WHUFC.com
Mark Noble was in high spirits after scoring two penalties to send West Ham
United top of the table
22.01.2012
Mark Noble was the man on the spot again as his two penalties fired West Ham
United to the top of the npower Championship table. The No16 fired in his
fifth and sixth spot-kicks of the season as the Hammers beat Nottingham
Forest 2-1 at the Boleyn Ground. While Noble was naturally pleased to be the
match-winner for the second game in succession, the midfielder was happier
with the collective achievement of winning three points that took his team
to the summit for the first time since topping the Premier League in August
2006.
"The win was more important than my goals. We've been lucky enough to get
three penalties in two games and I've been lucky enough that they've gone
in. Three points, a win and we're top of the league and our aim now is to go
unbeaten for the rest of the season and clinch automatic promotion. That's
going to be our aim, no matter how the other results go. "I think the only
other time we've been top while I've been here was after the first game of
the season! It will be nice to see the table but it doesn't make any
difference until the last game has been played. Then we'll be smiling.
"Southampton have got a game on Monday but we need to concentrate on
ourselves, keep winning and getting points on the board. That's nine points
from three games and that's what we need to keep on doing."
Noble came within a yard of netting his first hat-trick in Claret and Blue,
only to see a 20-yard shot flash wide of Camp's upright. "It went just a
yard wide, unfortunately. When I hit it, I hit it quite well and I thought
it was going in, to be honest. Scoring a hat-trick would have been nice but
the three points were the most important and that's all we care about."
The 24-year-old is relishing his role as the focal point of Sam Allardyce's
side. Noble is almost always at the hub of the Hammers' best attacking play
and is enjoying the added responsibility. "It's nice to get the ball and the
manager just says to me 'Mark, go out and play'. We know how he wants to
play and he tells me to get on the ball and get us playing. Hopefully I'm
doing that for the team."
While Noble's main priority is winning promotion back to the Premier League,
he is also harbouring ambitions of appearing at the London 2012 Olympic
Games.
The Canning Town-born player has been approached about the possibility of
being part of Team GB as an over-age player and would love to be part of the
Olympics in his home Borough of Newham. "It would be nice, being born in
this area it would be nice to be involved, but I am one of the older ones
and I don't know if David Beckham, Ryan Giggs and Joe Cole have come out and
said they want to play! "Whether I get in is another story so it might be
the younger boys like Tonks, Jack, Rob Hall and Henri Lansbury who could be
involved. You never know though!"
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Manager on Monday
WHUFC.com
Big Sam was happy to be leading the table after Saturday's win against
Nottingham Forest
23.01.2012
Sam Allardyce is enjoying the feeling of starting the week on top of the
npower Championship table. The West Ham United manager watched a brace of
penalties from Mark Noble see off Nottingham Forest 2-1 - who registered a
late consolation from Lewis McGugan - at the Boleyn Ground on Saturday, with
the result sending the Hammers to the top of the table for the first time
this season. The success was West Ham's third consecutive league win and
opened up a three-point gap between the Hammers and second-placed
Southampton, although the Saints can go back to the summit with victory over
Leicester City on Monday evening. "I think we will get a psychological boost
from going top," said Big Sam. "It might only be for a short time as
Southampton play on Monday night and have a fantastic home record. "We might
not stay there that long but we've shown that we can get there. When we've
had the opportunity to get there before we've blown it. We didn't blow it on
Saturday and got the precious three points we were looking for and can feel
very satisfied by getting the 53 points we have done up until now."
Big Sam conceded that his side were not always at their best against Forest,
though. Before Noble had given the Hammers a 45th-minute lead from the spot
the visitors had passed up several good chances to open the scoring. "The
players looked a bit nervous - we started a little slowly and then one or
two passes started going astray. Then Forest created a couple of
half-chances and we started to get a little more edgy and nervous so it
wasn't our usual fluent performance that we show at home. "Whether we
deserved it or not is immaterial. When we came in at half-time we said 'Well
we haven't played well but we how many teams have come back from one-nil
down against us and won' and the answer to that is hardly any. "I think
everyone turned up thinking that West Ham would just win 3-0 but it doesn't
work like that. We had to really dig it out. From our point of view we're
top of the league for the first time in 27 games."
