WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce has thanked Hammers fans for their superb recent support following misleading reports
05.04.2012
Sam Allardyce has explained that all at West Ham United must pull together following misleading reports in some of today's media. The West Ham United manager has described the home support at the club's last match with Reading as 'magnificent' and has stressed the need for focus solely on the football for the remainder of the season. Big Sam was speaking ahead of the squad's final training session before the trip to Barnsley. "In our last home games the West Ham United fans were absolutely magnificent," Big Sam said. "They were fully behind the team and were as good in that game as they have been all season. They showed what West Ham United fans are about - pride and passion with plenty of noise! It was just a shame that the result did not go our way, but the race is far from over. "We must now pick ourselves up, stick together as a club and take each game at a time, starting with Barnsley on Friday."
In a positive, open and honest pre-match press conference on Wednesday afternoon, the manager spoke at length about West Ham's current form and his belief that with six games to go his side can still achieve automatic promotion. "We've let our own destiny slip by getting the wrong result at the wrong places. In the last ten games we've won three and drawn two away from home "It's a fact of life but we're in with a shout and we're determined to get the number one target that is promotion. There are still 18 points to play for and we have to take each game, one at a time."
One small section of the press conference concerned the good news of the return to fitness of Winston Reid, Papa Bouba Diop and Guy Demel, which gave Big Sam a chance to discuss his various options throughout the team. As has been falsely reported in today's press, not once did the manager make reference to West Ham fans during his answer, a summary transcript of which is as follows. "It was about keeping the back four together. We had Winston Reid in the most consistent form of his life, he ridiculously flies all the way to New Zealand and gets himself out of that position. Danny Collins has filled in brilliantly, but it wasn't something we wanted to do. "Faye and Reid were striking up this partnership together with James Tomkins sitting in front of them in midfield, because he was a great replacement for Papa in that position. All the questions you get, the opinions, was it is because Tomkins is playing in midfield and he is a centre half and shouldn't be playing there and all that b******* is flying around. "What happens is that I look at the performance of every player and just say 'You are talking b******* because that is not the case'. Tomkins has done a great job in midfield; as good as Papa Bouba Diop and as good as any of our midfield in that specific role, because he [Tomkins] is a talented, talented player. "In terms of that his restrictions are far greater at centre-half, you can take fewer chances, but being that one in front, his skills, he can take the chances that little bit more. He has been magnificent and has been able to handle that extremely well and is the reason why he has continued to play there, because he has done so well. "That is the b******* that is put about, because we had our most productive time of the season, playing with ten men, with James Tomkins playing centre midfield role in a two, beating Millwall 2-1, drawing with Southampton 1-1 and beating Blackpool 4-1."
Further good news was provided by the possible selection options the manager has ahead of Barnsley, with the returning trio of Reid, Demel and Diop providing competition for places. Although Joey O'Brien and Mark Noble could miss the match, the latter's injury is not as bad as first feared and he should be back sooner than first expected. "We are still waiting for news on Mark Noble as he came off injured on Saturday. Joey O'Brien didn't make the game so we are waiting on him as well. Earlier on in the week we thought George McCartney had broken a metatarsal but it was only bruising so that's good news. "We played QPR beyond closed doors on Tuesday and we are thankful to QPR for that as it gave Winston Reid, Papa Bouba Diop and Guy Demel a chance to regain some match fitness ahead of the run in.
"They could be available again for the weekend which would be a useful boost to the squad numbers for what is a very important two games in the space of four days. The squad will be used to its full extent with such a short space of time between the games. "Hopefully on Friday we can continue to do what we have done consistently all season and that's winning away from home."
A win against Barnsley could see the Hammers close the gap to second-placed Reading to one point and while there is a chance to still go up automatically, Big Sam said everyone at the club must remain focused on promotion with the chance that either the Royals or Southampton slip up. "It's unlikely that ourselves that Reading, Southampton and ourselves will all win the next six as Reading and Southampton still have to play each other! In terms of what we've got to achieve, there's nothing more important than trying to win the next game. "We need to focus on Barnsley and me picking the best team to try and beat Barnsley on the way they play and the squad they've got. However if we win, it may be necessary to make one or two changes."
