Daily WHUFC News - 29th September 2012

Dev Squad march on
WHUFC.com
The Development Squad continue to top the Barclays Under-21 Premier League
after beating Norwich City 2-0
28.09.2012

The Development Squad continued their hot streak with a 2-0 win against
Norwich City in Friday night courtesy of a looping header from Rob Hall and
a low drive from Pelly Ruddock. Prior to kick-off at Rush Green the Canaries
were level on points at the top of the league with both the Hammers and
Arsenal, who themselves had succumbed to defeat at Rush Green just one week
ago. The away side settled the quicker of the two but it didn't take long
for Ian Hendon's side to find their rhythm and with eight minutes played
they should have taken the lead. Hall charged down the left on the counter,
before leaving three Norwich players in his wake and crossing to the
arriving Paul McCallum, who failed to hit the target from five yards. Just
two minutes later Hall showed McCallum how it is done. Matthias Fanimo broke
down the left and found Dan Potts on the overlap who floated a cross to the
near post where Hall sent a looping header over Declan Rudd. Jack Powell,
who was a late change to the line-up, almost created a second West Ham goal
just a minute after their first but captain Callum Driver was denied by the
crossbar from 30 yards. With 20 minutes gone it was still all action as
Norwich almost drew level when Driver once again took centre stage by
somehow clearing Aaron Tumwa's header off the line with Raphael Spiegel
beaten. 64 minutes into the game the Hammers felt they should have been 2-0
up. Potts showed terrific vision, turning his man on the byline before
pulling the back to Moncur, who fizzed his shot towards goal. The keeper was
beaten and a goal looked certain but, just like Driver in the first half,
Norwich had a hero of their own in Ewan McNeil, who stopped the ball dead on
the line. Despite the Hammers' claims that the ball was over the line, their
protests were waved away.

Norwich continued to struggle and were unable to break down the resolute
West Ham United back line and Ruddock secured the points on 90 minutes,
turning in the box before firing into the corner past Rudd. Meanwhile, Blair
Turgott was also in action on Friday some 1500 miles away, scoring twice as
the England Under-19s ran out 6-0 winners against the Faroe Islands in
Tallinn, Estonia. The Irons youngster was thwarted on two occasions early on
by keeper Eli Leifsson, but eventually beat him in the eleventh minute from
20-yards before adding a second and England's fifth with eight minutes
remaining. Arsenal's Chuba Akpom also scored twice with substitutes Hallam
Hope and Calum Chambers also on the scoresheet. Next up for Turgott and
England is a tie with Ukraine on Monday.

West Ham United: Spiegel, Driver, Potts, Moncur, Chambers, Spence, Powell
(Ruddock 55), Lletget, McCallum, Fanimo, Hall.
Subs not used: Lee, Baxter, Tombides, Wearen.

Norwich City: Rudd, McNeil, Tumwa, Durojaiye, Gafaiti, Sheriff, Jacob
Murphy, Hamilton (Barker 82), Loza, King (Clunan 65), Josh Murphy
(Hall-Johnson 82).
Subs not used: Steer, Morris, Barker.

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Taylor hoping for a happy Monday
WHUFC.com
Matt Taylor is targeting three points when West Ham United travel to QPR on
Monday night
28.09.2012

Matt Taylor is hoping to help fire West Ham United to their first away win
of the season when they visit Queens Park Rangers on Monday night. After a
disappointing first away-day of the 2012/13 Barclays Premier League season
at Swansea City last month, the Hammers put in an improved performance in a
0-0 draw at Norwich City on 15 September. Taylor now hopes they can go one
better at Loftus Road, but knows QPR will also be hoping for three points
having failed to win any of their opening five league fixtures. "I think the
key for us is to be solid at the back and look to convert the chances we
create," Taylor said. "If we do this then hopefully we can come away with a
positive result. "It will be a hard game - we haven't won away in the league
this season, so we would like to get that monkey off our backs. I think it
is going to be a good game."

Taylor believes that the fixture will benefit from the added spice that
London derbies always tend to provide. The match will also be West Ham
United's first league game under floodlights this season, so a lively
atmosphere is expected. "We are looking to continue what has been a solid
start for us in the Barclays Premier League, there are no easy games and it
is also a London derby. "We are a promoted side so perhaps that works in our
favour, there might not be the huge expectation on us as a club or a team in
that respect. We have had a good start to the season and we want to build on
it starting Monday. "QPR are the home side and they will want to impose
themselves early on so we can expect a frantic start. They will come out
fast but we also want to stake a claim on the game. Myself and the lads are
very much looking forward to it."

