Daily WHUFC News - 13th May 2012

Wembley ticket update
WHUFC.com
Season Ticket holders and Members are advised to get their ticket before
Tuesday
11.05.2012

New Season Ticket holders signing up for 2012/13, along with existing Season
Ticket holders, will receive priority to purchase a ticket for the Play-Off
final at Wembley. For full details on this strictly limited offer click here
or to buy call 0871 222 2700 via option 3, 9am - 5pm Saturday and Monday.

With the unprecedented demand for Play-Off final tickets during the season
ticket holders priority period, the club anticipates a huge demand for sales
during the Academy Member's priority period. To ensure all Academy Members
are able to get their ticket the club will extend this selling period. This
will mean in the unlikely event tickets go on General Sale this will
commence from 9am Tuesday 15 May.

Tickets are not available from West Ham United and are only available from
See Tickets directly through the following options:

Online - www.seetickets.com/westham

Telephone - 0844 995 9664 (call cost 6p per minute plus network extras).

If you are a season ticket holder and have yet to purchase your ticket
please to ensure you don't miss out and purchase NOW.

Based on current ticket sales it is unlikely that tickets will go on general
sale. In the event there are any tickets remaining they will only be those
created by the fact that current Season Ticket holders/ Academy Members have
not taken advantage of their priority purchase period and hence few are
expected to be remaining.

To enable as many West Ham United supporters to have an opportunity to
purchase tickets we have applied the following criteria for General Sale:

1. Tickets will only be available to supporters who have previous general
admission home ticket purchase history, during the 2011/12 season, under
their own unique client reference number.

2. Supporters who qualify will be able to purchase a maximum of one ticket
per person.

3. If general admission home game tickets throughout the season have not
been purchased under your own client reference number and hence we would
have no way of tracking your purchase history - we regret you will not
qualify (purchase history applies to general admission only).

4. There are no exceptions to this criteria so please do not call to buy
tickets if you do not meet it we will not be able to process any bookings to
supporters who do not qualify.

5. Any Season Ticket holder or Academy Member who has already purchased
their ticket by 9am on Tuesday cannot purchase any additional tickets.
However should you not have purchased your own ticket we recommend you do so
now during your allocated priority period as although you will remain
eligible to purchase after 9am Tuesday you will be joining the queue along
with your fellow supporters who meet the general sale criteria.
With the high volume of phone calls the Club and See Tickets are receiving
we request that supporters do not call if you do not meet the above criteria
as tickets are only available from See

Tickets directly via the following options:

Online - www.seetickets.com/westham
Telephone - 0844 995 9664 (call cost 6p per minute plus network extras).
If you wish to book seats together then the person who makes the booking
either online or via telephone MUST have all relevant client reference
numbers and names to hand (we cannot accept just names, postcodes, email
address, we must have the CLIENT REFERENCE NUMBER AND NAME OF EACH
INDIVIDUAL). We are NOT able to take bookings if you do not have this
information, so please ensure you have this BEFORE you make your call or go
online. Group qualifying bookings are again only available through the above
telephone number and website and NOT through the WHUFC site or ticket
office.

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Reid raring to go
WHUFC.com
Winston Reid is determined to end the season on a high
12.05.2012

West Ham United defender Winston Reid is looking forward to a trip to
Wembley and a possible return to the Premier League. Reid, who won Man of
the Match for his performance in the Play-Off semi-final second leg against
Cardiff City, is expecting another big performance from the Hammers when
they face Blackpool in the final on 19 May. West Ham were 5-0 aggregate
winners against the Bluebirds in the semi and the All White international is
looking to continue that form against the Ian Holloway's men at Wembley. "It
was nice to win Man of the Match but over the two legs the team has put a
good shift in and that's the most important thing," Reid told West Ham TV.
"It's going to be a big occasion and hopefully an occasion where we
celebrate at the end. We will play our own game like we have done all season
and hopefully we will be rewarded."