The manager also spoke openly about his ongoing positive relationship with the West Ham United Board and how we works well with both of the Joint-Chairman and the Vice-Chairman. "My relationship with the Board is absolutely fantastic. The level of communication and professionalism we've built up are incredible. I've adjusted to their way and I'm always available to talk and vice versa. "Our communication and support levels have been excellent from day one and they have been a great help in trying to get this club back into the Premier League by making it easier for me. So I don't have to worry about anything on that front."
Although the season is far from over with the Hammers still in the promotion hunt, Big Sam believes the squad and club as a whole can still be pleased with what they have achieved so far this season. "I'm pleased with how the players have responded this season and how quickly the club has turned around based on what the staff and the players had to go through ,which was a complete transition in a few months from a decimated, miserable and destitute place when I walked in to somewhere where people liked coming to. "We needed to get a smile back on people's faces and actually enjoy training and playing football, which every club suffers when they get relegated."
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Barnsley v West Ham
KO 17:15
5 April 2012
NPOWER CHAMPIONSHIP
Venue: Oakwell Date: Friday, 6 April Kick-off: 1715 BST
Coverage: Live on BBC1 at 1700 BST; listen on BBC Radio 5 live and BBC local radio; text commentary on the BBC Sport website
BBC.co.uk
TEAM NEWS
Barnsley manager Keith Hill has no new injury or suspension problems, but is still without seven first-team players. Midfielder Nathan Doyle sits out the second game of a three-match ban, while keeper David Button will continue in the absence of Luke Steele (abdomen).
Mark Noble (thigh) will be missing for the Hammers, but boss Sam Allardyce can call on Papa Bouba Diop after his recovery from a hamstring injury. Defenders Winston Reid (concussion) and Guy Demel (thigh) are also available.
MATCH PREVIEW
Six matches left and under pressure, not the ideal scenario for either club entering the crucially busy Easter period. Barnsley sit 23rd in the current Championship form table and West Ham 15th (taken from their last six matches) so nothing much to inspire supporter confidence as the Tykes look to ensure Championship survival and the Hammers try to return to the Premier League at the first attempt.
Barnsley do have a nine-point cushion on Bristol City, who hold the final relegation place, but with five of the top nine still to play and a trip to Ashton Gate to take on the Robins later this month, Tykes manager Keith Hill knows there is no room for complacency.
West Ham have won only once in seven league games, a run that has seen them lose their grip on the second automatic promotion place to Reading, a side who beat them 4-2 at Upton Park last Saturday. The Hammers now trail the Royals by four points with only 18 left to play for.
Recent criticism aimed at West Ham is that they have drawn too many matches - not something that can be aimed at Barnsley, who have only shared the points just once in their last 31 league games.
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
• West Ham have won their previous three matches against Barnsley, including their most recent trip to Oakwell on 9 August 1997. That occasion was Barnsley's opening game of their one and only Premier League season.
• An early header from Papa Bouba Diop proved the difference between the sides when they met at Upton Park just before Christmas. It was West Ham's fifth successive victory over the Tykes in league and cup. The last three have ended 6-0, 3-0 and 2-0.
• It is 22 years since Barnsley last registered a league win over the Hammers, winning 1-0 at Oakwell in the old Second Division in December 1990.
Barnsley
• Nine defeats and just two wins in 12 outings have seen Barnsley slip from 13th to four places and nine points outside the relegation zone.
• The Tykes have not managed a home win against any of the top eight, nor have they kept a clean sheet against a top-half club, home or away.
• Keith Hill's side are one of three clubs (the others are Millwall and Coventry) not to have won from a losing position in the Championship this season.
West Ham United
• Defeat against Reading last time out is West Ham's only loss in their last 12 games, although this run includes seven draws.
• Victory would see West Ham break a club record for number of away wins in a single season. They have won 11 matches to date, which equals a club record set in 1957-58 and 1922-23. They already have more away points than any other club (38), and travel to Oakwell on a five-match unbeaten away run.
• Three points would secure a sixth double of the season, having already recorded home and away victories over Blackpool, Peterborough, Nottingham Forest, Coventry and Portsmouth.
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London 2012: West Ham's Olympic Stadium bid flawed, says Barry Hearn
BBC.co.uk
By Dan Roan
BBC sports news correspondent
West Ham's latest bid to move into the Olympic Stadium is "fundamentally flawed" and should be disqualified, according to Leyton Orient chairman Barry Hearn.
