Big Sam elated with Wembley win
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce told West Ham TV of his joy after leading West Ham United to Play-Off final victory
19.05.2012
West Ham United are heading back to the Premier League after beating Blackpool 2-1 with a winner from Ricardo Vaz Te coming just three minutes before the end.
Manager Sam Allardyce was elated with the Hammers npower Championship Play-Off final victory at Wembley. It was one Big Sam felt West Ham deserved after the effort they had put into the cause this past season. "I'm totally and utterly delighted with the victory today," said the manager to West Ham TV. "I feel elated to say the very least but also hugely drained because Play-Off finals for managers particularly are one hell of an occasion in terms of wanting your team to go out and win the game of football. "We have only lost eight games in total (out of 49 league and Play-Off fixtures) and made sure today, even though not at our best, that we won the game which was the most important thing. We took more chances than Blackpool did today and that gives us the right to be back in the Premier League."
Carlton Cole had given the Hammers the lead just past the half-hour mark with a well-taken goal but Thomas Ince scored two minutes after the restart with an almost carbon copy of the opener. The opening ten minutes were a cagey affair as both teams tried to take in the atmosphere and settle into the match. But it was Blackpool who had the early chances with Matt Phillips twice passing up very good goal scoring opportunities and Stephen Dobbie seeing his near-post shot diverted on to the base of the post by Robert Green. The first real chance for the Hammers came after 20 minutes as Vaz Te had an effort on the Blackpool goal after good build-up from the Portuguese, Cole and Gary O'Neil but the No12 could only drag his shot wide.
In truth it was a very scrappy first 35 minutes with so much at stake. West Ham then took the lead as Matt Taylor broke down the left-hand side and floated a delightful ball on to Cole, who took one touch to set himself before placing the ball past Matthew Gilks. Five minutes later Vaz Te had a decent chance but could only poke the ball past the left-hand post. Blackpool levelled the match just two minutes after the start of the second half when Ince latched onto to a crossfield pass and fired across Green into the corner of the goal. Ian Holloway's side then took the initiative and it took a goal line clearance by Matt Taylor to prevent Alex Baptiste's goalbound effort off the line. Later, Noble had to hack a Matt Phillips effort clear from inside his own six-yard box as Blackpool upped the ante still further. The Hammers made two early second half subs as Big Sam brought on George McCartney for Gary O'Neil as they tried to change things around and then Guy Demel, who picked up an injury, was replaced by Julien Faubert. With 20 minutes to go the tension around the ground was palpable - Cole had a swivel-shot well saved by Gilks and Ince into the Hammers area only for McCartney to nick the ball off him. West Ham thought they had grabbed a winner with ten minutes to go as a deflected cross from Taylor was met on the volley by the skipper Kevin Nolan, but his shot came crashing back off the crossbar. Then, with time fast running out and extra-time looming large, the Hammers re-took the lead with just three minutes of the 90 remaining. A McCartney cross from the left caused pandemonium in the Blackpool area before Cole finally squeezed the ball off Gilks and into the path of Vaz Te, who expertly rifled the ball into the roof of the net from seven yards.
Behind the goal, the 40,000 Hammers fans went wild, while Big Sam and the West Ham bench emptied in sheer ecstacy. "What was going through my mind was Chairman David Sullivan pestering me all year saying we have never won a game in the last-minute throughout the entire season!" laughed the manager. "The first time we have won a game in the final five minutes was in the 49th game in the Play-Off final- you can't get better than that can you!"
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Cole's dream day!
WHUFC.com
Carlton Cole was all smiles after helping West Ham United gain promotion to the Premier League
19.05.2012
Carlton Cole could not keep the smile off his face after his goal helped West Ham United to gain promotion back to the Barclays Premier League. On his first start at Wembley, Cole put the Hammers in front against Blackpool at Wembley, only for the Tangerines to equalise through Tom Ince's goal just after half-time. However, the No9 and his team-mates retained their belief and held off Blackpool before Cole's strong run and poked shot hit goalkeeper Michael Gilks and rebounded to Ricardo Vaz Te, who finished high into the net with just three minutes remaining. Afterwards, Cole told West Ham TV of his happiness at firing the Hammers back to where they belong. "I'll take a goal and an assist!" he said. "There was a bit of pressure on me in this league because everyone thought I'd walk it in this league but it's not been easy - it's been a hard league. "It's credit to English football because the difference between the top tier and the second tier, there is not a lot in it. We had a hard season but it's all been worth it now. Everybody has worked so hard and we got the job done today. "I've made one start at Wembley and got one goal. It's a good feeling and hopefully it keeps on coming."
Cole has played at the Home of Football for England previously and spent season after season in the Premier League, but the No9 said his feeling after scoring and winning promotion at Wembley was something that had never been rivalled. The 28-year-old also spoke of his role as a senior professional and a leader inside the West Ham dressing room - a role he relishes and will continue to relish next season in the Premier League. "This is the top! It's one of the best feelings of my life. To be a part of this is brilliant. I'm nurturing them through and I want to be an example to the young boys and I just need to keep on doing it!"
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Vaz flying high
WHUFC.com
Ricardo Vaz Te was ecstatic after his late winner sent West Ham United to the Premier League
20.05.2012
Ricardo Vaz Te has described yesterday's Play-Off final win as a moment that will always stay with him. It was the Portuguese forward's 87th-minute strike that sealed West Ham United's 2-1 victory against Blackpool and with it Premier League football at the Boleyn Ground next season. Carlton Cole - who had scored the Hammers' first goal - saw his strike hit Blackpool goalkeeper Michael Gilkes and rebound to Vaz Te, who smashing the ball into the roof of the net. The Hammers fans behind goal then nearly took the roof off the stadium and Vaz Te, who only arrived at the club in January, has tried to explain the feeling the goal gave him.
"I wasn't thinking about it too much. I thought Coley was going to score, then it hit the keeper and sort of dipped a bit, so I took a gamble and it paid off," he said.
"When I saw it hit the back of the net I was elated. It was a fantastic and then the emotions came when we celebrated. It was an amazing moment that will stay with me."
Vaz Te was keen to praise not only his team-mates but manager Sam Allardyce, who oversaw some meticulous preparation to ensure the team were ready for the big day. "We knew that on the pitch, if we win, we would go up. But for me the manager has been terrific and what we achieved is credit to him also. He, the coaches and Kevin [Nolan] as captain, made sure everything was controlled and if there was anxiety, that this was dealt with so we could go out and play the game.
"You know we have to deal with pressure all season, especially when we drew lots of games, but we came through that so we were able to deal with the pressure yesterday brought and knew what we had to try and do on the pitch. "Blackpool did have lots of possession, but we kept working at it and found our way through. We beat a good Blackpool team. There have been lots of people saying we were favourites and all of that - all we were thinking was we wanted to win for our fans and get promoted. "It was a very much a team together out there and we got the result to take us up, which is fantastic."
Vaz Te admits the team's feat has not quite sunk in yet, but for now he is happy to just enjoy what happened at Wembley before thoughts turn to next season after a break. "I am just digesting everything right now, enjoying this moment as I am sure all our fans - who were great again - will be. We have a break now and then we look to what we are going to do to improve ourselves and get ready for the Premier League."
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2012/13 Season Tickets on sale Monday!
WHUFC.com
Hammers fans can snap up their Barclays Premier League Season Tickets from Monday at 9am!
19.05.2012
West Ham United are delighted to be able to announce that Season Tickets for the 2012/13 Barclays Premier League season will go on sale to ALL supporters from 9am on Monday 21 May. After the thrill of gaining promotion in dramatic circumstances by defeating Blackpool in the npower Championship Play-Off final at Wembley, the Board has given supporters a further massive boost by setting prices at the same level as the club's last Premier League season in 2010/11. Adult Season Tickets for 2012/13 will start from just £600, Over-65s/Under-21s from only £335, Under-16s from as little as £190 and all Under-10s are an amazing £105.
Full details of how to renew or apply for a 2012/13 Season Ticket will appear on whufc.com soon.
Season Ticket holders are guaranteed the best seats in the Boleyn Ground and a host of exclusive benefits, including a 10% discount on all official merchandise instore and online, away match and cup ticket priority, 10% off all hospitality and mascot bookings and your own dedicated phone-line and email address. Barclays Premier League 2012/13 Season Tickets will go on sale to ALL supporters from 9am on Monday 21 May. Existing Season Ticket holders must renew by 5pm on Saturday 7 July to ensure they retain their current seat.
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Hammers win in Hong Kong!
WHUFc.com
The Development Squad completed a fantastic weekend with a trophy in the Far East
20.05.2012
The Development Squad completed an amazing weekend for West Ham United by winning the Plate Competition at the Hong Kong FC Citibank International Soccer Sevens. Just hours after watching the first team gain promotion to the Barclays Premier League by defeating Blackpool on TV, Ian Hendon's side defeated the host club 3-0 in Sunday's Plate final. In a game that saw the Hammers play some excellent football, youngsters George Moncur, Olly Lee (pictured) and Brian Montenegro all hit the target to help the club collect their second piece of silverware in the space of 24 hours. On Saturday, while Big Sam's men were doing their bit at Wembley, the Hammers began the two-day competition in the group stage, where they lost 1-0 to a strong Leicester City side before defeating future final opponents Hong Kong FC 3-0 with goals from Lee, Moncur and Rob Hall and drawing 1-1 with Celtic thanks to Blair Turgott's long-range effort. On Sunday, the players recovered from their late night viewing by beating Hong Kong Dragons 3-0 in the Plate quarter-final, with Montenegro netting twice and Callum Driver once to cap a convincing victory. The Plate semi-final saw West Ham paired with 2011 champions Kitchee FC. Again, Hendon's team dominated with Lee scoring before providing an assist for Montenegro.
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West Ham promotion is a highlight of my career, says Sam Allardyce
BBC.co.uk
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce said winning promotion was one of the greatest achievements of his career. Allardyce made good on his promise to take the Hammers back into the top flight with a 2-1 win over Blackpool in the play-off final at Wembley. The Hammers missed out on automatic promotion by two points while Allardyce was criticised over the playing style. "It is great, right up there with the best for me because of the size of West Ham and the pressures," he said.
"You get critics everywhere, a small minority who make themselves heard at every club, but the vast majority have been behind the team. "It would have been devastating, according to the owners who would have had to decimate the wage bill by £10m, off-load players for little or no fee and still achieve what fans want."
Allardyce admitted he was thrilled to be back in the Premier League where he has spent more than a decade as the manager of Bolton, Newcastle and Blackburn.
"Even if some think Allardyce's team are the equivalent of a backstreet bruiser, nobody can argue that he has not made good on his promise to win promotion."
"I'm just delighted to be back in the Premier League. It means everything to me," he said. "I had been in the Premier League for 10 years or so. It was difficult at the start to turn this club around but we have come good at the end. "I'll look forward to the celebrations first before I start worrying about the Premier League next year."
Carlton Cole, who scored the opening goal, said he was delighted to be back in the Premier League after opting to stay at Upton Park following last season's relegation. "I feel elated, I'm so proud to be a Hammer, it's brilliant," he said. "I felt so dejected at the end of the season last year this is a great feeling just to go back up.
Sam Allardyce's managerial honours
Limerick - League of Ireland First Division winners (1991-92).