West Ham now have ten days without a game before resuming their npower
league campaign with a trip to Ipswich Town on Tuesday week and Big Sam will
be looking to use the break to focus efforts on bringing in attacking
reinforcements. "Against Forest we created some chances from really good
movement and had some opportunities to score. I still had that nagging doubt
that we hadn't converted chances to goals in open play. It's still a little
concern but I still have faith in the players here even though I am looking
to strengthen in that area. "At the start of the season we were having no
problem finishing our chances. We scored four against Watford, four at
Forest, three at Leicester and four against Blackpool, so we've shown we can
do it but at the moment we're not quite clinical enough. We had to rely on
Noble with two very good penalties."
There was concern just before the break when Papa Bouba Diop was forced from
the field with a slight thigh strain. Although he is expected to recover in
time to face the Tractor Boys his replacement, Henri Lansbury, caught the
eye as the Hammers seized control in the second period. "I think Henri did
well. His passing got better and he was better than some of the players that
were playing at that time. Improving the team is very important when you
come on as a sub because our team in midfield were not passing well. "It was
one of those days where we've overcome the nerves and the guys will have
woken up on Sunday to see us at the top of the league."
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Ladies keep title dream alive
WHUFC.com
West Ham United Ladies scored a 1-0 league victory at Queens Park Rangers to
maintain their title challenge!
23.01.2012
West Ham United Ladies scored a vital 1-0 FA Tesco Women's Premier League
Southern Division victory at Queens Park Rangers - a result that puts the
Hammers within touching distance of promotion to the National Division for
the first time in the club's history. Julia Setford's side now sit a point
behind leaders Colchester United, who have finished their complement of
fixtures, with one league match remaining. Third-place Portsmouth have three
games left to play but sit four points adrift of West Ham. With their hosts
battling to avoid relegation, the Hammers were forced to work hard for their
victory at Hayes FC's Farm Park stadium, with the winning goal being scored
by Lindsey Morgan (pictured) just 12 minutes from full-time. West Ham had
beaten QPR 3-0 at Ship Lane back in October, but the west London side have
made a host of new signings since then and posed a serious threat to the
visitors' title ambitions. The first half was a midfield battle, with West
Ham having to rely on breakaway attacks as QPR camped inside the Hammers
half. Centre-backs Rosey Sulivan and Danica Revell were in fine form,
however, and Rangers had to settle for long-range efforts that goalkeeper
Nikki Duncan dealt with confidently.
The second half was a more frantic and evenly-balanced affair as the
Hammers' stamina and fitness began to tell, but not before QPR's Cherrelle
Albert had rattled the post with a powerful shot and both Sullivan and
Natalie Grafton had made vital clearances. The longer the game went on, the
more West Ham gained control and they finally broke the deadlock in the 78th
minute. Having broken out from the back, Becky Merritt showed some clever
footwork on the edge of the penalty area before firing in a powerful shot
that goalkeeper Michelle Beazley could only push back into the penalty area.
Morgan pounced to drive in another shot that Beazley could only push into
the back of the net. The remaining 12 minutes were nail-biting for both sets
of supporters as both teams fought for every ball until the final whistle.
West Ham now have to wait until 4 March for their final league match at home
to Brighton and Hove Albion and for the promotion places to be decided. In
the meantime, Setford's team will continue in three cup competitions,
starting next week away at Colchester United in the League Cup. On 5
February, the Ladies travel to Derby County in the FA Women's Cup third
round, while C and K Basildon will form the opposition in the Essex FA
County Cup semi-finals on 19 February.
West Ham United Ladies: Nikki Duncan, Natalie Grafton, Jess Barling, Danica
Revell, Rosey Sullivan, Stacey Little, Lindsey Morgan, Carly Roache, Kelley
Blanchflower, Becky Merritt, Gemma Shepherd
Subs: Tracey Duxbury, Kerry Stimson, Mel Abegglen, April Bowers
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Carr on Palace defeat
WHUFC.com
Academy Director Tony Carr believes the U18s were unfortunate to lose 2-1 at
Crystal Palace
22.01.2012
West Ham United Under-18s lost their first match of 2012, going down to a
2-1 FA Premier Academy League defeat at Crystal Palace on Saturday. The
youth team had enjoyed three straight victories at start the year, beating
Chelsea and Norwich City in the league and Brighton and Hove Albion in the
FA Youth Cup fourth round.