After a few weeks out in March due to concussion, Reid has been one of the
key reasons for the Hammers' resurgent form after regaining his place
alongside James Tomkins. The West Ham No2 explains that it is the
understanding between the pair that has helped them keep a double
clean-sheet against Cardiff. "We have a good partnership I think, as does
the whole back four. James and I do well because we understand each other
and it's important that we have a solid defensive line. Reid said "It is
important that the back four have a good understanding as it allows the
attacking players to concentrate fully on scoring the goals that will win us
matches."
The 23-year-old also stated that missing out on automatic promotion has only
made the Hammers squad want it more. "Obviously after missing out, we were
disappointed and had to pick ourselves up but I think it just made us more
were determined to get there. We are still fully focused on achieving our
promotion goal and getting into the Premier League so let's win the final."

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Big award for Mac
WHUFC.com
Ever-popular George McCartney was honoured to be voted 2011/12 Players'
Player of the Year
12.05.2012

The saying in sport goes that there is no better recognition than that
received from your team-mates. That was certainly the case for George
McCartney, who capped a superb first season back at West Ham United by
scooping the 2011/12 Players' Player of the Year award, sponsored by England
Environmental Services and Southern Asbestos Services. He was presented with
the trophy by John England and Peter Drayton. The left-back, who returned to
the club last summer on a season-long loan from Sunderland three years after
his first spell at the Boleyn Ground ended, was thrilled and honoured to be
given the highest accolade by his fellow players. "I think, to be honest,
for me personally I would rather win this award than any other," he told
West Ham TV with typically refreshing honesty. "I know it is probably nice
to be a fans' favourite throughout the season and get the confidence from
doing well and knowing they are behind you, but the players are there
through training every day and through the matches every week. "It's a great
honour for me to win this award. All the lads have been terrific this season
and we've put in a lot of hard work so for me to get this award is great for
me."

It says much for McCartney's consistency, character and level of performance
that he was able to hold off the challenge of the likes of Hammer of the
Year Mark Noble and goalkeeper Robert Green to win the award. After
returning to east London on 10 August, McCartney regained full match-fitness
before returning to the starting XI later the same month, the No3 chalked up
39 of a possible 43 npower Championship appearances to help the Hammers
reach the Play-Offs. There, he appeared as a substitute in both semi-final
leg victories over Cardiff City. The fact the defender has won the ultimate
respect of his team-mates despite only being at the club on loan says
everything. The player himself admitted that, looking back, he should
perhaps never have left West Ham in 2008. "I have been here before and I
love the club and it was probably the biggest mistake I have made leaving.
Everything is great with hindsight and looking back it is probably something
I shouldn't have done. "I had the opportunity to come back at the start of
the season and I'm grateful to the manager for giving me the chance.
Thankfully, things have gone really well and I've played nearly every game
since I've been here. "To get this award from the players while only being
here on loan, I'm grateful and it's a great individual award to have."

McCartney said the fact he has enjoyed this season so much had made it
easier for him to settle back in and play his best football. "I think if you
asked any player no matter what club they are at, you need to be enjoying
your football. I've been playing every week, playing well and enjoying life,
not just on the ground but outside of football. "When I look back at the
last couple of years before this one, I haven't done that and my career
started to slip away. "Sam Allardyce gave me the chance to resurrect myself.
Playing every week, I've enjoyed every single minute I've been on the pitch.
"At the training ground, I couldn't have a single bad word to say about any
of the lads. Team spirit is great and it's been good to be a part of. "I
knew this was probably the last opportunity that I would get to show people
what I could do and I've taken that opportunity with both hands and
hopefully proved a few doubters wrong and shown them that I can still play
at the highest level."

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23,000 play-off Final tickets for sale
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 12th May 2012
By: Staff Writer

But you can only have one if you're a Blackpool fan...

According to the club's website at blackpoolfc.co.uk this morning, the
Seasiders have sold just 16,000 tickets for next Saturday's play-off Final
at Wembley - less than HALF their allotted number of tickets. The
Lancashire-based club, whose average home gate this season was around
13,000, have received exactly the same allocation as West Ham - a fraction
under 39,000. As of this morning, Blackpool have failed to shift less than
half of their available tickets - despite them being on general sale since
yesterday morning. The only criteria required to purchase tickets from
Broomfield Road is that an applicant must have purchased a ticket from the
club at one point in the last TWO years.

