BBC.co.uk
Barnsley boss Keith Hill says he has learned a lot from the departure of
Ricardo Vaz Te to West Ham. The 25-year-old Portuguese striker moved to the
Hammers for an undisclosed fee in January having joined the Tykes on a
one-year deal last summer. "It's important when we have good players at the
club that we can retain them," he told BBC Radio Sheffield. "In hindsight we
would have kept Ricardo, but I don't know what frame of mind he'd have been
in." He added: "It was difficult because if we'd sold him and gone down then
we would have lost a lot more money than we'd have made on the transfer. "We
need to look at getting our better players on longer term contracts so that
when we sell them it's because it's right for us."
The Oakwell side were 14th with 36 points from 27 games when they sold Vaz
Te, who had 10 goals from 22 league appearances for the Tykes, in January.
Since his departure they have picked up just 11 points from their following
16 matches and only secured their Championship status on Tuesday thanks to
Coventry's defeat by Millwall.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Lee makes Hammers return
Last Updated: April 18, 2012 2:47pm
SSN
Olly Lee has returned to West Ham following the completion of his second
month on loan at Gillingham. The midfielder, 20, arrived at Priestfield in
mid-February and has made a total of eight appearances for the League Two
club, although Saturday's late cameo off the bench was his only run-out in
the last four weeks. And manager Andy Hessenthaler has now decided not to
extend Lee's stay as he prepares to welcome back a wealth of midfield
options after injury. "With the likes of Curtis Weston, Charlie Lee, Danny
Jackman and Jack Payne coming back, we decided to let Olly go back to West
Ham," Hessenthaler told the club's official website.
"He was in the side and then came out of it, it was probably a bit
frustrating for him. But he was a pleasure to work with and we wish him
well. "It didn't work out for him, he'll tell you that himself. He just
didn't get going, in the Cheltenham game (in mid-March) he did ever so well
but in general he perhaps didn't get going in his spell with us."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham's Nolan: Count on us going up at Wembley
Published 22:29 18/04/12 By Neil McLeman
The Mirror
Kevin Nolan has backed West Ham to win promotion through the playoffs if
they cannot catch Southampton. The Saints, who are five points clear with
two games to go, will guarantee a return to the Premier League with victory
over Middlesborough on Saturday. And although Hammers skipper has not given
hope of the second automatic promotion spot, he said winning their final two
games at Leicester and Hull would also ensure momentum going into the
playoff showdowns. "Hopefully Southampton lose two, we win two and we go
up," Nolan said. "If not, we have got to make sure we win our next two to
keep our momentum going into the playoffs.
"You never say never but that is the way it goes. We have to make sure we
dust ourselves off from this result and try and go and win our next two.
"Form going into the playoffs is crucial - you have got to keep the winning
mentality going. We have won a lot of games this season and we have to
ensure we keep doing that until the end of the season and finish on as many
points as we can. "If we get six points from our next two games, that will
stand us in good stead for the playoffs if we have to go in them. "I am very
confident that if we go through the playoffs, we will go up that way. You
have got to be confident with the squad we have got. "We want to give the
fans what they deserve and that is getting back into the Premier League.
"Hopefully we can do that April 28 - and if not, on May 19."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham and Sunderland youngsters extend Dons stay
Apr 9 2012 By Paul Warburton
HounslowChronicle.co.uk
DONS have extended loans for both George Moncur and Billy Knott until the
end of the season. The worry for Brown is that Knott picked up a hamstring
injury in the 2-0 defeat to Southend and now awaits word to see if the
on-loan Sunderland midfielder can face Crawley on Saturday. Knott went down
in a heap on 36 minutes admist a tangle of bodies - but as Brown pointed out
the extended loan was a done deal before the game. He said: "We'll just have
to wait and see how Billy is, but we just lost three centre halves - I can't
afford to lose two more players and we've extended their time with us."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Posts