Notts County - Third Division winners (1997-98)
Bolton Wanderers - First Division play-off winners (2000-01), League Cup runners-up (2003-04)
West Ham - Championship play-off winners (2011-12)
"Although we didn't win the league but this is another way to show we can still compete at the top level. "To make the decision I did at the start of the season and stay with West Ham and to be a Premier League player with West Ham is the best feeling in the world." Captain Kevin Nolan said he can now enjoy the summer after helping to secure a return to the Premier League. "The work we've put throughout the season since day one has been fantastic," he said. "This is the first step, it's about now, going and enjoying our summer and looking forward to being a Premier League player again."
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Blackpool 1 West Ham 2
West Ham are promoted
19 May 2012
Last updated at 17:23
By Paul Fletcher
BBC Sport at Wembley
Ricardo Vaz Te struck a late winner as West Ham defeated Blackpool in an absorbing Championship play-off final to seal their return to the Premier League at the first attempt. The result ensured that manager Sam Allardyce made good on his promise to take the Hammers back into the top flight after his team narrowly missed out on automatic promotion at the end of the regular season. "The keeper was magnificent but the ball slipped out of his hands. Vaz Te was in the right place at the right time to smash the ball into the net. But Gilks could have been a bit stronger."
Allardyce's side had led at the break through a Carlton Cole strike but after Thomas Ince - son of former Hammers midfielder Paul - levelled shortly after the restart, the match became increasingly stretched and ragged. Both teams wasted good opportunities to score but it was the London side who did grab what proved to be the decisive third when the unmarked Vaz Te, a January signing from Barnsley, drilled the ball into the net from 12 yards. It was a goal that meant West Ham won on their first appearance at Wembley in 31 years, in doing so becoming the first team since Leicester in 1996 to bounce straight back to the Premier League through the play-offs. But it ensured that the unfortunate Blackpool, relegated along with West Ham last season, did not seal a fairytale return to the top flight. The Seasiders had been in excellent form during the closing weeks of the season and showed incredible guts and desire to hold off Birmingham in their play-off semi-final.
"Even if some think Allardyce's team are the equivalent of a backstreet bruiser, nobody can argue that he has not made good on his promise to win promotion."
Several times during the final it looked as though Ian Holloway's team would shake off the loss of key striker Gary Taylor-Fletcher to an injury picked up in training and overcome the odds by defeating the heavily fancied Hammers. Holloway's team spurned several good opportunities to take the lead, with Stephen Dobbie the first into action, drawing a decent save from Robert Green after Hammers left-back Matt Taylor failed to clear a diagonal ball. Matt Phillips shot tamely from 20 yards after he had been played clean through and the former Wycombe wide man later missed from 14 yards after a terrible botched clearance from Guy Demel created the opening. Hammers boss Allardyce had opted for a solid team formation for the final even though his team had won 4-0 and 4-1 in their two meetings with Blackpool in the Championship. West Ham started with Vaz Te on the left and Cole often isolated ahead of a packed Hammers midfield. Vaz Te was a constant menace but it was from the otherwise disappointing Taylor that the London team created the opening goal. Taylor surged forward down the left flank and, after Angel Martinez wasted a chance to snuff out the move, delivered a teasing cross that Cole controlled before drilling the ball across goal from 10 yards.
This was West Ham's first visit to Wembley since 1981. The Hammers have not lost to Blackpool for 41 years. Ian Evatt equalled the most appearances at Wembley for Blackpool, joining Stanley Matthews and Stan Mortensen with three. The goal seemed to temporarily derail Blackpool, who rather limped through the final 15 minutes of the first half before levelling shortly after the restart. The Hammers had looked comfortable in the lead, playing a high line and squeezing the space in midfield. But after Taylor was caught out by another raking diagonal pass, Ince showed excellent composure in allowing the ball to bounce before shooting low across Green's goal.
Allardyce had clearly seen enough and brought on George McCartney to slot in at left-back to try to nullify the threat posed by Ince. But although that was probably an effective decision the match in general nonetheless became stretched as both teams pushed in search of what would probably be the game's decisive goal. Dobbie, a play-off winner last season with Swansea, missed a brilliant chance, scuffing his shot from 14 yards when completely unmarked, while West Ham skipper Kevin Nolan was unlucky to see his technically superb volley crash against the woodwork. The final seemed to be heading for extra-time before Vaz Te struck after Matt Gilks parried at the feet of Cole to justify his team's billing as favourites and leave supporters looking forward to a return to the Premier League when the new season starts in August.
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David Gold confident Robert Green will stay after promotion
BBC.co.uk
West Ham's joint-chairman David Gold believes goalkeeper Robert Green will stay at Upton Park after the club gained promotion to the Premier League. The England international performed well in West Ham's 2-1 play-off final victory over Blackpool at Wembley. The 32-year-old's contract expires this summer, but Gold wants to resolve the situation as soon as possible. "One of the first negotiations that will take place will be with Robert Green," he told BBC Sportsday. "He is a world-class goalkeeper and his salary would be commensurate with that, but now that we are in the Premier League we can sit down with him. "I am confident that we can keep Robert." Despite spending a season in the Championship, Green received a Euro 2012 call-up from England manager Roy Hodgson. He will travel to Poland and Ukraine as Hodgson's number two keeper, behind Manchester City's Joe Hart. Gold said promotion to the Premier League at the first attempt was incredibly important. "There was no way we could keep Robert in the Championship in the second year after relegation by paying him his value," he said. Gold, who took control of West Ham in January 2010 with business partner David Sullivan, says the club will reassess the squad over the summer after securing top-flight football, with new arrivals likely. He said: "Some negotiations will start straight away and some will start in a few weeks.
Robert Green 2011-12
Apps: 45
Goals conceded: 47
Clean sheets: 17
Yellow cards: 0
Red cards: 1
"Until all those things have been sorted out you're not quite sure what you will be doing, but you know you have to strengthen your squad to give you the best possible chance of staying in the division. "Once we've done all our negotiations with the players you want to keep, Sam (Allardyce) will come to us and tell us the areas we are weak in and need to strengthen, and this is what it's going to cost us. "A lot of contracts will be with players that go back onto Premier League wages now we have gone up."
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Sam gunning for the title?
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 20th May 2012
By: Staff Writer
Sam Allardyce admitted that he may have set his stall out too early this season - before refusing to rule out a run at the Champions League places next year. The last time anyone involved with West Ham predicted that the club could sustain an assault on the top four of the Premier League came in the summer of 2007, when then-Chairman Eggert Magnusson had the temerity to suggest that his administration could mount a serious challenge. Since then Magnusson and his backer, Bjorgolfur Gudmunsson went bust and the Hammers were relegated for a second time in a decade, having previously spent just five seasons outside of the top flight since 1958. Brought in to arrest that most recent slide, overseen by the tactically inept Avram Grant who was shown the door the moment relegation was confirmed last May was the wily Allardyce, who confidently predicted that he could get West Ham back into the top flight at the first attempt.
And despite having to rebuild a squad virtually from scratch with a net outlay of less than £5million - despite what many commentators have said - incorrectly - about the club's spending power in the Championship - that is exactly what he did with West Ham's 2-1 win over Blackpool in the play-off Final at Wembley on Saturday.
Whether or not the Champagne bubbles that were freely flowing after the game went to Big Sam's head is unknown, but already he is refusing to rule out a crack at the higher end of the Premier League in season 2012/13 - at a time when most newly-promoted managers prefer instead to talk about avoiding relegation.
"I'm setting myself up here again, by the way," he said after Saturday's success, "but let's think beyond fourth and see how far we can get this team in the Premier League. "I'm my own man now."
Just how much Allardyce will have to spend during a second successive summer of rebuilding remains to be seen, however. League One Sheffield United's latest payment as a result of the quite ridiculous decision to award them £25million for not being good enough to avoid relegation from the Premier League five years ago will take at least £5million out of the coffers - none of which manager current Blades Danny Wilson is likely to see - whilst there is the not too insignificant matter of a £90million deficit to deal with. Additionally existing squad members will have their wages increased due to bonuses and promotion clauses - one of whom, Carlton Cole, revealed today that he took a 50 per cent wage cut upon relegation last May in order to help the club with their financial difficulties.
Elsewhere players such as Rob Green will be offered lucrative new deals in order to keep them at the club - although some other players on short term contracts - such as John Carew and Papa Bouba Diop - will almost certainly be released. Yet despite those limitations Allardyce retains his unwavering belief in his own abilities - and having gained promotion at the first attempt, perhaps he has every right to. One player already linked with a move to east London is old boy Joe Cole, who spent last season on loan at Lille having been dumped by Liverpool. Now 30, Cole represents the kind of bargain basement player who Allardyce will be forced to look to in order to improve a squad lacking in not just numbers, but also in Premier League quality.
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Gold eyes Green
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 20th May 2012
By: Staff Writer
David Gold has admitted that one of his key priorities now a return to the Premier League has been achieved is to retain the services of England goalkeeper Robert Green. Gold, talking to the BBC following yesterday's historic 2-1 win over Blackpool confirmed that Green - who is out of contract this summer - was certain to leave had West Ham not been promoted, but now hopes that the England goalkeeper will have a change of heart with United back in the top flight. "I am confident that we can keep Robert," said Gold. "He is a world-class goalkeeper and his salary would be commensurate with that, but now that we are in the Premier League we can sit down with him. "There was no way we could keep him in the Championship in the second year after relegation by paying him his value. But negotiations will start straight away." The 32-year-old Green, who was signed by Alan Pardew for £2million from Norwich City six years ago has now made 241 appearances for West Ham.
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Allardyce on...
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 20th May 2012
By: Staff Writer
Sam Allardyce is a Premier League manager once again after leading his team back to the top flight yesterday courtesy of the 2-1 win over Blackpool.
Allardyce - who was spotted singing along to 'Bubbles' in the post-match celebrations - had plenty to say after the game...
... Wembley
"It's up there with the best moments of my career. It's probably better than the Millennium Stadium victory with Bolton against Preston because it's West Ham United. With the size of the club and the pressure we were under and to win - and because it's at Wembley - makes it extra special. "It's bigger than anything else. Other games played here are Cup competitions but this is everything. It's the first time I have come here and won - not that I've been here very often!"
.... The winning goal - and the goalscorer
"David Sullivan had been pressing me, saying, "Why don't we ever win a game in the final minutes?" Well, now we have done. "Vaz Te? What a signing. The goals he has scored are probably the reason why I'm sat here and we're back in the Premier League. He must be one of my best signings - and I've signed some good players in my time."
... Ensuing celebrations
"We will relax and enjoy this — and not think about what's ahead just yet. You have to make sure that this sinks in. This is a memory for life, for everyone concerned with West Ham, and we will enjoy it. "You want to go up automatically but if you don't and you win the Final then it's a memory for everyone for years to come. The delight you get out of winning at a venue like this; the trophy, the medals, the celebrations; it's an outstanding achievement."
... The season as a whole
"I had been in the Premier League for 10 years and I wanted to come and experience a successful season. It was difficult at the start to turn the club around, because of the relegation we experienced, but we did it. We came good right at the very end. "Overall, we've lost only eight out of 49 Championship games. In 2012 we have lost one game out of 21 matches. Now if you cannot celebrate that as a good season, I don't know what you can celebrate. "It's been a thrilling season and the players have been outstanding, based on where we started and where we ended up. It's just an outstanding achievement, because it's bigger than anything else, any Cup Final. It's over 11 months and we have done it."