Meanwhile the scramble for tickets at the other end of Wembley continues
this morning as tickets went on sale to West Ham United FC club members. The
club last night guaranteed a ticket for every season ticket holder and club
member, although supporters have reported difficulties booking seats due to
the sheer weight of numbers trying to purchase tickets at the same time. It
is understood that the only tickets now remaining are those in the lowest
price bracket, £34. Any tickets left after the sale to club members will be
made available on Tuesday morning.

In order to purchase one of those, applicants must have a recent booking
history with West Ham - although it is thought unlikely that few, if any
tickets will make general sale. Should Blackpool relax the rules with
regards to applying for tickets in their end therefore making them available
to a wider audience we shall post that information here on KUMB.

Fair's fair? How the numbers stack up: 2011/12 season

Ground Capacity
West Ham United: 35,647
Blackpool: 16,220

Average Home Gate
West Ham United: 30,923
Blackpool: 12,764

Biggest Home Gate
West Ham United: 35,000
Blackpool: 14,141

Total Number of Attendees (League only)
West Ham United: 711,237
Blackpool: 293,573

Fill percentage
West Ham United: 86.7%
Blackpool: 78.6%

Wembley Allocation
West Ham United: In excess of 38,000
Blackpool: 38,545

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Memories are made of this
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 11th May 2012
By: Paul Walker

So it's Blackpool we will face at Wembley in the Play-Off Final, and I
suppose most of our fans will be happier with that than another collision
with Birmingham, a side we have beaten only once in six meetings over the
past two seasons.

As for Blackpool, we have battered them twice this season scoring four on
both occasions - including the best away display of the term when we won 4-1
at Blackpool with Henri Lansbury in goal for much of the second-half.

We also won 4-0 at home this season and 3-1 away to Ian Holloway's boys last
term, plus a numbingly bad 0-0 draw earlier that season when the Lancashire
side were penned back in defence for much of the night.

So with Birmingham a constant problem - in particular the giant striker
Nikola Zigic - and Blackpool always happy to open the game up and attack,
surely they are a better bet at Wembley on May 19.

Trouble is, none of this means a jot. It doesn't matter how we have played
against them in the past or how often Holloway talks of how we physically
over-powered his side on both occasions this season.

It's all just words and statistics. The play-offs are a nightmare for
everyone involved, and loved only by the uncommitted onlookers, seemingly
with the morbid fascination of waiting to see how many people they can spot
crying at the end.

What we dare not do is allow ourselves to think we can master Blackpool
because we had the upper hand over them in the league. That would be fatal.

It's what Cardiff did a couple of years ago when Blackpool surprised
everyone by winning their way into the top flight. Cardiff were convinced
they only had to turn up to beat a poverty stricken, little Lancashire club
whose ground was not even finished.

I recall talking to some FA of Wales officials during the build-up to that
Final. Cardiff and Wales used to share the same hotel and training
facilities in the Vale of Glamorgan, and the FAW lot got a first-hand look
at their preparation.

I was told they were amazingly over-confident, sitting around the hotel
talking about what they would do in the top flight and how this was the
beginning of a new era for Welsh club football. They even staged a grand
press conference, put on by smug, arrogant people. Humble they were not, and
it even annoyed the FAW people.

I tell this story to show how easy it is to look beyond the game itself and
start believing your own publicity. Cardiff had drawn twice with Blackpool
that season but still the alarm bells didn't ring.

A Welsh mate got me a ticket for the final, in the Cardiff end, and I
witness first-hand the tears, anguish and sheer horror of losing at that
last stage. That must not be us.

Holloway is no mug. He comes across as a quirky cartoon character, but he is
clever and can galvanise a team and will love the underdog tag. He will also
watch every second of the tapes of the two games against us this season and
be sure to come up with something new, different and certain to disrupt and
surprise us. Do not be fooled, Holloway has been this way before and we dare
not be even slightly off our game for this one.

I hate the play-offs, more because of the concept of the event that has been
around now for 25 years, than anything else. They are basically unfair and
little more that bear-baiting in public for the on-lookers' enjoyment but
certainly not ours.