Taylor scored his first goal of the season in the 3-0 win against Fulham and
although he enjoyed getting on the scoresheet that day, a win for the team
is of far greater importance. "I don't mind who scores or who gets on the
end of chances. As long as we score and we win nothing else matters.
"Of course it would be nice to chip in if I can, but any goal is a good
goal. It doesn't matter how it goes in as long as it is the goal that gets
us the result we want."

Captain Kevin Nolan snatched a late equaliser in the Hammers' last outing
against Sunderland last weekend, but Taylor is hoping that a solitary point
is the least they return with from west London. "Sunderland showed when they
came to our place that every game is a difficult one. It was to our credit
that we kept going and got a reward for those efforts. "In my mind any point
in the Premier League is a good point, especially away from home. Hopefully
that is the least we will finish with on Monday night."

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Mavila making progress
WHUFC.com
West Ham United's young summer signing from Wycombe Wanderers has settled in
quickly
28.09.2012

Nathan Mavila has plenty of ambition - ambition to make it as a top-class
professional footballer and ambition to set the record straight about his
native Brixton.
Born and raised to Congolese parents, the summer capture from Wycombe
Wanderers captained both south and inner London as a schoolboy. A versatile
full-back or winger, the first-year scholar has a maturity that belies his
16 years. Mavila has settled quickly at West Ham United and, looking ahead
to the Under-18s' game away at Norwich City on Saturday morning, he knows
what he wants to achieve in the game. "I'm from Brixton and I started out
playing for a club called Afewee Urban when I was seven or eight, where I
was team-mates with [West Ham team-mate] Leo Chambers. I've lived in Brixton
all my life. "I got scouted by Wycombe when I was in Year Seven in 2007 and
I was there for five years. Other clubs came in for me and I went on trial
to Chelsea but didn't get in. I have come to West Ham because of the
reputation the club has. "I want to thank the Wycombe scout Michael
Carnegie, assistant manager Richard Dobson and the first-team manager Gary
Waddock for what they did for me and my development. "I'd also like to thank
my teacher from Sacred Heart School Richard Lasiquot and my dad Mr Muanda
Mavila. "I was attracted to West Ham because of the opportunities available
at the club and also because I knew a few of the people here. I didn't just
want to go somewhere and not feel at home. London is closer to home but, at
the same time, it's easy to feel not at home. "I think I am just finding my
feet at the moment and trying to do my thing. I want to push on and, if I do
really well this season, then I want to push on into the Development Squad
next season."

Mavila's comfort at his new club has been evidenced by his fine start to
life in a claret and blue shirt. The left-sided player has started twice and
appeared in the opening four Barclays Under-18 Premier League fixtures,
scoring his maiden goal in a 4-0 victory over West Bromwich Albion. He has
been deployed as a winger ahead of left-back Frazer Shaw, but revealed he
can play anywhere down the flank or even wide on the right. "At Wycombe I
was a left winger until Under-15s, but they told me the Under-18s needed a
left-back and asked me if I wanted to play there and I said I would give it
a try. I played there for two seasons and the club see me as a winger again
and I'm enjoying it. "I get on well with Frazer and he talks to me a lot on
and off the pitch. We've got a good relationship, as I have with Josh Siafa
when I play on the right."

Like many left-sided players, Mavila is a massive fan of Chelsea and
England's Ashley Cole: "All my life I have watched him. He is top-drawer in
terms of his attacking and defending. He is consistent and I think he's a
good role model and a leader. "I think I've got more things to work on
myself. I can improve my movement and strength and my defending because,
having moved on to the wing, I have lost those habits a little bit and I
need to get them back. I also need to offer a bit more in the final third."