However, Academy Director Tony Carr admitted a poor first-half performance
and a pair of unsuccessful penalty appeals had cost his team dear at the
Oasis Academy. "We had a poor first half and found ourselves 2-0 down from
two set plays," Carr told whufc.com "We were playing in very windy
conditions on a very small pitch and they made life very difficult for us,
to be fair. In the second half, we improved and Kieran Sadlier scored direct
from a corner when the ball caught on the wind. "We then had two penalty
appeals turned down and Pelly Ruddock hit the crossbar. We completely
dominated the second half but could not get the equaliser. A disappointing
first half cost us the game, but we had two great shouts for penalties
turned down - one for a foul on Elliot Lee and the second when Paul McCallum
was in on the goalkeeper and fouled."
Highlights of Saturday's trip to south London will appear on West Ham TV
soon. The Hammers return to action on Saturday, when they welcome Arsenal to
Little Heath for an 11am kick-off. While West Ham's youngsters continue
their quest for an FA Premier Academy League Group A and FA Youth Cup
double, the club's young professionals are continuing their own careers at
their various loan clubs in the npower Football League. Goalkeeper Peter
Kurucz turned out for Rochdale in their 3-0 League One defeat at Wycombe
Wanderers. In League Two, Callum Driver started for Burton Albion in their
1-1 draw at Bradford City, while Ahmed Abdulla, Cristian Montano and
substitute Eoin Wearen were all involved in Dagenham and Redbridge's 4-1
defeat at Crewe Alexandra. Also in League Two, George Moncur chalked up an
assist and a goal as AFC Wimbledon came from 3-1 down to win 4-3 at
Gillingham. In the Championship, Jordan Spence was not involved in Bristol
City's 2-1 home win over Doncaster Rovers.
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Allardyce happy to sign nobody
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 23rd January 2012
By: Staff Writer
Sam Allardyce has revealed that he will be content going into the second
half of the season with his current squad. Allardyce led his West Ham side
to a 2-1 win over Nottingham Forest on Saturday afternoon that sent West Ham
to the top of the Championship for the first time this season. But speaking
after the game, he admitted that despite having made a number of bids for
players - eight for fees up to £3.5million, according to co-chiarman David
Sullivan in Saturday's match day programme - he would be prepared to enter
the final, crucial months of the campaign with the same squad he built last
summer (bar the addition of central defender George John). "Time is ticking
by but I'll be comfortable at the end of January if we didn't get anybody,"
he said. "With Matt Taylor and Guy Demel coming back, I still think that
these players will come back and start scoring goals. But if we do get
somebody then that should make us even better than we are now."
Allardyce also revealed that the club were yet to make a firm bid for Nikica
Jelavic, despite reports to the contrary earlier in the week. "We've been
made aware - not through me - by other sources to the co-chairman that he
might be available," he added. "There's only an enquiry there as far as I'm
concerned, to see if he's available - and not so much that we going all out
to bid and try and get him."
That particular deal seems less likely to happen this morning after
Jelavic's father claimed at the weekend that his son was, "more ambitious
than that", adding that the current Glasgow Rangers striker is, "likely to
sign for Liverpool".
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Sam slammed by former agent
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 23rd January 2012
By: Staff Writer
Disgraced former football agent Peter Harrison has launched a bizarre tirade
of abuse aimed at West Ham United manager Sam Allardyce. Harrison,
communicating via his personal account on social network Twitter has in the
past few days launched a series of attacks aimed at Allardyce that we cannot
possibly repeat here on KUMB.com due to their potentially libellous content.
The former agent recently confirmed that he was in talks with TV producers
with regards to producing a documentary that would expose certain
individuals within the game for underhand financial practices. "It's coming
out in the next couple of months then we can all have a laugh," Harrison
said via his Twitter account, adding later that, "the truth always comes
out".
Harrison and Allardyce have a lengthy history that goes back to 2006 when
the former agent of Andy Carroll and ex-Hammers captain Lucas Neill was
secretly filmed by the BBC's Panorama programme making allegations of
bribery. The former agent is also in dispute with Allardyce over an unpaid
debt of £370,000 that the current West Ham manager claims to have lent
Harrison in 2005. Harrison has also used his Twitter feed to hit out at the
likes of (Bolton chairman) Phil Gartside, Harry Redknapp (in trial today on
tax evasion charges) and fellow agent Mark Curtis, who became James Tomkins'
new agent prior to his award of a lucrative four-year contract last week.