A whole season's hard graft can go up in smoke with one duff performances
under pressure. My good lady asked this week why if they wanted three teams
promoted, they couldn't just promote the third placed club., because
anything else is unfair. I didn't really know where to start, other than to
consider the 'out of the mouths of babes and innocents' quote.

She is living with and putting up with an obsessed, nerve-racked old fella
who has trailed the country from Middlesbrough to Southampton this season
determined to see the Irons back into the top flight. Telling her it is all
about money and TV revenue seemed hopelessly inadequate at the time. Still
is. The play-offs are immoral because they take away the basic sporting
theory that the best succeed.

West Ham have benefited from both ends of the spectrum here. When we went up
through the play-offs in 2005, we had crawled into sixth place and
knocked-out third placed Ipswich in the semi-finals, despite finishing 12
points behind them.

The year before when we lost to Crystal Palace in Cardiff in the final, they
had finished sixth and we were fourth.

Just for an example, please tell me what is fair about Wrexham's plight in
the Conference. They finished second behind Fleetwood a cool 17 points ahead
of Luton, but it is Luton going to Wembley although Wrexham had beaten them
three out of four meetings this season.

One of my best mates in football has been unpaid chief executive of Wrexham
for six months - money is so tight - and he is having to contend with this
injustice after virtually keeping the Welshmen afloat for much of the season
single-handed. I have commiserated, but it is hollow words really.

At least Cardiff, who have created a reputation now of not really trying for
automatic promotion but just content to nick a place in the play-offs at the
last minute while milking the loan system to the extreme, did not benefit
against us after finishing 11 points behind.

And for that we can thank Sam and the lads for a near perfect handling of
the semi-finals. Two outstanding performances full of calm confidence and
dogged determination and not a little flowing football.

The display at the Boleyn on Monday was one of those memorable days nobody
who was there will ever forget. Watching it again on TV later in the week
just underlined what a quality display it was, front to back, organised,
solid , assured and a masterpiece of preparation from Big Sam.

Right from the start he had a calm hold on the situation. The build-up was
intentionally low-key with the manager not attending either of the press
conferences for the matches, and then not even doing the written press
interviews after the first-leg in Cardiff.

Malky Mackay, his players and the rent-a-quote lot of the local South Wales
media were full of suggestions that West Ham would struggle, they were under
pressure and had brought this situation on themselves.

Nathan Blake, the former Wales striker, does a ghosted column for the local
paper in Cardiff and was tempted into describing us as "damaged goods" for
whatever reasons. That on behalf of a club who have been fighting off the
Revenue, avoiding administration, sometimes unable to pay wages and
struggling to fill their stadium - even for a play-off clash. Just who is
"damaged."

There was none of that sort of stuff from Sam. Another reason he ducked the
interviews was of the close proximity to Roy Hodgson's appointment to the
England job. Sam didn't want to talk about that, it would have been a big
distraction from the matches in hand, and you can bet the national writers
would have got him going on the subject.

You can stand Sam in front of a camera and just turn him on. Just ask him to
put out the lights when he has finished! He still seems to feel slighted
about losing the job to Steve McClaren, and any talk about England would
have made him looked precious about his own position ahead of two crucial
ties.

For what it is worth, when Sam failed to get the job after doing a good
interview, so it was said, an old friend of mine in the north who is still
high-up in the FA and would have had a say in an England appointment, told
me Sam would get the job over his dead body. And as the old buffer is still
with us, I assume that threat still stands.

Last Monday was a stunning day. I have been struggling to recall how many
times we have reached Wembley following a home semi-final victory, and I can
think of one. The League Cup semi-final second leg win over Coventry back in
1980-81 springs to mind. But nothing else. I wonder if any Hammers historian
can think of any more.

The European Cup Winners' Cup semi-final back in '65 saw us needing to
survive in Zaragoza, and we did that with a 1-1 draw and a John Sissons goal
to set up the final clash with TSV Munich. So Monday's win over Cardiff
really was something special to remember.