... Answering his critics
"I was considered to be at the top of my industry when I was at Bolton. They were fifth when I left and having suffered two sackings, which were harsh, to say the least, it damaged my reputation and people didn't consider me to be as good as I was. But I'm still achieving great things at a great football club."
... Had Blackpool won
"It would have been devastating - according to the owners we would have had to decimate the wage bill by £10m, off-load players for little or no fee and still achieve what the fans want."
... Next season
"The task now is keeping West Ham in the Premier League. At Bolton we did that from virtually nothing; what we have got to provide is sustainable, steady growth at West Ham next season."
... The supporters
"You get criticised everywhere in this game. It is only a small minority but they make themselves heard. I know the vast majority of West Ham fans have been behind us all season because we have been winning games. "My job is about thrilling fans and giving them what they want, entertaining them at a great venue with a great victory and a great end to the season. Now we can look forward to playing at places like Chelsea, Arsenal, Spurs and QPR in London as well as trips to Old Trafford and Anfield."
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West Ham Utd 2 Blackpool 1
KUMB.com
Filed: Sunday, 20th May 2012
By: Staff Writer
Sam Allardyce has earned more than his fair share of detractors over the past eleven months - but deserves all the plaudits now after leading West Ham back to the Premier League at the first attempt.
Many have criticised his style of play - and many have said all along that's he's the wrong man for a club like West Ham. But there can be no complaints tonight after Allardyce completed the task he was set last June by taking United back into the top flight at the first time of asking.
The 2011/12 season has been a thoroughly enjoyable one in so many ways - so much so that many fans will be sad to wave goodbye to the Championship. An incredible 15 wins away from Upton Park, a record that may never be bettered, culminating with an appearance at Wembley will leave many with fond memories of the last nine months.
However the harsh realities of the club's precarious financial position meant that a return to the Premier League was essential were the club to continue to prosper and to hang on to precocious young talents such as James Tomkins and Ricardo Vaz Te - whose goal with just three minutes of normal time remaining won the day.
Today's Final produced a nervy performance from West Ham, who have been magnificent in recent weeks but reverted to their mid-season form for much of the game. The free-flowing football that has been highly-evident in recent weeks was rarely produced and for long periods it looked like an upset akin to that which saw the Irons beaten by Crystal Palace at the same stage in 2004 was on the cards.
Indeed, underdogs Blackpool were the better side for much of the game and in all truth, Ian Holloway probably won the battle of the managers with a tactical approach that frustrated West Ham whilst affording them numerous opportunities to win the game. But in the end West Ham's return to the Premier League came down to one thing and one thing only - they took their chances, whilst the Tangerines failed to make the most of theirs.
Whilst United struggled to work Matt Gilks - of 12 attempts on goal, only four were on target and two of those resulted in a goal - Blackpool provided a more constant threat throughout the game. There were just three minutes on the clock when Stephen Dobbie, who had been outlined as one of Blackpool's major threats, hit the post from close range after easing off the challenge of Matt Taylor.
As the Hammers struggled to get to grips with a wide - and obviously well-watered - Wembley pitch, 'Pool almost profited once again when Matt Phillips was sent through on goal just ahead of the quarter-hour mark. Having left Guy Demel for dust, the 21-year-old had just Rob Green to beat but appeared to suffer from a lack of conviction as he shot early and straight at the England 'keeper.
And it was a similar story less than a minute later after Demel was again left flat-footed allowing the youngster to get in behind him, but once again Phillips' nerves appeared to get the better of him as his attempted curler missed the goal completely. Yet another let-off for the Hammers, who could have been 3-0 down already.
It took 20 minutes to arrive, but finally Allardyce's side carved out a decent opportunity. Matt Taylor released Ricardo Vaz Te who found the ball back at his feet via Carlton Cole. Although the Portuguese forward, who has been in scintillating form of late, found the net it was the wrong side and Blackpool were considering themselves somewhat fortunate not to have conceded for the first time.
A nervy quarter-of-an-hour followed with a smattering of half chances for both sides. Then, with ten minutes of the half remaining Matt Taylor won the ball deep in his own half before setting off on a foraging run.
Somewhat fortuitous to find the ball coming back to him from a ricochet on the half way line, Taylor continued down the flank before chipping the ball towards an advancing Carlton Cole. The striker's neat touch gave him the perfect opportunity to steady himself before firing across Gilks into the far corner to give West Ham a priceless lead; Wembley, full of somewhere in the region of 45,000 Hammers fans, erupted.
It could - and should - have been 2-0 two minutes later when Mark Noble lifted a delicious ball behind the Blackpool defence into the path of Vaz Te. However with the goal at his mercy the forward once again failed to find the target, firing wide of the left hand post. It was a major let-off for Blackpool who were living up to their pre-match billing as underdogs for the first time.
No doubt Sam Allardyce would have told his side that it would be crucial to ensure they kept things tight for the opening few minutes of the second half. But his side immediately handed the impetus to their opponents when falling for a sucker punch just two minutes after the restart.
Carlton Cole gave the ball away needlessly on the half way line and one of those long, diagonal balls that were core to Blackpool's tactical approach on the day found its way towards young Thomas Ince, son of former Hammer Paul. Young Ince allowed the ball to drop over his shoulder before firing across Green into the far corner to level the scores.
At sixes and sevens, West Ham were inches away from falling behind two minutes later when Alex Baptiste forced a goal line clearance from Matt Taylor. Having forced his way through West Ham's creaking defence the centre half lifted the ball over an advancing Rob Green only to find Taylor alert enough to thump the ball away from the danger zone from underneath the crossbar.
Sam Allardyce, sensing that immediate action was required in order to stem the flow responded by introduced George McCartney at full back, whilst Gary O'Neil was substituted to allow for Taylor to move into a more advanced position. Guy Demel, who took a knock shortly after was also replaced (by Julien Faubert) as West Ham's 'Plan B' came into effect.
Still West Ham, badly hurt by having conceded the equaliser, needed a lift - and that came on 63 minutes when Cole forced a smart save from Gilks. Faubert's low centre found the striker who turned smartly before angling an effort low towards goal but Gilks was equal to it, turning the shot around the post.
The West Ham end, which had been strangely subdued up until that point found its voice for the first time since the restart, but it was quietened again when danger-man Dobbie missed yet another golden opportunity for the Seasiders.
Neal Eardley, released on the right cut the ball back to find the on-loan Dobbie - who fluffed his lines and saw hit mis-hit effort roll harmlessly wide of its intended target. It was another huge let-off for West Ham - as it was two minutes later when Noble was forced to hack Evatt's goal bound effort from an Ince corner clear.
West Ham were once again being worked all over the park and a good passage of play by the Tangerines culminated with a Dobbie effort that forced a smart save from Green, who tipped the effort round the post. United were looking anything but yet crucially, they were still, somehow, on level terms.
Sensing the teams frailty and lack of cohesion, the 40,000-string claret and blue contingent burst into a chorus of 'Come on you Irons' an attempt to lift their team. It resulted in a half-chance for Jack Collison who twisted and turned on the edge of the penalty area before firing over the bar. It may not have tested Gilks, but crucially, it lifted the crowd.
West Ham, lifted by the extra effort from the terraces responded magnificently and were just inches away from restoring their lead two minutes later when Kevin Nolan sent an effort crashing off the crossbar. Some good work on the left between McCartney and Taylor saw the ball fall to the Hammers captain whose volley beat Gilks, but not the woodwork.
A nervy ten minutes followed and naturally perhaps, both sides had one eye on extra time. But that extra time never arrived thanks to the right boot of a man who, just four months earlier, had been playing his football for Barnsley.
Brought to England by Sam Allardyce as a 16-year-old, Ricardo Vaz Te, having been released by Bolton Wanderers two years ago had spent time in Scotland with Hibernian before trying his luck south of the border once again when joining Barnsley on a one-year contract last summer.
Having found his shooting boots once again, the 25-year-old - who hit 12 goals in 14 starts for the Tykes - was reunited with his mentor when moving to the Boleyn Ground in the January transfer window for a giveaway £750,000. And with three minutes of normal time remaining at Wembley, Vaz Te booked his place in West Ham's history books by scoring the goal that took the Hammers back to the Premier League after just one season away.
The move that led to the £90million strike began with a Blackpool goal kick that was won by Winston Reid. His header was sent back by Baptiste but cut out by Mark Noble who pushed the ball down the left flank for captain Nolan to chase. His low cross was turned towards goal by Cole but the striker pushed it too far towards 'keeper Gilks.
But just before Gilks could fall on the ball a last, desperate lunge by Cole pushed the ball wide of the 'keeper. As every Hammers fan in Wembley held their breath, Vaz Te pounced to send it crashing into the roof of the net and send West Ham back into the Premier League.
Four minutes of added-on time produced little of note despite Ian Holloway throwing on his last two substitutes in a final gamble and Wembley erupted as Howard Webb blew the final whistle thereby guaranteeing West Ham's place in the 2012/13 season Premier League. Captain Kevin Nolan climbed the steps to collect the winners' trophy and in doing so, became the first Hammer since Billy Bonds way back in 1980 to lift silverware at the home of English football.
The game itself had proved to be a microcosm of West Ham's 2011/12 campaign. Much of it had been ugly, unimpressive and frustrating but there were shades of brilliance too - and when it was needed most, Allardyce's team pulled together to deliver. How very un-West Ham.
Although the celebrations will undoubtedly continue for some days, the manager - who admitted after the game that his team had been second best for much of it - now faces a second successive summer of transforming his squad. This time, one fit for the Premier League.
And who could possible deny him the opportunity of leading West Ham out at the Boleyn Ground next season, after a year in which he finally silenced his critics having taken West Ham back to the promised land at the first time of asking.
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Irons in Prem after Wembley win
Last updated: 19th May 2012
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Ricardo Vaz Te's dramatic late strike earned West Ham a 2-1 win over Blackpool at Wembley - and an immediate return to the Premier League. The Portuguese winger, a bargain £500,000 January signing from Barnsley, earned the Hammers an estimated £90million windfall with the goal which sank Blackpool. Boss Sam Allardyce vowed to take the club back to what he calls the Promised Land at the first attempt following last season's relegation, and he was as good as his word as his side saw off Ian Holloway's play-off specialists. Carlton Cole had given them the lead in the first half, but Thomas Ince showed he has inherited his dad Paul's uncanny knack of irritating West Ham's fans when he equalised just after the break. However, after an end-to-end second half it was Blackpool, who were unbeaten in their previous 11 play-off matches, who cracked as Vaz Te rifled in the winner four minutes from time. They may have been short-priced favourites having put eight goals past Blackpool in their league meetings this season, but West Ham looked extremely twitchy in the opening stages. After just three minutes Matt Taylor's attempt to chest the ball back to Robert Green fell short and Stephen Dobbie sneaked in behind the left-back. Fortunately for Taylor, the angle was tight and Dobbie's shot was kept out by a combination of Green and the near post. Matt Phillips then twice squandered glorious opportunities to put the Seasiders ahead. The winger latched onto a ball over the top only to shoot weakly at Green, and passed up an even better chance moments later when Guy Demel slipped, allowing him time to curl a shot narrowly wide. West Ham eventually settled into the game and a slick move between Cole, Gary O'Neil and Vaz Te ended with the latter hitting the side-netting.