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Redknapp in the dock
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 23rd January 2012
By: Staff Writer
Former West Ham United manager Harry Redknapp is in court today to face
charges of tax evasion. Redknapp, now 64, is accused of two counts of tax
fraud alongside former Portsmouth chairman Milan Mandaric. It is alleged
that Redknapp, who spent two spells at Portsmouth after he was sacked by
West Ham was the recipient of £93,300 paid into a bank account in Monaco by
Mandaric in at some point between 2002 and 2007. Secondly, he is accused of
receiving a further sum of £96,000 into the same account at some point
between 2004 and 2007. Redknapp, whose hopes of one day managing the English
national team hinge on the outcome of the case has previously denied any
wrongdoing. The former Hammers winger and current Tottenham boss was manager
of West Ham between 1994 to 2001, before he was fired by chairman Terry
Brown. Mandaric, who spent time at Leicester after leaving Portsmouth is
currently chairman of League One Sheffield Wednesday.
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Jelavic 'favours' Reds switch
Father claims Liverpool are interested in Rangers striker
Last Updated: January 23, 2012 9:58am
SSN
Nikica Jelavic's father has claimed that the Rangers striker has grander
ambitions than to play for West Ham or Queens Park Rangers and is 'most
likely' to sign for Liverpool. The Croatian has been heavily linked with a
move away from Ibrox this winter following a series of impressive
performances in the SPL over the past 18 months. Sam Allardyce confirmed at
the weekend that West Ham had enquired about the availability of Jelavic,
while QPR are also understood to be keeping tabs on his situation. However,
reports have also suggested that Liverpool are interested and the
26-year-old's father says there are several clubs in the running for his
signature.
Great
Philip Jelavic claims Liverpool are one of those clubs and believes his son
could soon be heading to Anfield. "We know about the interest of West Ham
and QPR," Jelavic senior said in The Sun. "But Nikica has five or six clubs
that are interested, including that of the great Liverpool. "As for West Ham
and QPR, Nikica is more ambitious than that. "It's most likely that he'll
sign for Liverpool. "But there are a few days until the end of the window,
so we'll see."
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McGugan catches Big Sam's eye
Hammers tracking Forest ace
By Pete O'Rourke - Follow me: @skysportspeteo. Last Updated:
January 23, 2012 12:01pm
SSN
Sky Sports understands West Ham are weighing up a move for Nottingham Forest
star Lewis McGugan. McGugan is thought to have impressed West Ham boss Sam
Allardyce during Forest's defeat to the Hammers at Upton Park on Saturday.
Highly-rated midfielder McGugan caught the eye for Forest at Upton Park,
including scoring a stunning long-range goal in the 2-1 defeat. Forest are
thought to be ready to cash-in on McGugan before the close of the transfer
window as they look to raise funds to bolster the squad elsewhere. Money is
tight at the City Ground and it is thought Forest boss Steve Cotterill will
have to sell before he can buy and he may be forced to sacrifice McGugan.
McGugan is regarded as one of the best midfielders in the Championship and
West Ham could move for the player as they look to boost their squad to
maintain their push for promotion back to the Premier League.
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Collison - Room for improvement
Midfielder admits Hammers have 'another couple of gears to find'
Last Updated: January 23, 2012 10:10am
SSN
West Ham midfielder Jack Collison admits the Hammers are yet to hit their
best form despite going top of the Championship at the weekend. The East
Londoners leapfrogged Southampton at the summit after seeing off Nottingham
Forest 2-1 thanks to two Mark Noble penalties. Collison feels there is still
room for improvement in the Hammers' performances but is confident
everything will come together as they push for promotion. He told The Sun:
"We're at the top and have another couple of gears to find. "It's
frightening and sends out a message to other teams to say, 'We're there,
we're not playing great but we're getting the results'.
Frustrating
"When it all comes together it's going to be great for us. We don't go out
and try not to put five goals in, we go and do our best. "Last season, I was
out injured, so I know how it feels to be a fan. It's frustrating for them
at times but it's also for us as players." Collison hailed team-mate Noble
after he coolly slotted two spot-kicks home. He added: "We came in at
half-time a bit disappointed with how we played but it was good that we've
big players like Noble. "It takes bottle to step up and stick away penalties
like that."
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Monday 23rd Transfer Update + Gossip
January 23rd, 2012 - 6:10 pm by Bradley Palmer
West Ham Till I Die
UPDATE: I am being told that Rangers are satisfied with our offer for
striker Jelavic. We await official confirmation that bid has been accepted
and I will give full details of bid as and when I know. Ohh and 2-0 to
Leicester. Lets hope its more of the same in the second half.
