Daily WHUFC News - 2nd October 2012

Big Sam delighted with QPR win
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce was a happy man as West Ham United got their away campaign
started with a win at QPR
02.10.2012

Sam Allardyce said he was simply 'delighted' to see West Ham United get the
first away win of the 2012/13 Barclays Premier League season under their
belt with a 2-1 victory at Queens Park Rangers on Monday night. Big Sam's
side were the dominant force for much of the game, and took the spoils
courtesy of Matt Jarvis' first goal for the club and Ricardo Vaz Te's maiden
goal of the season. The Hammers were driven to victory by the inspired
midfield trio of Mark Noble, Momo Diame and Kevin Nolan, who dominated the
game for the visitors and ensured that it was east London who ended up with
the bragging rights. "It was a great, great victory for us and our first
away in the Barclays Premier League this season," Allardyce said. "We showed
great character, great spirit and great belief from the team. "I'm
delighted. Against a lot of the odds we still went ahead and won this game
and won it a lot more comfortably than the score suggested. To be honest at
2-0 at half time you'd have thought I'd be satisfied but because of the
amount of chances we created in the first half I was disappointed it wasn't
three. "I thought Mark Noble, Kevin Nolan and Momo Diame controlled the game
for us. All three were the reason why got so many things going forward. The
service that they provide to the wide men was key as it allowed us to create
the chances. The goals were two very good finishes as the angles were very
acute. We had easier chances than them and missed them."

The night could not have really got off to a better start as Jarvis nodded
in Nolan's looping cross from the right from three yards out. It got even
better for the Hammers ten minutes before the break, when Vaz Te expertly
flicked home a James Tomkins cross with the outside of his foot from an
acute angle. "It was a great start for us and a great piece of football from
our team. We were on the front foot and completely dominating the game
playing away from home in the Premier League for the first time since we got
promoted. People would expect us to sit back but we have shown our ability
as an attacking side. We got two exceptionally good goals. "The difficulty
came in the second half when Taarabt scored that wonderful goal. One goal
changes the game. If it was 3-0 at half time that one goal wouldn't have
mattered at all. They put us under the cosh but we showed our defensive
resilience."

Abdel Taarabt had pulled one back for the Hoops with a sensational 30-yard
strike just minutes after coming on as a second-half substitute. The goal
instantly game the home team and their supporters a lift and some courageous
defending and fine goalkeeping from Jussi Jaaskelainen were needed to help
keep them at bay. There was some cause for concern midway through the half
when Jaaskelainen accidently caught Winston Reid in the face with his elbow.
After spending a few minutes on the floor, the New Zealand international
gingerly made his way to his feet to trudge off the pitch to be replaced by
James Tomkins. Joey O'Brien was also taken off for George McCartney after
tweaking a hamstring. "QPR have gone out and spent a lot of money. We've
come to their place and been the better side. We've had to overcome two
injuries in the first half. Unfortunately Jussi knocked out Reid and then
Joey felt his hamstring. We didn't look defensively any weaker when George
McCartney and James Tomkins came on, which is fantastic for me. "The
defensive unit was brilliant and the attacking unit was first class too,
other than one or two finishes that could have been better "We'll find out
how Winston is on Tuesday but he seems OK in the dressing room. The medical
team think he might have had a slight concussion but hopefully he will
recover in time for Saturday's game with Arsenal."

Vaz Te and Matt Jarvis were also hugely influential as part of an effective
counter-attacking unit,causing QPR full-backs Nedum Onuoha and Clint Hill no
end of problems. Vaz Te had double reason to celebrate after his goal as it
fell on the day he turned 26, with his manager happy to see another step
taken towards rediscovering his very best form. "He's got to feel his way
into the Barclays Premier League. He's been there as a young man and
injuries took their toll along with a lack of experience. Now he's got all
the experience he needs to show the ability that he's got and he certainly
showed that. "The goals will do him and Matt Jarvis the world of good as the
more variety we get from different players, the better we become and the
more points we will pick up."