Cole then headed O'Neil's cross over before Jack Collison curled a shot just too high. And the goal West Ham had been threatening arrived in the 33rd minute when Taylor robbed Ince and charged down the left before sending a cross towards Cole. The striker took the ball in his stride, held off the challenge of Seasiders defender Ian Evatt and swept the ball past Matt Gilks and into the net. Vaz Te could have doubled the lead before half-time but he dragged his shot wide. Instead, two minutes after the restart Blackpool hit the Hammers with a sucker-punch. Cole gave the ball away near the halfway line and Matt Phillips raced forward before swinging in a diagonal cross over the heads of the West Ham defence and right to the feet of Ince. The winger, whose every touch was jeered by the Hammers fans who never forgave Ince senior for the manner in which he left the club some 23 years ago, still had plenty to do. But he found a superb finish his dad would have been proud of, firing the ball across Green and inside the far post. With West Ham reeling, Blackpool almost went ahead moments later when Kevin Phillips played in Alex Baptiste, who dinked the ball over Green only for Taylor to clear the danger on the line.
Back came West Ham and Collison poked Taylor's low cross wide before Gilks made a fine save low down to deny Cole, while at the other end Dobbie missed his kick in front of goal and also forced a fingertip save from Green. The Hammers were inches away from taking the lead again when substitute George McCartney overlapped down the left and crossed for Nolan, whose first-time volley was tipped onto the crossbar by Gilks. But the winner arrived four minutes from time in the most dramatic of fashion. Nolan crossed from the left and Cole's attempt was blocked by Gilks but the ball fell kindly for Vaz Te, who crashed it over the grounded Gilks and into the roof of the net.
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Allardyce delight at finishing
We came good right at the very end, says West Ham boss
Last Updated: May 19, 2012 8:15pm
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Sam Allardyce hailed his team's superior finishing as West Ham beat Blackpool 2-1 to secure a return to the Premier League. Ricardo Vaz Te's late winner after Thomas Ince had cancelled out Carlton Cole's opener, gave the Hammers victory in the Championship play-off final at Wembley on Saturday. And Allardyce, who had been under pressure to deliver promotion all season, could scarcely hide his relief after the dramatic winner. He told Sky Sports: "Blackpool were equally as good as us today. But, our finishing power in the end, it's about taking your chances. "No more so than in a game like today. There were lots of chances for both teams and we've managed to swing it just at the death."Funnily enough it's 49 games and it's the first time we've won a game in the last few minutes all season. "David Sullivan was always on at me saying 'why do we never win a game in the last few minutes' and we've won one so I'm sure him and David Gold will be very, very happy.
"And as you can see from all the fans here, we're just delighted to be back in the Barclays Premier League.
Magnificent
"Full credit to the players and full credit to Blackpool because for a play-off with all the nerves that there have been I thought it was a magnificent game - end-to-end and in the end we got one more goal than Blackpool." Allardyce had not always found it easy at Upton Park with fans less than happy about the team's style of play.
He also had to overcome the disappointment of missing out on automatic promotion to Southampton on the final day, but ultimately the former Bolton boss has delivered promotion at the first attempt. The 57-year-old added: "It's everything to me because I've been in the Premier League for 10 years or so and I wanted to come and experience a successful season. "It was very difficult at the start to turn the club around with the relegation problem that we've had, but we've turned it around we came good right at the very end. "I'll look forward to the celebrations first before I start worrying about the Premier League next year. A good rest for everybody and obviously we're delighted how much it means to everybody at West Ham. "We've got what we wanted. We're going up."
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Core strength
'Hammers' senior pros can lay the foundations for further success'
Last Updated: May 20, 2012 3:51pm
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Peter Beagrie believes that West Ham's togetherness will ensure that they are competitive in next year's Premier League. "West Ham's traditional way of playing football will attract players, and I don't think there will be any shortage of people coming through the revolving door." The Hammers beat Blackpool 2-1 in the Championship play-of final on Saturday afternoon to book a return to the top flight after a one-year absence. Sky Sports pundit Beagrie says the Londoners will have to bolster their squad over the summer, but feels Irons chief Sam Allardyce already has a solid base of players at his disposal. There are in such a healthy state," he said of the Upton Park side, who were relegated from the elite division last May. "You are only as good as your senior pros and there are no egos there and it means so much to the youngsters there, too. "Sam has been backed with finances this year, but the Premier League is very unforgiving and they will need to spend to make sure they don't find themselves back in the Championship. "Their traditional way of playing football will attract players, though, so I don't think there will be any shortage of people coming through the revolving door once the transfer window opens."
Faith
The Hammers missed out on automatic promotion this term by just two points and Beagrie praised the way Allardyce has galvanised his troops during the play-off campaign. And the former Scunthorpe winger also thinks the January acquisition of Ricardo Vaz Te, who scored the club's winner against Blackpool, has given the Irons a new dimension. "Sam had tremendous faith in his own ability to build a team," added Beagrie. "They missed out on automatic promotion but he re-energised them, they were united and their big characters performed well. "Kevin Nolan has justified his wage, Carlton Cole has been brilliant up front with his thirst for work and the signing of Ricardo Vaz Te was imperative for them because they were very predictable. He has been off the cuff and found his goal-scoring form at the right time."
Ex-West Ham manager Alan Pardew watched the game with Beagrie in the Sky Sports studio and he says the Londoners' elevation is just reward for the hard work put in by the Hammers' hierarchy. "The owners are West Ham fans and they took the club when it was on its knees and have had to do all sorts of deals to keep it going and give themselves a chance," said the Newcastle boss. "David Gold, David Sullivan and Karren Brady deserve a lot of credit for taking that club back to where they belong. The club is bathed in tradition and their fans are some of the best in the country. I am absolutely chuffed that they are back."
Future
Ian Holloway's Blackpool missed out on immediate promotion back to the Premier League after being unable to replicate their play-off final success against Cardiff in 2010. But both Beagrie and one-time Tangerines defender Clarke Carlisle reckon that the Bloomfield Road outfit can look back on the campaign in a positive light.
Beagrie said: "The way they got to the Premier League a couple of seasons ago was a fairy-tale and it has afforded them the opportunity to be rubbing shoulders with the likes of West Ham. The parachute payments have secured their future for a long time yet and that's the most important thing." Carlisle added: "It is so hard to dust yourselves down and go again after relegation. To get your squad focussed and used to that jolt in lifestyle and the grounds that you're going to is difficult. But they went on a run of form and gave themselves this opportunity [to get promoted]. Ian Holloway should be exceptionally proud."
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Tomkins hails happy Hammers
Tomkins and Vaz Te delighted with promotion
Last Updated: May 19, 2012 5:42pm
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Defender James Tomkins praised West Ham's promotion back to the top flight, calling it an 'unbelievable' achievement. The Hammers clinched promotion to the Premier League as Ricardo Vaz Te's late winner sealed a dramatic 2-1 victory over Blackpoolin the Championship play-off final at Wembley. Manager Sam Allardyce had vowed to take the club back to what he calls the Promised Land at the first attempt following last season's relegation and his side saw off the Seasiders to earn the East London club an estimated £90million windfall. And Tomkins, who joined the Upton Park club at the age of seven, told Sky Sport 1 HD: "It's unbelievable. Coming onto the pitch today, I was getting butterflies through by body and everything. "It's most important that we bounced back straight away and we've done that today and that's why I signed the contract midway through the season. We wanted to get the club back in the Premier League and we've achieved that, it's unbelievable really."
Character
Meanwhile, match-winner Vaz Te who scored his 24th goal of the season to bag the winner with three minutes remaining, said: "It was a great effort from the lads. It wasn't about my goal, it was about the togetherness. "We showed tremendous character today and deserved to go up." The Portuguese winger, who was signed from Barnsley during the January transfer window, continued: "I've been blessed with a second chance in my career so I'm just relishing every moment really. I'm loving it and it's great to be here." And asked if he is looking forward to playing in the top flight, he said: "It's another step and a big challenge. I think we must get there with the mentality that we are a Premier League side and not to fight relegation. "West Ham are a massive club and everybody has to keep that in mind so we're going to get there and we're going to give our best." Tomkins added: "I've been here since I was seven years old like you said and it is so important that this club remains in the Premier League now. Hats off to everyone."
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Gold - Pride back at Hammers
Co-owner hails Big Sam after play-off success
Last Updated: May 20, 2012 9:41am
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West Ham co-owner David Gold believes their Championship play-off final success against Blackpool at Wembley has brought pride back to the club. Striker Ricardo Vaz Te scored with three minutes remaining to take his team into the Premier League with a 2-1 win over Blackpool. The victory now guarantees the East End club about £90million in revenue and, although Gold is aware of the financial benefits of promotion, he claims 'pride' is more important. "You know, people talk about the money, but pride is so important," Gold told Sky Sports 1 HD. "Everybody here will be saying we're back in the Premier League and they've had a tough time. "We've had previous owners who have caused problems for the football club and of course we got relegated, but it's pride. "I keep coming back to talk about this being the richest game in football and of course it is, but what we miss out on sometimes is the impact it has on fans and it's vitally important that this great football club with great traditions is back in the Premier League."
Masterplan
And asked about the achievements of manager Sam Allardyce, who has had to deal with plenty of scrutiny from different quarters this season, he said: "I mean, it's him that's done it. It was him that failed to get us up automatically. "I think this was the masterplan to not go up automatically and come here (to Wembley) and have this fantastic day. We couldn't have had this day without failing in a way. "We brought Sam in because we wanted someone to bring pride back into the football club and he's done that."
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Noble salutes 'special day'
Noble and Nolan believe Hammers will light up top flight
Last Updated: May 19, 2012 6:17pm
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Mark Noble insists he cannot wait to take on the big boys in the Premier League after helping West Ham to promotion. Ricardo Vaz Te turned out to be the Hammers' hero after his goal with three minutes remaining ensured a 2-1 victory over Blackpoolin the Championship play-off final at Wembley. The Portuguese winger, a bargain £500,000 January signing from Barnsley, earned the club an estimated £90million windfall. And, after a stuttering campaign in which the Upton Park side set a club record with 13 away wins while dropping 28 points at home, Noble admitted there was no better way to go up than through the play-offs. "It's a very special day to be a West Ham player," Noble told Sky Sports 1 HD. "It's been a long, hard season and I think everybody knows that. "We put the fans through it and we put ourselves through it, but I mean it's all worth it. I'm loving every minute of it."
Best day
The Hammers star, who missed only one match all season, dealt with the disappointment of relegation from the Premier League last year and, when asked what it meant to be back, he said: "We wanted to do it automatically but it isn't as good as this is it? "Some people write the play-offs off because they're horrible if you don't win, but we won it and it was probably one of the best days of our lives." And Eastender Noble, the club's longest-serving player, is already looking forward to next season, saying: "You play against the best players every week and you play at the best stadiums and it's the best place to play. "I played 90 per cent of my football there and I was gagging to get back and finally I can call myself a Premier League footballer again."
Delighted
Meanwhile, the club's captain Kevin Nolan believes the side's young players will light up the top flight next season. "I'm absolutely delighted," he said. "It's been special. Jack Collison and those boys are going to bless the Premier League. "We were favourites from day one. We said we wanted to win the league and go up automatically. This was plan B. Thankfully we did it and I think we deserved it. "It was a lot of relief more than anything. It's been a tough day today. Blackpool didn't make it easy."