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The kids are still United
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 28th September 2012
By: Staff Writer

Jordan Spence has expressed his disappointment after West Ham were sent
crashing out of the Capital One Cup on Tuesday evening. The Hammers were
beaten 4-1 on the night with Sam Allardyce receiving criticism from some
quarters for dropping so many established first team players. Nine of the
team that had drawn with Sunderland 72 hours earlier were absent from the
starting line-up against the Latics. However that afforded the under-fire
manager the opportunity to test a number of youngsters on the fringe of the
first team squad. Along with Spence, Robert Hall, Danny Potts, Matthias
Fanimo and Dylan Tombides all featured at some stage of the game in which
West Ham took an early lead through Modibo Maiga before shipping four goals
and thus denying them the chance to face Bradford in the next round. To
Spence's credit, he admitted that the whole performance - including his own
- had been under par. "It was a good opportunity for us younger lads to come
in and gain experience and show that we are still pushing for a place in the
first team," he told whufc.com. "Unfortunately, we didn't do that. "I will
go away now and analyse the game from a personal point of view to see what I
did well and what I can do better because I am all about improving. "To
concede four goals and to lose the game the way we did is extremely
disappointing. But we didn't do enough defensively to warrant anything from
the game."

The most positive note of a desperately disappointing night was the first
team debut of Dylan Tombides, who was only given the all-clear to resume his
career in April following his recovery from testicular cancer. And Hammers
legend Julian Dicks, speaking in his latest column for KUMB.com was full of
praise for the young Australian striker. "Fighting cancer is going to be the
biggest battle of his career," he said. "Everything else should be easy by
comparison. "For him to get over that is incredible and it's great to see
him back and getting a few minutes on the pitch."

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The grass isn't always Greener
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 28th September 2012
By: Tom Kilbey

What a difference a couple of months make. Rob Green, idolised by the West
Ham fans and all but guaranteed a starting position between the sticks, now
finds himself second choice at QPR. His short career at the Hoops can hardly
be described as a successful one thus far. After turning his back on West
Ham and signing a lucrative deal at the West London club, the England
International would have expected to be a staple in the QPR starting XI.
Instead, after a contender for the worst performance of the season, a 5-0
defeat against Swansea was all the persuading Mark Hughes needed to re-enter
the transfer market once again.

The following weeks saw QPR sign what seemed like every footballer over the
age of 30; among them was Brazilian keeper Julio Cesar. Green was
immediately relegated to the bench, and barring a run of poor performances
from Cesar, his career at his new club could be already be over. Hughes was
quick to point out that he would talk with Rob and discuss his options,
hinting at the possibility he would be able to leave on a free. In all
honesty, no one can blame Mark Hughes. Cesar is a tremendous coup for his
club, and would have been foolish to reject the chance to sign him simply
because he had already signed a keeper during the transfer window.

In other words, Robbo has options. A potential move back to West Ham has
been hinted at, but nothing has come from either club. The hypothetical
question as to whether we would have him back, however, is certainly an
interesting one. The first thing to note is that Sam Allardyce is an
extremely stubborn man. Despite being within his rights, a move from West
Ham to QPR would do little to advance Green's career, regardless of whether
he was playing first team football or otherwise. The obvious conjecture to
make is that Green's head was turned by a big pay cheque.

Resultantly, Allardyce would see this as a lack of loyalty towards him and
the club, and a lack of trust in his ability to take the club forward.
Because of this, I think Allardyce would be reluctant to rescue Green from
his QPR nightmare. On top of this, if BFS truly felt that his side were
lacking in the goalkeeper department, he could easily sign Craig Gordon, who
is still without a club. We have been active in bringing in free agents on
trial, and the fact that the ex-Sunderland stopper's name hasn't even been
mentioned tells me all I need to know about Sam's faith in Jussi and Stephen
Henderson.

I think the fans would have a much more mixed opinion on the topic. Many
fans would feel betrayed that Greeno let money take precedence over
loyalties. But at the same time, the mantra that you should act in the best
intentions of the club also comes to mind. Such a likeable character, and
almost universally liked among West Ham fans, time would almost certainly
heal the wounds of his departure from the club, and in time, he would be
accepted back in a West Ham shirt.

But the far more relevant question here is, do we need him back?

Clearly, for reasons I have already discussed, Allardyce would appear to
believe the answer to that question is a resounding no. Although our
goalkeepers are weaker this year, I think its time to move on. I like Rob
just as much as the next West Ham fan, but even I allowed myself a wry smile
when I saw his debut performance.

"Regrets, I've had a few..."

As a team who is looking to move forward, we should look forward, not back.
Re-signing a 32-year-old ex-player with diminished loyalties for the club,
on what would be a lucrative contract, does not make financial sense.