West Ham have declared their renewed application to move from Upton Park after the collapse of their original attempt following legal challenges from Orient and Tottenham Hotspur. The Championship club have applied for a 99-year lease of the stadium, but Hearn is now demanding the bid is rejected. "I am 100% certain that West Ham do not have the permission of the Football League, a fundamental criteria of the bid process" Hearn told the BBC. "The Olympic Park Legacy Company [OLPC] have no choice but to disqualify them."
In December 2011 the OPLC listed certain minimum requirements for bidders, including "governing body consent". According to the OPLC's Invitation to Tender document: "Each bidder who proposes content of a sporting nature must have written confirmation from the relevant governing body that the said governing body supports fixtures being played at the stadium..." Hearn believes West Ham failed to meet that condition by 23 March, the deadline for bids. "We have now, through our lawyers, written to the OPLC, asking if this clause was satisfied as we believe it wasn't, and we've asked for West Ham's bid to be disqualified," he said. Hearn says he is now writing to the Mayor of London Boris Johnson and Sports Minister Hugh Robertson. Leyton Orient are challenging the legality of the Premier League's decision last year to allow West Ham to move to the stadium on the basis it failed to take into consideration the adverse effect on Orient.
West Ham were relegated last season. "I think they've relied on a Premier League letter saying that they're quite happy," said Hearn. "But the Premier League are irrelevant because West Ham are now a Football League club, of which we're also a member. So we're looking for our rights to be upheld. "I don't think the Football League have made any ruling on this at all. The case would be heard by the league's board. It makes West Ham fundamentally flawed in their bid process." "The OPLC has constantly moved the goalposts, but this is one where they've really put a noose round their own neck. If they move the goal-posts again, Leyton Orient will once again seek a judicial review against them."
Leyton Orient themselves considered moving to the Olympic Stadium, but withdrew on the basis that it was "not fit for football". Hearn fears West Ham's move to the 2012 stadium, which will be converted into a 60,000-seater venue after the Games, will jeopardise the League One club's future by tempting fans away from Brisbane Road. "We're totally opposed to West Ham taking occupancy of the stadium," said Hearn. "My mind boggles at the problems they will give us. It would be extremely harmful to Leyton Orient. "All the shenanigans over the stadium have gone on for years and years and years. It's fundamentally flawed in design. They should knock it down and start again."
West Ham face competition from three other bidders. The club told the BBC: "West Ham United has submitted a bid to play matches at the Olympic Stadium from 2014. The rules of the competition impose duties of confidentiality which all bidders must abide by and therefore we make no further comment." A spokesperson for the London Legacy Development Corporation said: "We have said all along we would not be commenting on what is a confidential process." The Football League declined to comment.
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Gold claims 70 per cent OS backing
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 5th April 2012
By: Staff Writer
Co-Chairman David Gold has claimed that 70 per cent of West Ham United fans back the club's proposed move to Stratford - despite the latest KUMB.com poll showing just one in five support the move. Our latest poll (our fourth since the current board announced their intentions to move to the Olympic Stadium), conducted in February and March, resulted in just 21 PER CENT of voters backing the move to Stratford - with a whopping 61 PER CENT voting against the board's plans to move West Ham to the £500million stadium. Indeed, the highest backing received in any of our four polls was 57 per cent in our January 2011 poll - 13 per cent less than the figure claimed by Gold, speaking in an interview with LBC last night. "Most of the surveys have shown that 70 per cent of our fan base want to move to the Olympic Stadium," he claimed. "But it's the 30 per cent I want to persuade - and if I could, I know I could. I know I could change that 70 per cent to 95 per cent if I were allowed to share with them all the things that we are aware of. "All my memories are at Upton Park so there's no way that I wanted to go to the Olympic Stadium. But as I saw the way the stadium was being developed and all the things that I am aware of now [I know that] this will be an iconic stadium, a World-class football stadium. "You're never going to persuade everybody but I've become a great fan and I now want to go to the Olympic Stadium, despite all the memories I have of Upton Park. I'm sure that will be the case [for all fans] once we can reveal the details."