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Cole - Best feeling ever
Striker believes West Ham deserve to be back in the Premier League
Last Updated: May 19, 2012 6:12pm
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Carlton Cole admits it is the 'best feeling in the world' after helping West Ham United to clinch a return to the Premier League. Following relegation from the top flight 12 months ago, the Hammers were installed as favourites to make a swift return after appointing Sam Allardyce as manager. Automatic promotion eluded the club, however, as Reading won the title and Southampton hung on to claim second place on the final day of the regular season. After overcoming Cardiff City convincingly in the play-off semi-finals, West Ham were again made favourites to see off Blackpool at Wembley and book a ticket to the promised land. Cole opened the scoring in the first half and, after Thomas Ince equalised early in the second period, the striker set up Ricardo Vaz Te to smash home the winner with three minutes to go.
Burden
"It's more than what we deserve," Cole told Sky Sports. "I thought we could have played better but in the final you have to turn up and put the ball in the back of the net which we did today. "It's the best feeling in the world. "We were the favourites to win the league at the start of the season and with that burden Sam's done brilliantly. We had to deal with the pressure and we did that today. "To get back at the first time of asking is more than enough."
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Vinny's Blackpool Report
Vinny 2:36 Mon May 21
West Ham Online
Championship Play Off Final
Blackpool 1 West Ham United 2
A dramatic 87th minute winner from Ricardo Vaz Te sent West Ham back to the Premiership in a pulsating game at Wembley.
This for me was the greatest day I have ever had watching West Ham and will long in the memory. The pre match drinking, the sight of so many West Ham fans inside the stadium, the dramatic ending and the post-match celebrations made the day perfect.
If there was ever a club who deserved a day like this it was West Ham. After so many seasons of disappointment and frustration this felt as though it went some way to make up for the crap the fans have had to endure.
Even now as I type I am on this incredible high and one I wish not to come down from. I am usually in a chipper mood when West Ham secures a win but this is more intense than one could have imagined.
This was the first time I had seen West Ham at Wembley as I was not born the last time we were there in 1981 and my parents were not even married.
Growing up supporting West Ham in the 90's was not the easiest and fans around my age and younger did not have the benefit of seeing a Trevor Brooking or a Billy Bonds.
We don't have the FA Cup in 75' and 80' to keep in our hearts so this result meant more to me than I had perhaps anticipated.
It's not that we achieved promotion which has me on this high; it is winning at Wembley which is far the superior prize in my eyes. To do it in such a way was nearly more than my heart could stand and when Vaz Te smashed in the winner I thought I could explode.
I feel like I now have a day which I can look back on and eulogise instead of simply looking at YouTube videos of past glories. I am interested to know how this rates compared to 75' or 80' (or even 64 and 65' for the older statesmen reading).
I went to the 2006 Cup Final and those Play Off games previous but this I felt I took in more and really savoured every bit of the day from setting off at 9am to drinking after.
Sam Allardyce was clearly delighted and I would suspect relieved at the result and said as much in his post-match interviews. I have been critical of his tenure thus far especially derisory comments made toward the fans earlier in the season but he was brought in to get us promotion and he has provided this.
It is a very fine line between a successful season and a failure but with this victory the season is therefore a success and the goals that were set by the owners, the manager, the captain and the supporters have been met.
I like most thought Blackpool's failure to sell their allocation was disgusting. If they could not sell the tickets then fine but to go and sell tickets in each section thus preventing unsold tickets going to West Ham fans was unmannerly and terribly discourteous.
That for me can be the only negative of the day because there would have been many West Ham fans unable to get a ticket due to us selling our allocation.
The support given from our fans was outstanding and just goes to show that if we did move into the Olympic Stadium and were successful on the pitch, we would be able to see fifty thousand plus. The support is there, this proved it and I think if we had been given seventy thousand tickets we would have sold them.
I'm often proud of being a West Ham supporter. This just installed even greater pride.
The Team
Sam Allardyce stuck with the same team who beat Cardiff City in the Semi Final with Jack Collison shrugging off a shoulder injury to make the starting eleven.
Sam Baldock, Papa Bouba Diop, and Abdoulaye Faye were the unlucky notable players not be named in the 16 man squad.
The referee was Howard Webb who ironically took charge of our very first game of the season at home to Cardiff City and would oversee our very last.
First Half
Before the kick off some drinking had commenced around Paddington area from around 10am. Even at that time Paddington Station was beginning to fill up with West Ham supporters coming in from the West.
A short distance away in Marylebone was the next stop to the 'Volunteer' although by 11 this was absolutely rammed and it was clear that getting a drink here would take a while. So it was on to the next and finally on Baker Street opposite the very popular 'Globe' was the Weatherspoons Metropolitan Bar.
This was again full of West Ham and it really was a sight to behold the amount of West Ham supporters around the Baker Street area.
At 12.30 it was time to get to Wembley and the plan was go to the Green Man although by the time I got there they were no longer letting anyone in and a large crowd was gathering outside with many people trying to meet friends to get their tickets.
Down at the bottom of the road was St Jospeh's Social club which again was full up with West Ham and it was there we managed to get drinks easy enough.
Even though I was aware of how many West Ham fans were going to be in attendance, to see it all when I was walking to my seat really startled me. It was an incredible sight and one I won't be forgetting.
We kicked off and were shooting towards the Blackpool end which had many empty patches in the upper tiers. The noise from the West Ham fans was ear splitting as 'Bubbles' and 'We All Follow The West Ham' rang out.
Blackpool certainly started the better of the two sides and we looked a little dazed by the whole occasion.
The first chance of the game came on the three minute mark and Blackpool were extremely close to taking the lead as a long ball forward saw Matthew Taylor attempt to chest the ball back to Robert Green instead of heading it and his attempt was too short which allowed Scott Dobbie in and although the angle was tight his excellent attempt was pushed onto the post by Green and it was cleared.
A real let off very early on and a clear indication that this was not going to be easy.
We were playing nervous passes and kept giving the ball away frequently.
Allardyce had talked about getting at them early in his pre match press conferences but Blackpool were equal to everything in those early stages.
Vaz Te had not seen much of the ball early on but when he did get the ball down the left he got down the line well and into the area but his cross was poor and went behind for a goal kick when Cole and O'Neil were waiting in the area.
Blackpool should have done a lot better with a chance created on 14 minutes when winger Matt Phillips was put through down the middle but pressure from defenders around him saw him take his shot early and it was almost a pass back to Green with the lack of power on the effort.
If we had thought that was a let off just two minutes later saw Blackpool create a glorious chance although our defending was certainly an aid to this attack.
A long ball forward saw Guy Demel totally misjudge the flight of the ball and it bounced over him with Matthew Phillips nipping in and shrugging Demel off the ball and he was in on goal. The winger cut inside and with the goal at his mercy he fired his curling shot wide. This should have been goal and we should have been 1-0 down.
After this chance we took control of the half and slowly began to dominate possession. Blackpool did not create another clear cut chance again in the first half.
With 20 minutes gone we finally created a decent chance and one which I would have expected Vaz Te to do better with. A long ball forward to Cole saw him take the ball down well and give to Nolan who fed the unmarked Vaz Te but he dragged his shot into the side netting.
A throw from Taylor to O'Neil saw the latter put an excellent cross into the area but Cole got too much on his flick and it went over the bar.
We had a string of corners around the half hour mark but each time Blackpool dealt with them well even when Tomkins got on the end of one of them but his header back into the area was cleared.
With ten minutes remaining of the first period out of nothing we opened the scoring.
Blackpool's Tom Ince (son of former Hammer Paul Ince) was crowded out by three West Ham players with Taylor retrieving the ball and bursting forward.
An attempted interception of a pass from Taylor only gave the ball back to him and he played an exquisite pass over the defender towards Carlton Cole who took one touch then hooked his shot at goal and past the keeper to make it 1-0.
The elation was almost terrifying as the West Ham fans burst into wild celebrations. We had got that important first goal and were beginning to get a hold of the game.
Cole had scored his 15th goal of the season and continued his recent excellent form.
We should have been two up just three minutes later and the player the chance fell to you would have expected to bury it.
The ball was worked to Gary O'Neil who played a delightful ball through to Ricardo Vaz Te who with the goal at his mercy put his left foot effort wide when the goal was gaping and he should have at the very least hit the target.
Only the one minute added on time was awarded by the referee who we had hardly noticed throughout the half and we went in at half time leading and had given ourselves a big chance of securing promotion.
Second Half
There was little doubt that Blackpool would now have to come at us given that they were a goal down and in a game such as this there are no second chances. Blackpool are renowned for their attacking football and under manager Ian Holloway they have built up a reputation for scoring goals and creating chances.
Whilst I never discounted Blackpool even after we had gone a goal up I can't say I expected them to get back on level terms so quickly after the restart.
We had played just three minutes of the second half when Cole received the ball at his feet in the Blackpool half but his lay off was poor and went straight back to Blackpool's Matt Phillips who still in his own half played a wonderful pass over the top of our defence with Matthew Taylor being beaten to the ball by Tom Ince who in similar fashion to Cole's goal put it past Robert Green to make it 1-1.
There were many similarities to both goals scored for both sides and this too came totally out of nothing.
Blackpool had their tails up and the goal had given them much confidence as we fell apart.
For the next twenty minutes I really feared that we were going to get beat because there was really only one side in the game and that was certainly not us.
Blackpool played the better football, created chances, looked as though they wanted it more and they can look back on most of the second half and wonder how they did not find the goals to win the game.
Two minutes after equalising the Tangerines came close to taking the lead as a ball through the middle found Baptiste who had continued running forward and he got the ball over Robert Green only for Matthew Taylor to get back and hook it over the bar before it could go over the line.
Allardyce responded by taking off Gary O'Neil and replacing him with George McCartney which saw Matthew Taylor move up to left midfield.
Demel appeared to be struggling a few moments later and indeed was forced to come off with Julien Faubert replacing him at right back.
We were not venturing forward often although on one rare occasion some good hold up play and control from Cole saw Taylor put a good cross into the area for Collison to see his shot go high over the bar.
And signs of an improvement looked promising as we got forward again as a ball into the area and to the feet of Cole saw the striker turn brilliantly and hit a lot shot which Gilks in the Blackpool goal got down to save really well.
The game at this point was extremely tense. There was no indication to which team would win this game as the game was open and Blackpool certainly had more about them then in the first half. They looked sharper, confident and quicker.
On 67 minutes Blackpool should have scored and when I say should have I really do mean it. It was a wonderful chance and the sort of chance which most other times they would have taken.
Eardley got down the right hand side and beat Taylor before cutting the back Dobbie who simply had to hit the target and he would have more than likely scored but he fluffed his effort and it bobbled wide.
Blackpool had a spate of corners and balls into the area which had the West Ham following wincing with every attack. I felt as though this wasn't going to be our day and confidence drained from me.
As Blackpool continued to look the more likely Dobbie saw a shot on target saved well down low to Green's right as he tipped it around the post for another Blackpool corner.
Cole again did well to control a long pass towards him and he hooked the ball to Collison who cut inside and fired a shot over the bar with a number of his team mates unhappy with his decision although having made the space I don't blame him for wanting to have a go.
With 10 minutes remaining a counter attack saw us come perilously close to scoring. McCartney burst forward down the left and swapped passes with Taylor and got a cross into the area for the unmarked Kevin Nolan to meet on the volley but his shot crashed against the crossbar and the follow up from Taylor went wide.