I just pray now that we have another day to remember next weekend at
Wembley. The seats I have acquired for our group include numbers 64,65 and
66 - for old timers like me those were the greatest years of our lives, and
I hope it's an omen. My son has never seen us play at Wembley, neither have
his mates. I want it to be memorable for them. For all of us.

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Cottee Praises Nolan's Role This Season!
By S J Chandos
West Ham Till I Die

Hammers legend Tony Cottee has identified Kevin Nolan's role as being vital
this season. Cottee has been quoted as stating that:

"Kevin has had his fair share of criticism this season but I don't think you
can argue with what has been a strong season from him. "He has scored some
crucial goals over the course of the season – and his work off the pitch is
just as important. "I think he has been a tremendous leader for the side
this season and it hasn't been easy for him."

There is no doubt that Nolan has contributed goals from midfield and has
exercised strong leadership in his role as Club Captain. Tony Cottee's
comment about Nolan having his share of criticism is surely a reference to
critical comments by certain sections of Hammers supporters throughout the
season. Some even suggested, at times, that he was not worthy of his place
in the team!

Is that criticism unwarranted and should we, follow Cottee's lead, in
recognising the importance of Nolan's role this season?

SJ. Chandos.

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Vaz Te Can Be the Match Winner!
By S J Chandos
West Ham Till I Die

Sam Allardyce has highlighted Ricardo Vaz Te as West Ham's potential match
winner in the Championship play-off Final. He has spoken of Vaz Te's early
promise and the way in which he lost his way, for a time, at the top level
of the game. Periods playing in Greece and Hibs in Scotland, saw Vaz Te face
up to the reality of 'earning hundreds rather than thousands' in wages,
prior to his redemption at Barnsley. Allardyce seems to suggest that Vaz
Te's period 'in the cold,' has given him focus, mental strength and the will
to achive future success in game.

Lets hope he is right, Vaz Te is certainly one a player with the ability to
win the £90m play-off Final. Others who could write themselves a page in the
club's history include a resurgent Carlton Cole, Mark Noble, James Tomkins,
Matty Taylor or, goal scoring midfielder, Kevin Nolan. There are more than
enough potential match winners there and others besides!

Is Allardyce right emphasising Vaz Te's role? Or do you think that another
player will prove key if we are to deliver a win at Wembley?

SJ.Chandos.

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SAM ALLARDYCE: VAZ TE'S MY £90M MAN
Daily Star
13th May 2012 By Tony Stenson

WEST HAM manager Sam Allardyce could return to the Promised Land on the back
of a player he rescued from the "wilderness". Big Sam believes the stage is
set for Ricardo Vaz Te to prove his big-match credentials. And they don't
come bigger than the £90million winner-takes-all Championship Play-Off Final
at Wembley on Saturday. Allardyce's side take on one of his many former
clubs, Blackpool, with the £90m prize the amount a club going into the
Premier League can expect even if they return the following season. His
lucky omen is first-team coach Wally Downes, who has secured promotion or
Wembley success with ­previous clubs Reading and Southampton. But Allardyce
sees Vaz Te, 25, as another charm. He signed him at Bolton after the
youngster paid his own fare from Portugal when he was 16 to try his luck in
English football. Allardyce said: "He left his family and came to live on
his own and by the time he was 18 we saw him as an exceptional talent.
"People don't realise the enormity of doing what he did at such a young age,
dealing with the change of culture and leaving the parental home. "We gave
him a really good contract and he got into the first team and started to
show his ability. "Then he picked up a serious knee ­injury that hindered
his progress. "He went on loan for a short while to Hull City but then he
got cast into the wilderness. "Sometimes that's no bad thing but he ended up
playing in Greece and with Hibs in Scotland. "He suffered the shock of
knowing, 'I am in Greece, then Scotland and I am only earning ­hundreds of
pounds instead of thousands'. "It was the same for him at Barnsley and that
­experience is why he has matured and looks to have a really good career
developing. "There is a lot more to come from him and hopefully he will
continue to prove to be a very, very good player. "I can't wait for the
play-offs. It's a big one-off game. It's unique and that means two teams
going head-to-head in what is a cup final. We all know what cup finals
produce on a one-off basis and league results mean nothing."