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Allardyce grateful for support
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 5th April 2012
By: Staff Writer
Sam Allardyce has expressed his gratitude to West Ham's board for backing him during the team's recent poor run of form. Allardyce, who has come under increasing pressure from a vocal minority of the club's fanbase in recent weeks after United slipped out of the automatic promotion places thanked vice-chair Karren Brady for her supportive comments in the media this week. Speaking to Radio Five Live on Tuesday, Brady insisted that Big Sam's job was safe - regardless of whether or not West Ham are promoted this season. "He will still be in charge next season - definitely. David Sullivan wanted Sam - they have a very good relationship," she said.
And speaking at a press conference yesterday, Allardyce thanked Brady - plus co-Chairman Davids Gold and Sullivan - for their backing during the recent difficult times. "It's nice to have that support from the vice-Chairman," he said. "It's appreciated. "I've been sacked by having a club in a better position than it was the year before and I've been sacked by new owners taking over that haven't even given me a chance - so you never know. "But I'm always available for whatever we need to discuss and, in reverse, I can always pick the phone up or go and see whoever I need to see at the drop of a hat if I feel it's that important. "Those communication levels and those support systems have been excellent from day one and have been a great help in terms of trying to get this club back into the Premier League."
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Gold optimistic
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 5th April 2012
By: Staff Writer
Co-chairman David Gold says he is "hopeful" that West Ham can overturn the four point deficit between United and second-placed Reading in order to achieve automatic promotion this season. As a result of last weekend's hugely disappointing 4-2 defeat against the Royals at the Boleyn Ground, West Ham find themselves four points behind Brian McDermott's side with just six games of the league campaign remaining. However Gold maintained that promotion is still a possibility - and there everything is still to play for. "We've still got every hope that we will get promoted," he told LBC. "I've not given up. I believe that we probably have to win five or the next six games, but I'm hopeful. "Failling that we're in the play-offs and lots of people say that if you finish third history says it's only three teams in the last 20 [that] have got promoted [but] I don't look at that. I believe that if we are in the play-offs we will be a very strong candidate and probably favourites to win them.
However in the event of Sam Allardyce failing to take the team back into the Premier League at the first attempt - a most unlikely scenario should West Ham fail to win at Barnsley this Friday - Gold warned that supporters can expect to see some of the squad's better players depart. "If we fail to do that it's going to be difficult financially, there's no question," admitted Gold, "and we will have to cut our cloth accordingly."
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Barnsley v West Ham preview
Last updated: 5th April 2012
SSN
Team news ahead of Good Friday's Championship clash between Barnsley and West Ham at Oakwell (kick-off 5.15pm). Barnsley manager Keith Hill will choose his starting line-up from an unchanged squad. Hill has no new injury or suspension problems, but is still without seven first-team players as the Tykes bid to steer clear of relegation trouble. Winger Matt Done (back/hamstring), midfielders Jacob Butterfield and David Perkins, right-back Bobby Hassell (all knee), centre-half Rob Edwards (hamstring) and goalkeeper Luke Steele (abdomen) remain sidelined through injury, while another midfielder, Nathan Doyle,sits out the second game of a three-match ban. Steele will miss at least the next three games and could be ruled out for the rest of the season, so David Button, on loan from Tottenham, will continue.
Striker Kallum Higginbotham, a recent loan signing from Huddersfield, is pushing for his first start after stepping off the substitutes' bench in last week's defeat at Ipswich.
Mark Noble will be missing for West Ham. The seven-goal midfielder suffered a thigh strain during the first half of last Saturday's 4-2 defeat by Reading and is likely to be ruled out for a couple of weeks. But boss Sam Allardyce can call on Papa Bouba Diop to step in after the Senegal international proved his fitness with a run-out for the reserves this week following two and a half months out with a hamstring injury. Defenders Winston Reid (concussion) and Guy Demel (thigh) are also available after their recent spells on the sidelines. Winger Ricardo Vaz Te returns to Oakwell for the first time since leaving Barnsley to join the Hammers in January.