It was hands on the head stuff and I was dreading that this was the last golden chance we would get in normal time.
Cole won a free kick half way inside the Blackpool half with Noble knocking to the back post for Tomkins to meet with a looping header which hit the roof of the net.
With full time approaching there were 3 minutes of normal time remaining. What would happen would be arguably my favourite West Ham moment ever.
Nolan ran onto a ball forward down the left and crossed into the area. The ball was not cleared and Cole battled through on goal with Gilks coming out to attempt to smother the ball. Cole at the very last moment managed to poke the ball just to his right where Ricardo Vaz Te was on hand to smash the ball into the roof of the net.
For a moment I froze as I couldn't believe what had just happened. The reaction from the West Ham support was of sheer delight and of the highest state of euphoria you can imagine. Watching it back on the television only tells a small part of how it was when that goal went in.
It felt like the culmination of all these years supporting the club. It felt as though this was my reward for all the highs and lows of my West Ham existence. It was truly mind blowing and I offer no apologies for how over the top this may sound.
Vaz Te was booked for taking his shirt off whilst celebrating.
It was a nervous last few minutes especially with four minutes of added time being awarded by Howard Web.
But we got through the injury time and when that final whistle was blown it was such a wonderful feeling.
The West Ham players celebrated, the Blackpool players fell to floor in sorrow and the West Ham fans were ready to party.
As Kevin Nolan went up to the royal box to lift the Play Off trophy it was a truly joyous occasion.
'Bubbles' was played over the PA system and was sung with such ferocious passion by the fans it defined us as a club and really said what it means to be part of this wonderful football club.
Player Reviews
Robert Green
Had to make a few routine stops and could do little about the well taken goal from Ince. At the end of the game it did seem as though he may have been saying goodbye to the fans and I sincerely hope this is not the case.
Guy Demel
Looked nervous and never settled in the game. His mistake in the first half should have cost us a goal and he looked rattled from then until he came off with injury early in the second half.
James Tomkins
A wonderful display from Tomkins who continued to show how good he can be. The experienced Kevin Phillips never got a look in and the defence caught him offside a number of times.
Winston Reid
How great it was to see another top Winston Reid performance. He is not the same player who signed for us in the summer of 2010. He was strong in the tackle, good in the air and I thought he was really impressive.
Matthew Taylor
A hit and miss performance from Taylor. He was having a tough time up against Ince and although the pass from Matt Phillips was very good for the goal he was slow in reacting to the run of Ince. He was moved into midfield moments later and put in a few good crosses. His pass in the first half for Cole was sublime and showed how good he can be with his crossing. This quality is a firm asset.
Gary O'Neil
Found it hard to really get involved although in the first half he put in a good cross for Cole which was put over the bar and he played an excellent pass through to Vaz Te who should have scored.
Mark Noble
I had hoped he would do what he has been doing in the last few games which is to sit and dictate the game but he was unable to do so with Blackpool clearly attempting to halt any supply to Noble. He wasn't poor but he certainly was not as involved as in recent weeks.
Kevin Nolan
He played well and was always in the game. There was no hiding and he got his foot in whenever possible and was so unlucky not to have scored with 10 minutes remaining as his technically brilliant volley crashed onto the crossbar.
Jack Collison
Worked hard and although things didn't always come off he was always in the mix and had a few shots which unfortunately failed to hit the target. So much better than earlier in the season and his improvement has been drastic.
Ricardo Vaz Te
The funny thing with his performance is that overall it wasn't that great. Sure he was always a danger but his final ball was poor just about every time and his decision making seemed to have deserted him. He should have scored in the first half but the fact is he was on hand to score yet another goal and how important a goal it was. If there was an action to redeem a pretty average performance it was this moment when he smashed the ball into the goal to win the game and send the club to the Premiership.
Carlton Cole
Another beast of a performance from Cole who like Collison has hit some really good recent form. He was strong, he was a little isolated but from the first minute to the last he kept going and he had such an impact by scoring the first goal and making the second. His assist for the winner has been slightly overlooked but it was intelligent play from Cole who deserves praise for stepping up.
Subs Used
George McCartney (on for O'Neil 53 mins)
Played well and gave everything as he has done all season.
Julien Faubert (on for Demel 57 mins)
We didn't really notice Faubert very much which for all our sakes was a good thing.
Subs Not Used: Henderson, Lansbury, Maynard
Bookings: Vaz Te
Man Of The Match: Carlton Cole
Blackpool: Gilks, Baptiste, Evatt, Eardley, Crainey, Ferguson, Martinez, Dobbie, M.Phillips, Ince, K.Phillips
Subs: Southern, Sylvestre, Cathcart, Dicko, Bednar
Attendance: 78,523
Overall
So after a long season we have achieved what we had set out to do although we have certainly done it the hard way.
But the fact is we are going to be playing Premiership football next season and that for the future of the club is what was needed.
I'll miss the Championship in some ways with regards to cheaper away days and the variation of cities and towns but West Ham in the top division is where we need to be and hopefully we will not be playing second division football again for quite some time at least.
Sams View
"I'm totally and utterly delighted with the victory today, "I feel elated to say the very least but also hugely drained because Play-Off finals for managers particularly are one hell of an occasion in terms of wanting your team to go out and win the game of football.
"We have only lost eight games in total (out of 49 league and Play-Off fixtures) and made sure today, even though not at our best, that we won the game which was the most important thing. We took more chances than Blackpool did today and that gives us the right to be back in the Premier League."
"What was going through my mind was Chairman David Sullivan pestering me all year saying we have never won a game in the last-minute throughout the entire season!"
"The first time we have won a game in the final five minutes was in the 49th game in the Play-Off final- you can't get better than that can you!"
Season 2011/12 Final Scorers and Red Cards
Carlton Cole - 15 (15 League)
Kevin Nolan - 13 (13 League)
Ricardo Vaz Te - 12 (12 League)
Mark Noble - 8 (8 League)
Jack Collison - 6 (6 League)
Sam Baldock - 5 (5 League)
Own Goal - 4 (4 League)
Nicky Maynard - 3 (3 League)
Winston Reid - 3 (3 League)
James Tomkins - 3 (3 League)
Gary O'Neil - 2 (2 League)
John Carew - 2 (2 League)
Frederique Piquionne - 2 (2 League)
Henri Lansbury - 1 (1 League)
Papa Bouba Diop - 1 (1 League)
Joey O'Brien - 1 (1 League)
Matthew Taylor - 1 (1 League)
Julien Faubert - 1 (1 League)
Frank Nouble - 1 (1 League)
George McCartney - 1 (1 League)
Danny Collins - 1 (1 League)
Scott Parker - 1 (1 League)
Junior Stanislas - 1 (1 Cup)
Red Cards
Callum McNaughton - 1 (vs Aldershot home)
Frederique Piquionne - 1 (vs Portsmouth home)
Joey O'Brien - 1 (vs Reading away)
Jack Collison - 1 (vs Reading away)
Kevin Nolan - 1 (vs Millwall home)
Matthew Taylor - 1 (vs Southampton home)
Robert Green - 1 (vs Blackpool away)*
*rescinded by FA on appeal
So there it is, another season and a busy one in terms of the match reports.
Few thank you's.
Thanks to everyone who had read or commented on one of the reports this season (positive or negative!). Thank you for your emails and feedback throughout the long campaign.
Thank you to JACK1 for helping me out with tickets this season.
Massive thanks to OneFlew for lifts he has provided to some of those away games. It is much appreciated.
And for keeping me company throughout the season thanks to my Dad, my mates James, Chris and Richard.
Thank you also to the lords of WHO who continue to allow me to do this.
Enjoy the summer, enjoy the Euro's and get yourselves ready for another West Ham season.
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Mission Accomplished - As 'Ruthlessness' Makes the Difference in the £90m Match!
By S J Chandos 1 day ago
West Ham Till I Die
Well, it was not the performance that we had anticipated, but we just about did enough to deliver the win. West Ham looked quite uncertain in the opening 15-20 minutes,as Blackpool cut through our rearguard three times to create clear scoring chances. The problem for the Seasiders was that they missed all three. In contrast, West Ham scored with their first chance, as Taylor did very well to find Carlton Cole in the box. Cole then showed real class to control and convert the chance.
Blackpool, to their credit, caused us a lot of problems, as Matt Phillips and Thomas Ince used their pace to 'get at' Demel and Taylor. Phillips gave Demel at torrid time at right-back, while Ince also gave Taylor problems on the opposite flank. Thankfully, the Tomkins-Reid central defensive partnership stood firm, as Blackpool put us firmly on the back foot defensively. And we made it through to half-time with our 1-0 lead intact.
However, Pool's two wide men combined, at the beginning of the second half, to grab a well taken equaliser. And for the next 10-15 minutes or so West Ham rocked as they were caught on the ropes. This was the most dangerous period for us in the whole match, this was when the Final could have been lost. Thankfully, Sam Allardyce took decisive action to stabilise the ship and get us back into the match. Basically, he took off O'Neill and brought on the ever reliable George McCartney to deal with Ince and, then, replaced the struggling Demel with the pacy Faubert. For me, those tactical substitutions were the decisive turning point in the match. Suddenly, Ince was getting 'no change' out of old campaigner McCartney and Phillips was up against a player, in Faubert, who could match him for pace. At the same time, Taylor was pushed forward to concentrate upon delivering his accurate balls in to the Pool penalty area. And Blackpool suddenly lost the initiative that they had enjoyed, but had failed to exploit sufficently to win the match.
McCartney really is a good player for us. He has been outstanding, in his consistency, this season. Not only did he neutralise Ince's threat, but also started to drive forward to supoort Taylor in attacks along the left flank. Reid-Tomkins were put under pressure at times, but stood up to it well. Tonkins won ball after ball at the back and was also a constant threat at set peices; while the underrated Winston Reid saved the day on more than one occasion. Rob Green made a couple of crucial saves, particularly the one from Dobbie early in the first half. Nolan worked tiredlessly and put in a real Captain's performance. He almost scored with a wicked volley that struck the bar and, of course, played in the ball that led to the winner. Collison and O'Neill grafted tirelessly, but the Hammers' midfield unit did not function as proficiently as usual in this match. This also applied to Mark Noble, who failed to shine as he has done for most of this season. He did, however, stick at his task and made a crucial goal line clearance in the second half. While Matt Taylor made a huge contribution with his 'pin point' balls forward, but definitely looked most effective when McCartney's introduction afforded him the opportunity to get in to more advanced positions along the left flank.
Up front, Carlton Cole had an excellent game. He was lively and a constant danger to Blackpool's rearguard. His goal was taken with clinical class. Similarly, the second half shot on the turn nearly secured him a second goal and had class stamped through it like a stick of Southend (or should that be Blackpool) rock. Finally, his shot and folow up challenge was instrumental in creating the winner. Vaz Te had one of his quieter games, but still had a couple of decent efforts, including one that went narrowly wide, which would have put us 2-0 up.. But it is the mark of a good striker that they can have a relatively quiet match for 80 odd minutes and then pop up with a winning goal. And so it proved to be, as Vaz Te was in the right place, at the right time, to pick up the knock-on by Cole and convert with aplomb, via a powerful strike in to the roof of the net in the 87th minute. .
Then it was merely a case of holding on and seeing out the remaining 7 minutes of normal and extra time. Blackpool threw everything at us, but we held firm and obtained a crucial victory to secure a return to the PL at the first time of asking.