Apologies for not posting updates over the weekend. I have been busy with
work and what not but here is the latest update from myself and across the
net. Feel free to follow me on twitter: bradley_whufc… I am constantly on
there giving updates from the info I am sent. I would firstly like to say
that I can fully understand and respect everyone's opinion of the news I am
receiving but would just like to state that at no stage is my information
made up just to get people's hopes up. Some prefer to believe it when they
see it, others get excited and follow updates throughout each day. I am only
giving information that I am sent, which is often highly reliable. Yes, some
of it will be far fetched but it is often very accurate. I was informed
about Nolan joining very early on before he did and did not fully believe it
until it happened. Others like Ilan, Reid and Barrera I have often mentioned
early doors as they seemed more likely. All I am doing is giving out
information I am told along with what is on the net to keep everyone fully
up to date.
Anyway here it is: I have been made aware at midday today that a bid has
been submitted for Jelavic after long discussions on availability over the
weekend and would just like to clear up the situation for you all. Rangers
are in serious trouble and are close to administration and need to sell
their players this window to prevent this from happening. The story today of
Jelavic's "alleged" dad was completely false and Liverpool have today
distanced themselves away from any deal. It is thought it was a publicity
act to gain a wider range of interest. However, I have been made fully aware
that it is only West Ham that have shown an interest and enquired about his
availability. After long discussions, a bid today has gone in for the player
who in fact I'm led to believe is keen to join us as an ex player of ours,
Bilic, has highly recommended him to join us stating that it would be a big
step in the right direction for his career. If the bid is accepted, as we
are currently awaiting an answer, then and only then will the player travel
to East London to have a medical, hold talks and discuss personal terms
despite Sky saying there were issues with his wages. Jelavic is currently on
approximately £15k a week at Rangers and it is thought that we will be able
to match and improve on this amount for him to sign. Am also awaiting to see
if Piq or Sears are involved in the bid that has been made today. Hope that
clears it up.
Secondly, I have confirmation that an offer of £3m has been sent to the
office at Nottingham Forest for playmaker Lewis McGugan. It is thought that
he impressed Big Sam on Saturday after a great showing and a wonder goal
which has led the owners into making an offer for his services this
afternoon. It is also thought that Nottingham Forest are tempted to sell due
to their financial state and need of funds to buy in other areas. Keep a
look out for this one.
The bidding war for Watford striker/winger Sordell seems to have forced West
Ham into looking elsewhere (McGugan), though they are still trying to lure
Watford into selling their prized asset to us. Only time will tell on this
one.
With regards to outgoings, not much is going on. We are hoping to sell both
Piquionne and Sears, though both are refusing to leave at this moment in
time.
As always, any news I will update as soon as I can. Many thanks,
Bradley Palmer (Braderz)
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West Ham line up move for Portuguese winger Costa and Forest's McGugan
By SPORTSMAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 10:21 PM on 23rd January 2012
Daily Mail
West Ham are in talks with Nacional winger Edgar Costa, 24. The former
Portugal Under 19 international is available on loan with a view to a
permanent deal.
West Ham are also weighing up a move for Nottingham Forest star Lewis
McGugan. Barnsley are lining up a loan move for Stoke midfielder Michael
Tonge.
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Allardyce has 'no problem' with West Ham stars playing in Olympics
By talkSPORT
Monday, January 23, 2012
TalkkSport
West Ham boss Sam Allardyce insists he will not stand in the way of James
Tomkins, Mark Noble or Jack Collison if they get called up to play for Great
Britain in the Olympic Games. All three players have been asked if they want
to be considered for the squad and they have signalled their desire to
represent Team GB at the prestigious event. West Ham are gunning for
promotion straight back into the Premier League and Allardyce would be
reluctant to lose three of his key players in the build-up to the new
season. The tournament takes place between July 16 and August 11, but
Allardyce knows it is a once in a lifetime opportunity for any player to
participate at the Olympic Games and he will never stop them taking part.
Allardyce said: "I don't have a problem at all. I think it's a great honour
to be selected as an Olympian and it's still one of the biggest if not the
biggest sporting event in the world. "To be able to take part in it and the
fact that you may win a gold, silver or a bronze - it's something you can't
refuse a player. "It's similar to your best players playing in the European
Championships - just a bit later. They can get their rest in before and you
can give them a rest at the back end of your pre-season because you're
hoping they will go all the way. "So while it's an inconvenience its
something that as a manager you have to make sure you cope with. Players
here are a stones throw away from where the Olympic Park is so imagine what
their friends and family will be like."
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