I am hopeful our Finnish keeper, who's surname I still refuse to learn how
to spell, is returning to form after a shaky start. Let's not forget Stephen
Henderson either, who is expected to blossom into a solid goalkeeper. We
certainly don't have the best keepers in the League, but there are more
viable and more sustainable options than signing Green back.

Only Green himself knows if he regrets the decision to leave West Ham.
Perhaps the extra £10,000 a week is a fair trade for first team football.
But maybe the money does not soften the blow. One thing is clear, the grass
isn't always Greener on the other side.

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Boris to Pull the Plug on West Ham's Olympic bid?
By Iain Dale
West Ham Till I Die

I'm not sure why but over the last few days I have started to feel very
nervous about West Ham's bid to take over the Olympic Stadium. As you know,
I am a supporter of the move. And then today Boris Johnson says he is not
"wedded" to football interests taking over the stadium. Boris chairs the
committee which has to choose between the four competing bids. As three of
them are related to football, this is a very strange comment for him to
make. I seriously wonder if he is preparing the ground for yet another
rethink. If so, it would be a scandal and West Ham should sue him for the
waste of time and several million pounds it has cost to put the various bids
together.

I hope I am wrong.

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Karren Brady's football diary
By KARREN BRADY
Published: 7 hrs ago
The Sun
Saturday, September 22

FOR uncomplicated souls like you and me, the fact that West Ham have 11
shots on target and Sunderland two probably means that West Ham have had
much the better of the game, even though the result is a draw. For
Sunderland's Martin O'Neill and many other managers in similar circumstances
it doesn't work like that at all. At least not for public consumption. So
O'Neill's claim that "I thought we should have won" is either looking on the
bright side of life or a view like that held in Britain after Dunkirk.

Sunday, September 23
IT'S a terrible irony a referee's incorrect decisions can never be put right
while those of three inquiries into the Hillsborough disaster were, finally,
after 23 years. Today, a great wrong on the 96 Liverpool supporters who died
in an avoidable hell is acknowledged in respectful ways at Anfield where
Liverpool and their keenest rivals, Manchester United, are meeting. Maybe
the usually excellent referee Mark Halsey would like to rescind the two
decisions that cost the home team their first win of the season. He can't.
But Liverpool at last win something far more important. The truth.

Monday, September 24
I'M not sure what Wales manager Chris Coleman and Sky Sports presenter
Charlotte Jackson were broadcasting from the Liberty Stadium. After seeing
pictures published today, I can only guess that from the position of his
hand on her knee he was demonstrating where he once damaged his ligaments in
a car crash.
A few years ago his lovely wife, Belinda, was so distracted by the thought
he was having affairs that she employed a company to bug his car for
evidence.
I know of a dozen other wives who have done the same thing, some with
remarkable results.

Tuesday, September 25
THE PUSSIES are rioting over the fat cats, £64million pair Hulk and Axel
Witsel, at Zenit St Petersburg. Two of the Russian players have complained
so strongly about the contracts of Hulk, said to be on £5million-a-year and
the Belgian about three-quarters of that, they've been told to shut up and
dropped to the youth squad. Lucky for them, in contrast the girls of Pussy
Riot were jailed for two years. In the end, most of the arguments amount to
status in the dressing room and a player named Hulk is bound to have a lot
of muscle there, anyway.

Wednesday, September 26
I SEE Roberto Mancini is having an anger attack after Man City's home
beating by Villa, and Paul Lambert is on the end of it. Roberto has a bit of
a reputation, but how impressive it is if it's based on the fact that he
once had a fist fight with Trevor Francis, I'm not so sure. Anyway, last
night at Upton Park, Sam is equally grumpy and tells the understudies
they've lost their case to take over in forthcoming Premier League games.
Sam, first and foremost likes to win. Secondly, despite the rubbish that's
peddled in some parts of the media he knows that playing good football is
the best way consistently to do that. He has already proved a brilliant
appointment for us.

Thursday, September 27
THE FA have always insisted that the referee's decision is final. Well,
always until they get involved. They didn't like the verdict of the referee
— in this case Westminster Magistrates Court — in the John Terry affair, so
they decided he'd have to answer to them on a similar charge. This afternoon
their kangaroo court found the Chelsea captain (below) guilty, fined him and
banned him for four matches. How righteous they must feel. But it wasn't
racism they were kicking out of football, it was justice. The language
reported as being used against Anton Ferdinand was offensive in several
ways, but Terry was found innocent of racism under the law of the land and,
like it or not, that should have been the end of the matter.