As previously stated, it was not a great performance by West Ham. We rode our luck at times, but ultimately it is the result that matters in Play-Offs Finals. Although not playing particularly well, we held it together, worked hard and secured a £90m win. Blackpool gave it their best shot, but they could not land the big knock out punch. And the big difference was ultimately quality in the final third, Pool were wasteful and inefficient, whereas we were clinical and, yes, 'ruthless' in taking our opportunities. In that respect, Cole and Vaz Te should take great credit for the quality of their finishing. Hopefully, Carlton Cole will return to the PL a more consistent player; while there is an intriguing question as to just how good Vaz Te will prove to be? He is outstanding at Championship level and, hopefully, he will also excel against PL defences. We will only discover the answer to that question next season, but there is a strong possbility that West Ham have uncovered a real gem of a striker in Mr Vaz Te.
So it is mission accomplished, it was nervous and uncomfortable at times, but we got there in the end. And the atmosphere and victory celebrations were truly memorable. And so, we will now bask in the glory of promotion for a while, until everyone's attention gradually turns to next season and squad strengthening in the summer transfer window. But for now, that can wait. COYI!
SJ. Chandos. .
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Best feeling in the world
Blackpool 1 West Ham 2
The Sun
Last Updated: 20th May 2012
CARLTON COLE hailed the "best feeling in the world" after West Ham's dramatic play-off glory. RICARDO VAZ TE hit a £90m late winner to put West Ham back in the Premier League The Hammers powerhouse hit the opener and teed up strike-partner Ricardo Vaz Te's late clincher as Sam Allardyce's men returned to the Premier League with a 2-1 Wembley defeat of Blackpool. Cole said: "I thought we could have played better but in the final you have to turn up and put the ball in the back of the net which we did today. "It's the best feeling in the world. "We were favourites to win the league at the start of the season and with that burden Sam's done brilliantly. We had to deal with the pressure and we did that today. "To get back at the first time of asking is more than enough."
Vaz Te admitted he felt "blessed" after joining West Ham from Barnsley in January following a season with Hibs that seemed to have ended his top-flight dream.
He said: "Its not about the goal. We showed great character. "We're a Premier League side and we deserved to go up. "It's terrific really. I feel like I have been blessed with a second chance in my career and it's great to be here." And he urged the Hammers to enter the Prem brimming with belief rather than fear. He added: "It is another step, a big challenge. "We must get there with the mentality that we're a Premier League side and not there to fight for relegation - West Ham is a great club."
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Half-price hero
Blackpool 1 West Ham 2
The Sun
BY DAVID FACEY
West Ham's Wembley hero Carlton Cole revealed he took a 50 PER CENT PAY CUT this season to fire Hammers back into the big time. The hitman agreed to slash his wages from £28,000 to £14,000 a week after the Irons' were relegated 12 months ago. He also turned down the chance to stay in the top flight with Stoke to stick with the Hammers in the Championship. That loyalty is in stark contrast to that shown by one of his Upton Park predecessors Defoe, who infamously slapped in a transfer request within hours of West Ham going down from the Prem in 2003. Cole, 28, scored the opener and had a hand in Ricardo Vaz Te's winner in Saturday's Championship Play-Off final victory at Wembley. And he said: "I've kept my mouth shut for quite a while but I did take a wage cut to stay in the Championship. Half of my wages just went. "But I thought 'You know what? I want to help this club get back where we belong.' "I didn't want to leave the ship, I am that sort of guy. I would not have been able to live with myself. "It is just such a reward today to get to the Premier League again with West Ham at the first time of asking. This was D-Day for all of us. "I can't explain how proud as a player, person and family man I am to be here."
Many of you reading this will argue, understandably, that modern-day footballers can afford to take a hefty pay cut. And let's be honest, £14,000-a-week is hardly living on the breadline. But how many players in this prima donna era would have stayed and taken the hit? Not many, I am guessing. Cole added: "I have a lifestyle to maintain and I'd bought houses and everything. I took a big hit. "But I knew West Ham under the right management, coach and staff would get up. And we have.
"Now I have learnt my lesson not to get relegated again — I can't take another hit!"
Cole opened the scoring with a fine finish from Matt Taylor's 35th-minute through ball. Thomas Ince levelled for Blackpool three minutes after the break and Ian Holloway's men looked as though they would go on and win as they created a string of chances. But Alex Baptiste and Stephen Dobbie both missed sitters before Cole caused havoc in the Seasiders' box, allowing Vaz Te to smash home the winner with just three minutes left. Victory justified Cole's decision to snub a move to Stoke last August. He said: "I could have gone, but I did not have the right feeling for it and I wanted to stay here. I wanted to graft and make sure that we got up.
"That has gone now. It is not about me. It is about the day, occasion, the team. Everyone has done really well."
Cole's loyalty will be rewarded with his salary returning to its former level. He said: "No contract talks have been planned but we will see what happens. "I have a year left and we will see where that takes us. Hopefully both sides will be happy that I sign a new contract. "I am here to help West Ham and if they want a relegation clause then I am happy to have it. You can't be on Premier League wages in the Championship." "Obviously I want to earn as much as I can in my career.
"But when you have been relegated, you don't deserve it and you need to work back to where you need to get to. Then they give it back to you. That is the way I felt."
New deal or not, Cole has hero status among Hammers fans who held a banner at Wembley saying: "Sex, drugs and Carlton Cole." He said: "I can't condone the drugs part! "But sex we all love. You know what I mean?"
SUN RATINGS
BLACKPOOL: Gilks 6, Eardley 4, Evatt 7, Baptiste 5, Crainey 6, Ferguson 5, Dobbie 4, Martinez 6, Ince 6, K Phillips 6, M Phillips 7. Subs: Sylvestre (K Phillips 71) 5, Dicko (Martinez 90) 5, Bednar (Dobbie 90) 5. Not used: Southern, Cathcart.
WEST HAM: Green 7, Demel 5, Tomkins 7, Reid 5, Taylor 5, O'Neil 5, Noble 5, Nolan 6, Collison 5, Cole 8, Vaz Te 7. Subs: McCartney (O'Neil 53) 5, Faubert (Demel 58) 5. Not used: Henderson, Maynard, Lansbury. Booked: Vaz Te.
We've saved £50m
DAVID GOLD says West Ham's play-off triumph has saved him and co-owner David Sullivan a whopping £50million. Gold admitted: "Had we lost we would have had to have found more money. It probably would have cost us around £30m initially. "We would have then asked ourselves 'Do we want to challenge again in the Championship?' If so, we would have had to find another £20m. It would have been painful."
On yer Marks
MARK NOBLE rushed off to prepare for an even bigger match after West Ham's triumph. The midfielder, 25, weds childhood squeeze Carly on Friday and immediately flew out to Dubai for his stag do. He said: "There's 10 of us going for five days. Seven are already there and texted me, 'Well done, now hurry, we want to get steaming.' "Carly watched me in the school team and I'd get three goals a game. It's different now!"
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Greatest moment ever
The Sun
By STEVE BRENNER
Published: 20th May 2012
SAM ALLARDYCE led West Ham back into the Premier League promised land — then defiantly roared: This is my greatest moment. Ricardo Vaz Te's 87th-minute winner ensured Big Sam's Hammers returned to the top flight at the first attempt. Allardyce has never been flavour of the month with some of the Upton Park faithful. In fact, it has been anything but plain sailing since he inherited the mess left by predecessor Avram Grant. So no wonder Allardyce was as proud as punch last night having completed his East London salvage job at Wembley. The Irons boss said: "It's up there with the best moments of my career — probably better than the Millennium Stadium victory with Bolton against Preston because it's West Ham. "It's the size of the club, the pressure we were under and to win at Wembley makes it extra special. "For the first time I have come here and won." Allardyce clearly enjoyed sticking two fingers up at his doubters. He added: "You get criticised everywhere in this game. It is only a small minority but they make themselves heard. "I know the vast majority of West Ham fans have been behind us all season because we have been winning games. "At the end of the day, we have lost one game in 2012. If you cannot celebrate, I don't know what you can celebrate. "Overall, we've lost only eight in 49. It's been a thrilling season and the players have been outstanding, based on where we started and where we ended up."
The big challenge now will be to keep the Hammers in the top flight. But Allardyce wants to take stock of an amazing victory before facing up to next season's challenges. He said: "We will relax and enjoy this — and not think about what's ahead just yet. "You have to make sure that this sinks in. This is a memory for life, for everyone concerned with West Ham. "It's just an outstanding achievement, because it's bigger than anything else, any cup final. It's over 11 months and we have done it."
Blackpool boss Ian Holloway was gutted to see his troops suffer last-gasp agony, especially after Matty Phillips wasted two brilliant chances to kill off the Hammers.
His pain intensified after the final whistle when doping officials tried to test his players while he attempted to give his distraught troops a post-match debrief. Holloway said: "The players did us proud. Some things in life are hard and it feels that way right now. "I was not happy at half-time. I asked for a response and boy did we get one. On another day, we would have taken those chances. "I feel pretty lifeless as I have experienced both sides. "Our guys deserve better money, especially a bonus for going up, but didn't get it. They played above their wages. "With the doping, it's bureaucracy gone mad. I've had a ruck with the officials. All I wanted to do was to tell my players how proud I was."
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Promotion tied up, now Sam wants stadium
Blackpool 1 West Ham 2
GLENN MOORE WEMBLEY MONDAY 21 MAY 2012
The Independent
For Mark Noble it was the perfect start to his stag week and for Sam Allardyce it made up for missing out on a trip to Las Vegas, but for David Gold West Ham's play-off victory on Saturday was priceless. Pressed, the joint-chairman put a figure on what success was worth to himself and co-owner David Sullivan. "It would have cost [us] probably around another £30m. If you own 150 oil wells then it's no problem. If you own 150 Ann Summers shops..."
That £30m would not have been enough to hold on to players like Rob Green and Carlton Cole either – not with Financial Fair Play due to be adopted in the Championship, a prospect that Allardyce said would have forced the club to slash the wage bill. Instead the manager can look forward to a return to the top flight with a team that looks well equipped to survive, Gold and Sullivan being prepared to invest to maintain Premier League status while they wait for the opportunity to move into the Olympic Stadium.
"I would like to see the stadium tied up as quickly as possible," said Allardyce. "I just feel it's an un-believable stadium for the football club to move in there. I know a lot of diehard West Ham fans would like to stay where we are but, believe you me, the way forward is to go to a venue like that. It would be like playing at Wembley every week. The atmosphere would be electric as long as it gets converted the right way."
Allardyce had booked a trip to Vegas to watch Amir Khan's world-title re-match with Lamont Peterson. The fight was called off and so, after West Ham's failure to secure automatic promotion, was Allardyce's trip. His wife, daughter and grandson went, though.
"They're eight hours behind so they're having a drop of pink champagne with their breakfast, I'm glad to say," said Allardyce. "If they hadn't gone I'd have forfeited the whole lot of the money I'd splashed out to get them there. My wife's probably better off out of the way anyway; she doesn't do nerves very well after a long period of watching me as a manager."
There was relief, too, for the soon-to-be Mrs Carly Noble, whose wedding to schoolboy sweetheart Mark on Friday would have had something of a cloud hanging over it had West Ham lost. Noble, and team-mate James Tomkins, flew off to join the stag party in Dubai.
