if you would vote
for me either via the website here under the social awards
http://www.footballbloggingawards.co.uk/vote-now/ or by tweeting my vote
here http://t.co/yD2gHCvbYi.

I am sure Claret and Hugh would have been a contender too had they put
themselves forward but Hugh's not big on awards competitions and all the
stuff yhat goes with them LOL.. I am also looking to speak to people who
would like to attend the awards with me so please get in touch via my
twitter account if you are keen.

The game next week against Palace is a massive one as both are in form
sides, it will be a real marker as to where we are and I think we will get a
result.

COYI

Follow on Twitter @ExWHUemployee

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http://vyperz.blogspot.com




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