Blackpool know how to win one-off games after beating Cardiff 3-2 in the
2010 Play-Off Final – but Allardyce is sure his men can deal with the big
occasion.
He added: "We lived with the pressure of being ­favourites for promotion all
season. It's just a case of trying to manage the euphoria that comes with
playing in that big arena. "The prize is massive for us and all we have
strived to do all season rests on this one game. "West Ham fans think we
shouldn't be down here in the first place and perhaps don't have the same
joy others might have at winning ­promotion. "Every fan has a greater
­expectation than reality. But ­football isn't in the real world, so reality
doesn't matter. It's ­fantasy land. Football is all about dreams and the
fans' dreams are sometimes way ­beyond reality. "For a club that has done
very little in honest terms, West Ham get crowds that are bigger than you
might expect. "The fans have had fleeting moments of looking like being
successful but that has ­never been ­sustained. "But they are very
passionate because as ­youngsters they have been brought up to be
­passionate about their football club. "It's why I came here. I wanted to
gain promotion and build a team for the Premier League. "Given enough time
we can get Champions League football here in about six or seven years. "If
we don't go up, I will not regard it as a failure. I have a two-year
contract to get us up and we might do it in a year."

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RICARDO VAZ TE CAN WIN £90M BATTLE
Express.co.uk
Sunday May 13,2012
By Colin Mafham

IT'S a game that is worth around £90million to the winners – and West Ham
are banking on a £500,000 bargain buy who plays like Cristiano Ronaldo to
pocket it for them. Ricardo Vaz Te has made such a meteoric impact since his
cut-price move from Barnsley in January that he is being compared to the
Real Madrid superstar.
Now the Portuguese winger, who is displaying many of the attributes of his
charismatic countryman, is set to complete a sensational comeback from a
crippling injury to try to fire the Hammers back into the top flight at the
first attempt by beating Blackpool in next Saturday's Championship play-off
final at Wembley. Manager Sam Allardyce threw Vaz Te a lifeline four months
ago after he remembered just how good he was when he signed him as a
16-year-old boy wonder for Bolton. That was nearly nine years ago when the
youngster followed in Ronaldo's footsteps and left his family behind to make
his fortune in England. But the comparisons came to a cruel halt when damage
to his knee ligaments turned Vaz Te's dream into a nightmare. We saw him as
an exceptional talent at Bolton and gave him a really good contract
He was, as Allardyce recalls, "thrown into the wilderness", drifting from
Hull to Greece and then Hibs, in Scotland, before his old boss spotted him
languishing at Barnsley – who had signed him on a free transfer only last
summer. "We saw him as an exceptional talent at Bolton and gave him a really
good contract," the Hammers boss remembered. "But then he picked up a
serious knee injury that never really got cleared up, I left and I don't
think he ever played for Bolton again.
"For a young man at a Premier League club who think they have an exceptional
player on their hands he had an exceptional salary. "Then all of a sudden he
goes into the wilderness and that becomes only hundreds of pounds instead of
thousands. "That experience is why he has matured and looks to have a really
good career developing. "He has had to fight his way back and that has made
the player for me. And there is still a lot more to come from him."

Vaz Te, who has scored 11 goals in just 17 appearances in the Hammers'
promotion push, is Allardyce's surprise prize asset this season. But no
matter what the 25-year-old and his team-mates do next Saturday, the manager
has warned them not to expect any thanks. "We are expected to go up and if
we don't we will be criticised and if we do it is nothing more than we are
expected to. We have to live with that," says Allardyce. "I told the players
that from the start, not to expect too much praise because they are expected
to go up. "Whether they are capable of doing it is immaterial – they are
West Ham and they are expected to do it. Allardyce has also warned his
players they will underestimate Blackpool at their peril. "We can't think we
just have to turn up. This is a unique, one-off game that's like a cup final
and we still have to earn a place in the Premier League," he said.
"Blackpool know the arena they are going into because they have been there
before and that is an advantage to them. "I just have to hope that it
doesn't affect any of my players adversely and frightens them a bit. The old
freeze scenario can happen. "The prize is massive for us and all we have
strived to do all season rests on this one game.

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