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Hearn - Scrap Hammers bid
Orient chairman believes West Ham's bid is fundamentally flawed
Last Updated: April 5, 2012 9:26pm
SSN
Leyton Orient chairman Barry Hearn has asked for West Ham's bid to move into the Olympic Stadium to be disqualified. West Ham have applied for a 99-year lease of the stadium in Stratford, which will be converted into a 60,000-seat arena following the Games, after the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) reopened the bidding process. Although Orient have not made a bid of their own after deciding the stadium was "not fit for football", Hearn feels the Hammers should not succeed with theirs after failing to satisfy the bid criteria Hearn claims West Ham failed to secure the permission of the Football League before a deadline of March 23 this year. He said: "It's well documented we feel the danger to the survival of our football club involves a major new club moving closer to us, but that's a separate argument. "The argument we have now is that we feel there is a very good case that West Ham may not have satisfied the bid process rules. "Under the bid process they have to have permission of the Football League in writing attached to their bid to satisfy the bid criteria.
Disqualified
"We have now, through our lawyers, written to the OPLC, asking whether this clause was satisfied because we believe it wasn't, and we've asked for West Ham's bid to be disqualified. "I think West Ham have missed their deadline. I think they've relied on a Premier League letter saying that they were quite happy, but the Premier League are irrelevant to this case because West Ham are a Football League club and it comes under the rules of the Football League, an organisation of which Leyton Orient are a member too."
Asked if the Football League had given any indication as to whether they would approve a request from West Ham, Hearn added: "There is no question the case would be heard by the Football League board to decide whether they would sanction a request. "They may sanction it, they may not, but at this moment in time they haven't and that's the key word which makes them, we believe West Ham, fundamentally flawed in their bid process for the Olympic stadium."
In response, West Ham issued a statement which said: "West Ham United has submitted a bid to play matches at the Olympic Stadium from 2014. The rules of the competition impose duties of confidentiality which all bidders must abide by and therefore we make no further comment." The Football League declined to comment when contacted.
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SAM ALLARDYCE: DO NOT TAKE THE KISS
Daily Star
6th April 2012 By Matt Butler
SAM ALLARDYCE has told his West Ham stars to kiss automatic promotion goodbye if they lose at Barnsley. Allardyce's men head to Oakwell tonight four points behind second-placed Reading with six games left. The day after he risked alienating fans by accusing critics of "talking b*****ks" about team selection, he urged his men to help him avoid the play-off lottery. Allardyce said: "What worries me is making sure we keep our own destiny in our own hands. "To do that we have to beat Barnsley. If we don't do that, we are very much kissing automatic promotion goodbye. "We'll only then look at the play-offs and that's the last thing I want to do when we finish the game on Friday night. "We have made it extremely difficult for ourselves to get automatic promotion "We must try to avoid the play-offs because then it is a lottery, a three-game scenario where it doesn't matter where you finish. "It is a straight-forward knockout and any little thing can't be reversed. If your player makes a mistake, or the referee or their assistant drops a major error, it can't be made up. "So you don't want to go there, but we have made it difficult for ourselves. We have got the squad to do it, so hopefully we start against Barnsley."
Allardyce is boosted by the Hammers' away record, having last lost on the road at the end of January. Since then they have won three and drawn two – far better than their record at Upton Park, where a run of five draws was ended by last week's 4-2 hammering by Reading. He added: "We have been brilliant away from home and must continue that. "If you reverse our away form with our home form, you can bet your bottom dollar the negativity surrounding the club wouldn't be there.
"But we are still in with a shout and there are still 18 points to play for. "The players have to do what they have done all season and not let the disappointment of the home results get to their outstanding away performances. "We have taken two points a game in the last few matches we have played, which is outstanding."
Allardyce admits the pressure to succeed is huge at Upton Park. "We are the most focused-on team in the league because we are West Ham," he said. "The players have done a magnificent job based on what they and the staff went through. "It was a miserable, destitute place when I came in. "To have got it where we have, with a smile on people's faces, means we have achieved more than people expected us to. "What we haven't done yet is got over the final hurdle. We have made things difficult again."
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O's chairman Hearn calls for West Ham's 'flawed' Olympic Stadium bid to be disqualified
By SPORTSMAIL REPORTER
PUBLISHED: 18:58, 5 April 2012 | UPDATED: 18:58, 5 April 2012
Daily Mail
Leyton Orient chairman Barry Hearn has asked for West Ham's bid to move into the Olympic Stadium to be disqualified and branded it 'fundamentally flawed'.