Friday, September 28
A BUNCH of flowers and a pot of anti-ageing cream for 'mature skin' turns up
at my office. A fellow Premier League director has gone and bought a
cosmetic company and he would like me to test his cream as I am the 'right
target audience'. Bloody cheek! I call him and he explains he didn't know
who else to ask as his girlfriend is much younger than him. He's a
fabulously wealthy 50ish-year-old man... and she is in her 20s. "Do you
think she would marry me if I tell her I'm 47?" he asks me. "Your chances
are better," I reply "if you tell her you're 90." Revenge.

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QPR vs West Ham team news: Rangers without four defenders, Carroll still out
for Hammers
The Mirror

Anton Ferdinand, Jose Bosingwa and Fabio are all out with hamstring injuries
and Armand Traore has an injured leg. QPR will have to face West Ham in
Monday's London derby without four first-team defenders. Anton Ferdinand,
Jose Bosingwa and Fabio are all out with hamstring injuries and Armand
Traore (leg) is also unavailable. Striker Andy Johnson is out with a
long-term knee injury but midfielder Adel Taarabt could return after missing
the last two games with a hamstring problem.

Provisional squad: Green, Cesar, Onuoha, Hill, Nelsen, Mbia, Diakite, Derry,
Park, Granero, Dyer, Taarabt, Hoilett, Faurlin, Wright-Phillips, Ephraim,
Mackie, Zamora, Cisse.

Carroll still out with hamstring injury

Midfielder Gary O'Neil says has recovered from the knee injury he sustained
during Tuesday's defeat to Wigan and will be fit for West Ham's London derby
against QPR on Monday. Sam Allardyce is likely to make wholesale changes
from the XI that were beaten 4-1 by the Latics, although Modibo Maiga could
keep his place after scoring on his second consecutive start. On-loan
Liverpool striker Andy Carroll (hamstring) is unlikely to play and Jack
Collison (knee) is unavailable but Yossi Benayoun could make his first start
since moving back to the Hammers on loan.

Provisional squad: Jaaskelainen, Demel, O'Brien, Reid, Collins, Noble,
Diame, Taylor, Maiga, Nolan, Cole, Jarvis, Vaz Te, Benayoun, McCartney,
Diarra, Tomkins, Henderson, O'Neil, Carroll.

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Dyer lifts the lid on West Ham nightmare
Sep 28 2012 By Jacob Murtagh
Ealing Gazette

KIERON Dyer admits his four-year spell at West Ham was the most frustrating
of his career – now he's determined to make up for lost time at QPR. The
33-year-old made just 15 league starts during his injury-ravaged spell at
the Hammers before being released when his contract expired in 2011. Neil
Warnock offered Dyer the chance to kick-start his career at Loftus Road,
only to suffer a freak foot problem three minutes into his debut which ruled
him out for the season. However, the utility man is back to fitness and
played 90 minutes at right-back in Rangers' defeat at Spurs on Sunday. Dyer
is gearing up to face the Irons for the first time since making the switch
across the capital in the London derby on Monday night. And he insists he's
hell-bent on putting his miserable stint at the Boleyn behind him. He said:
"It was the most frustrating time of my career. We got relegated and I only
played a handful of games. "I believe that if I got a run of games under my
belt and stayed injury-free then I could've helped our cause more. "It
wasn't for a lack of effort. I tried everything physically possible to get
on the pitch but it wasn't to be. "I'm absolutely gutted because it was four
years where I never played three games on the trot. If you considered what I
went through on a personal level I look back at that with a lot of regrets
because it was a case of what if? "It's a fantastic club with fantastic
fans, but I was never on the pitch enough to justify the wages and the fee
they paid for me which is very unfortunate."

West Ham's co-chairman David Sullivan suggested Dyer should retire back in
2010 due to his woeful injury record. But Dyer refuses to get into a war of
words with his former boss, and insists he's not surprised at the flack that
came his way. "That's the way the game is," he added. "If you're not playing
then you are not affecting what can happen for West Ham so you get called
every name under the sun. "Even though the owners came out and said some
harsh things about me at the time, I think they've done an incredible job.
"I got on really well with Karen Brady and never will have a bad word to say
about anyone at that football club. "Hopefully I'll play on Monday and if we
scored I wouldn't celebrate because I wouldn't want to disrespect the fans
at all."

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