"The medal is going with me," he said. "I made a deal with my little cousin James that if we won he had to wear it the whole five days. It would have been a sour note flying out there being on the losing team, and the same with the wedding."
There was a sour note to Blackpool's defeat, with Ian Holloway having a screaming row with doping-control officials after the match, then renewing his ongoing struggle for funds with his chairman, Karl Oyston.
Dave Jones, a loser here with Cardiff two years ago (against Blackpool), made the point in the match programme that as a manager "you have to choose your words carefully [when talking to the team post-match] because it can have an effect when the players come back."
Holloway had similar thoughts as he tried to gather his squad together "to tell them how proud I am of them", only to find Kevin Phillips and Barry Ferguson whisked away for drug tests.
"Don't give me that bullshit," he screamed. "Your rules are just so much bullshit. Use your discretion. I want all my players in one room – now!"
Eventually he got them. Then he turned to Oyston, and the summer negotiations on wages and transfers.
"I'm almost not looking forward to those chats because he gets on his high horse and starts bellowing about, 'They're all wrong, everybody pays more than they should'," said Holloway. "But I'm not here to break the bank, I'm here to add to things.
"I think he should know what I can do now. As an investment for his football club, I almost got him another £90m. Before I came here, his dad [Blackpool's majority owner, Owen Oyston, who was paid £11m by the club last season for being a director] was worth £105m, now it's £200-215m. I need to talk to my chairman about how we're going to keep building. It's really important he actually understands where I believe we can go. I don't think he realises how football is."
Holloway will now go on holiday to Italy, where his break may well be interrupted by inquiries from clubs interested in his services, such as Aston Villa and Blackburn Rovers.
The gulf in resources showed. While Holloway had to field the 38-year-old Phillips in an ill-suited front-running role, after Gary Taylor-Fletcher was ruled out injured, Allardyce could leave the £2m January signing Nicky Maynard on the bench. Cole and Ricardo Vaz Te led the line and both scored as West Ham took their chances. Blackpool, Thomas Ince aside, spurned theirs.
"It means another season of Championship slog, of 'Will we get people putting in offers for some of the young ones?' and 'Will we lose some of them?'," said Holloway gloomily.
Match facts
Blackpool: GILKS; EARDLEY; BAPTISTE; EVATT; CRAINEY; MARTINEZ; FERGUSON; M PHILLIPS; DOBBIE; K PHILLIPS; INCE
West Ham: GREEN; TAYLOR; REID; TOMKINS; DEMEL; COLLISON; NOLAN; NOBLE; O'NEIL; VAZ TE; COLE
Scorers: Blackpool Ince 48. West Ham United Cole 35, Vaz Te 87.
Substitutes: Blackpool Sylvestre (K Phillips, 71), Bednar (Martinez, 90), Dicko (Dobbie, 90). West Ham McCartney (O'Neil, 53), Faubert (Demel, 57).
Booked: West Ham Vaz Te.
Man of the match Cole. Match rating 8/10. Possession: Blackpool 52% West Ham 48%.
Attempts on target: Blackpool 7 West Ham 4.
Referee H Webb (South Yorkshire). Attendance 78,523.
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West Ham United prepare for a reality check as they count cost of a return to Premier League
The champagne and the fireworks erupted into the air as West Ham celebrated their return to the Premier League on Saturday.
By Matt Scott, at Wembley11:00PM BST 20 May 20122 Comments
The telegraph
But as the bubbles dispersed, so the cold, hard reality of what it all meant – where the east London club are, and where they might have been – struck home.
Upon relegation last year West Ham owed £41.6 million to the banks, £11.2 million in transfer debts and £17.3 million in unspecified "other creditors", including reparations payments to Sheffield United over the Carlos Tévez scandal. How much that position deteriorated in the Championship is unknown even to West Ham's owners, but access to at least £39 million of broadcast payments alone will salve their ailing finances. "We are back in the Premier League but the hard work starts on Monday because we are a club that is recovering from a difficult period in its history," admitted the club's chairman, David Gold. "We've gone through some poor management structures. Our financial structure was poorly run for many years. We are getting to grips with that and getting back into the Premier League certainly helps with that endeavour."
Gold, who along with his co-owner, David Sullivan, had invested £36 million in cash donations to the Upton Park club between taking over in January 2010 and going down last season, revealed that were it not for promotion, changes would quickly have been required. "It would have cost probably around another £30 million," he said. "But you never know [until] you sit down and work it out. It also depends on what you want to do. "Do you want to challenge again in the Championship? If so you would have to find another £20 million, let's say. Or if you don't and you risk being relegated into League One then it would cost you nothing. It's a business decision which would be up to David and I. "We wouldn't have sat there deluding ourselves, we would have needed to find more money. The first thing we would have done on Monday if we didn't win was say we need to cut our cloth accordingly. It's painful. If you own 150 oil wells it's no problem. If you own 150 Ann Summers shops..."
Whatever the source of his own wealth, Gold must now try to compete against astronomically wealthy purveyors of the black gold. When in 2010-11 his club last rubbed up against Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyan's Manchester City and Roman Abramovich's Chelsea, they scored three and conceded 11 in four comprehensive defeats, home and away. Experiences in the Championship, where promotion remained in the balance until Ricardo Vaz Te rammed in an 87th-minute winner after Thomas Ince had hauled Blackpool level, can give scant indication of how West Ham will fare in the top flight again. Yet despite the magnitude of the task ahead, West Ham manager Sam Allardyce wants to repay the club's owners with more than mere survival. "It's really their passion for West Ham United which you have got to say is the most impressive, because they put their money where their mouth is," Allardyce said. "They stump it up: the club has to be propped up by their personal wealth. But you've got to give them results: if they stump it up and you do not deliver. So that's the pressure you're under."
He added that the fans would know "we're not going to win as many games next year as probably we've won this one. But if we get the right team together and we get the right team spirit then we'll give it a right good go. "Certainly my job will be to try to aim as high as we possibly can in the Premier League." Those players who have already experienced relegation now have an existential motivation to improve on last season's performances. Carlton Cole, scorer of West Ham's opener with a composed finish, articulated how relegation had affected him. "I've kept my mouth shut for quite a while but I did take a wage cut to stay in the Championship," he said. "Half my wages just went. I have a lifestyle to maintain and I bought houses and everything. I took a big hit. We don't want to be that close again. We have got to try to win games. "I learnt my lesson this season and I will appreciate the Premier League more next season. Maybe I took it for granted. I am human. "Sometimes God gives you challenges in life and it depends on how you bounce back from it. I bounced back straight away and I know what I missed and that was the Premier League. I've learnt my lesson not to get relegated again. I can't take another hit."
Uphill task for Allardyce
12: In the Premier League era 12 of the 20 teams who have come up through the play-offs have gone straight back down the following season.
3: Over the past nine seasons just three play-off winners survived in their first Premier League season. West Ham, who stayed in the top flight for six seasons after their 2005 promotion, Swansea City (promoted 2011) and Hull City (2008) bucked the trend.
Blackpool (2010), Burnley (2009), Derby (2007), Watford (2006), Crystal Palace (2004) and Wolves (2003) did not.
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Sam Allardyce praises Carlton Cole's 'show of love' for West Ham
• Striker took a pay cut to help fire West Ham back to top flight
• Contract talks with Robert Green a priority for West Ham
Stuart James at Wembley
guardian.co.uk, Sunday 20 May 2012 22.31 BST
West Ham United fans show their support for Carlton Cole, who turned down a move to Stoke last summer, during the play-off final. Photograph: John Walton/Empics Sport
David Gold had a smile from ear to ear, Mark Noble was proudly wearing the play‑off winner's medal that was going with him on his stag-do in Dubai later that evening while the man who scored the opening goal and also had a hand in the winner could not help but chuckle at the "Sex, Drugs and Carlton Cole" banner held up by West Ham United supporters. "I can't condone the drugs part," Cole said, "but sex, we all love. You know what I mean?"
It was that sort of day at Wembley as West Ham raucously celebrated their return to the Premier League after a 12‑month hiatus that would have brought considerable financial pain had it been extended. "It would have cost probably another £30m," said Gold, West Ham's co‑owner, when asked what the ramifications would have been in the event of defeat. "It's painful. If you own 150 oil wells, then it's no problem. If you own 150 Ann Summers shops …"
Now there is another, albeit much more welcome, need for investment. Gold predicted "the club's got to find £20m to ensure it doesn't get relegated" from the Premier League, which seemed like a reasonable figure to put on the price of survival on the back of West Ham's performance against Blackpool. Blackpool had three decent opportunities before West Ham took the lead and Ian Holloway's side also dominated for long periods after the interval, carving open a defence who always looked vulnerable.
Had a couple of those Blackpool chances been converted, Sam Allardyce may have been facing a fight to hold on to his job this week. Instead, the West Ham manager was asked whether a new contract, to replace the 12 months remaining on his existing one, was likely.
"Not for me. I don't need one. I'm my own man now," said Allardyce, sounding a lot more confident than he had looked in the tunnel before kick-off. "I don't need the security of a contract to work in this game. Somewhere down the line in the middle of next year maybe, but not now."
Other contract talks are more pressing. West Ham have made a priority of negotiations with Robert Green, the former England goalkeeper who is out of contract in the summer. Discussions with Noble and Cole, who both have 12 months remaining on their deals, are expected to take place soon afterwards. Cole was close to joining Stoke City last summer but rejected the move and sacrificed a fair bit of money in the process to lead the line in West Ham's promotion assault.
"I've kept my mouth shut for quite a while but I did take a wage cut to stay in the Championship," Cole said. "Half my wages just went. I thought 'I want to help the club get back to where we belong'. I didn't want to leave the ship. I would not have been able to live with myself. It is just such a reward to get to the Premier League again with West Ham at the first time of asking. It was like D‑Day for all of us.
"No contract talks have been planned but we will see what happens. Hopefully both sides will be happy that I sign a new contract. I am here to help West Ham and if there is a relegation clause, then I am happy to do it. You can't be on Premier League wages in the Championship. I know money is a massive factor in everyone's career, and obviously I want to earn as much as I can, but when you don't deserve it, as you have been relegated, you need to work back to where you need to get to."
Allardyce paid tribute to Cole for demonstrating "a real show of love for this club" as well as for scoring 15 goals this season, the last of which was the superbly taken strike that gave West Ham the lead here. Ian Evatt was caught ball-watching on that occasion and Blackpool will also have nightmares about Ricardo Vaz Tê's scrappy winner, when the forward rammed home from close range after Cole's stabbed effort had squirted into his path via a touch from Matt Gilks, the goalkeeper.
Thomas Ince scored in-between to equalise for Blackpool, and for a period it seemed only a matter of time before Holloway's side would add a second. "They had gone and I think we had them," Evatt said. "Sometimes in football, you don't get what you deserve and we definitely didn't get what we deserved. I think we were much the better team. I think we play the game in the modern way, we don't smash it up to certain players, we try to pass it properly and play through midfield and that's something to be proud of."
Evatt's comments felt like a less than discreet dig at West Ham's style of play, which has also been a source of frustration for the club's supporters at times this season. For Allardyce, though, it was always all about getting West Ham back in the big time.
"The fans will know we're not going to win as many games next season as probably we've won this one," he said. "But if we get the right team together and get the right team spirit, then we'll give it a right good go."
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