West Ham have applied for a 99-year lease of the stadium in Stratford, which will be converted into a 60,000-seat arena following the Games, after the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) reopened the bidding process. Although Orient have not made a bid of their own after deciding the stadium was 'not fit for football', Hearn feels the Hammers should not succeed with theirs after failing to satisfy the bid criteria. Hearn claims West Ham failed to secure the permission of the Football League before a deadline of March 23 this year. He told BBC Sport: 'It's well documented we feel the danger to the survival of our football club involves a major new club moving closer to us, but that's a separate argument. 'The argument we have now is that we feel there is a very good case that West Ham may not have satisfied the bid process rules. 'Under the bid process they have to have permission of the Football League in writing attached to their bid to satisfy the bid criteria. 'We have now, through our lawyers, written to the OPLC, asking whether this clause was satisfied because we believe it wasn't, and we've asked for West Ham's bid to be disqualified. 'I think West Ham have missed their deadline. I think they've relied on a Premier League letter saying that they were quite happy, but the Premier League are irrelevant to this case because West Ham are a Football League club and it comes under the rules of the Football League, an organisation of which Leyton Orient are a member too.'
In response, West Ham issued a statement which said: "West Ham United has submitted a bid to play matches at the Olympic Stadium from 2014. The rules of the competition impose duties of confidentiality which all bidders must abide by and therefore we make no further comment."
The Football League declined to comment when contacted.
Asked if the Football League had given any indication as to whether they would approve a request from West Ham, Hearn added: 'There is no question the case would be heard by the Football League board to decide whether they would sanction a request. They may sanction it, they may not, but at this moment in time they haven't and that's the key word which makes them, we believe West Ham, fundamentally flawed in their bid process for the Olympic stadium.'
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West Ham's Ravel Morrison eager for chance to prove he has cleaned up his act since leaving Manchester United
Ravel Morrison has played just 14 minutes of first-team football for West Ham United since signing from Manchester United on the January transfer deadline day.
Telegraph.co.uk
By Jason Burt, Senior Football Writer10:00PM BST 05 Apr 20125
That is a surprise, given that he spurned at least two Premier League clubs to drop down into the Championship in the belief it would more quickly give him a chance of first-team football. Inevitably, there have been rumours that Morrison has missed training sessions and has had bust-ups with senior players at West Ham but none of these is true. Instead, the claims can be ascribed to the teenager's troubled reputation going before him — and puzzlement as to why he has not played. The truth is Morrison has buckled down, trained hard and appears far more focused on football since he moved to West Ham. Which makes it all the more surprising that he can count on just nine minutes of regular time — plus five minutes of added time — against Leeds United on March 17 as his one only opportunity to play.
Certainly there is a degree of frustration from some within West Ham that Morrison, given his much-vaunted talent, has not been given greater opportunity in a team that has struggled in recent weeks. When the attacking midfielder joined West Ham they were top of the Championship, two points ahead of Southampton and nine clear of Reading. Today, they are third, six points behind Southampton and four in arrears to Reading. They have lost only one of the 12 games since Morrison has been at the club but have been hit hard by seven draws, matches when creative players like the 19 year-old might have made a difference. A lack of match fitness when he arrived at West Ham kept Morrison out of the first-team squad while he picked up a slight injury 10 days ago and is only just back in training. Yet he has only been on the bench on three occasions including the 1-1 draw at home to Doncaster Rovers when manager Sam Allardyce decided to bring on defender Danny Collins rather than Morrison or striker Nicky Maynard with 10 minutes to go and the team desperate for a winning goal.
West Ham signed Morrison for an initial £650,000 and the fee might rise to £3 million depending on appearances which is not a bad deal, albeit a slight gamble, for a player regarded as one of the most gifted Manchester United have produced in recent years and who dazzled in the 2011 FA Youth Cup final win over Sheffield United.
His problems are well chronicled — not least a magistrate's warning that jail loomed unless he mended his ways — and while Sir Alex Ferguson gave up on him it was also generally accepted that a move away form Manchester might be the best for all parties.
Perhaps, understandably, Allardyce is protecting him and does not want to expose such a young player to pressure; maybe next season he will start to use Morrison
more frequently and in the tense atmosphere that has surrounded West Ham's promotion campaign it might have been deemed best to hold back such a precocious character away from the hurly-burly of the Championship. But those who know Morrison also know one thing: he needs to play if his resolve to reform himself is to be maintained.
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