Carlton Cole had an impressive game up front but missed a good opportunity
on 67 minutes to grab the goal his performance deserved. The West Ham No9
made way for the fit-again Andy Carroll on 72 minutes, and the loan signing
quickly set about hassling the home defence, with the Hammers' cause helped
by the sending off of QPR substitute Samba Diakite for a second booking. "We
came out and moved the ball quickly and caught them on the break and got
better after the sending off. "Andy could be very important for us alongside
Carlton Cole. Modibo Maiga could also be key for us. We kept bringing Maiga
on as sub and in the Capital Cup games so we think he is improving. What we
needed against QPR was Andy Carroll just for the last 20 minutes when
Carlton tired. "His aim was to hold the ball up and be a target for us so we
could stop QPR's pressure and it changed the game back in our favour. The
sending off did as well of course. Andy started holding the ball up and we
started creating more chances but for some great saves from the goalkeeper
we could have won this game by more."

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Turgott provides Hope
WHUFC.com
Blair Turgott featured as England ended their UEFA European U19 Championship
qualifiers on a high
01.10.2012

Blair Turgott notched a vital assist in England Under-19s' UEFA European
Championship 1-1 qualifying draw with Ukraine on Monday. Both sides had
already qualified for next spring's Elite Round going into the game but
Hallum Hope's added-time header from Turgott's free-kick meant England
topped the group ahead of their opponents. England will now receive a more
favourable draw in the Elite Round of qualifying for next year's finals in
Lit huania.Noel Blake's side looked set to finish second in their group when
Vladyslav Pavlenko hit the net with just two minutes remaining, but England
refused to be beaten and the Everton youngster nudged home with seconds to
spare. Turgott will now return to West Ham United and join up with the
Development Squad ahead of their next Barclays U21 Premier League Group 1
fixture at Blackburn Rovers on Monday.

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QPR 1 West Ham 2
By Ben Smith
BBC Sport

West Ham heaped more misery on 10-man Queens Park Rangers as they held on to
win at Loftus Road and keep their hosts bottom of the Premier League.
Record signing Matt Jarvis gave West Ham a dream start by heading in after
three minutes and Ricardo Vaz Te poked in to double the lead before
half-time.
QPR rallied after the interval and Adel Taarabt cut the deficit, but the
hosts had Samba Diakite sent off late on. And West Ham held on despite eight
yellow cards - a Premier League record. The result, West Ham's first away
win of the season, moves Sam Allardyce's side up to seventh in the table and
there was more cause for optimism as striker Andy Carroll played the final
20 minutes after returning from his hamstring problem. But this was another
damaging defeat for winless QPR, who have now taken only two league points
from a possible 18 this season. Having been backed heavily by owner Tony
Fernandes during the summer transfer window, the pressure is likely to mount
on manager Mark Hughes, who will in turn point to a string of defensive
injuries. Sharper to the ball and swifter to use it, West Ham dominated the
opening 45 minutes. QPR finally found their rythym in the second half,
inspired by the creativity and energy of Taarabt, but it was too little, too
late. West Ham worked hard and counter-attacked intelligently, using the
energy of Mohamed Diame and the guile of Vaz Te, but it was by no means a
classic performance and both of their goals owed more to perspiration than
inspiration. Their first came as early as the third minute after Vaz Te
skipped beyond a desperate lunge from Clint Hill on the right. The
Portuguese cut the ball back to Kevin Nolan on the edge of the area and his
looping cross was headed in by Jarvis at the back post. QPR threatened in
fits and starts, with Bobby Zamora firing well over from 12 yards and
Djibril Cisse drawing an acrobatic save from Jussi Jaaskelainen with an
athletic volley. But West Ham remained the better side and the second goal
followed soon after. James Tomkins lofted the ball to the back post after
QPR failed to clear from a corner and Vaz Te stretched out his right leg,
with the ball beating goalkeeper Julio Cesar thanks to the slightest
deflection off Stephane Mbia's arm. QPR responded to their manager's
half-time words with the kind of spirit and energy that they had been
lacking. Taarabt shattered the mediocrity with the game's single moment of
brilliance, unleashing a fizzing 30-yarder that flashed into the top corner,
84 seconds after coming on as a substitute.

West Ham's Jaaskelainen was the busier of the two goalkeepers now, saving
brilliantly from Esteban Granero's shot after a clever touch by Cisse,
although Carlton Cole should have made the victory more comfortable for West
Ham but prodded wide with the goal at his mercy after a slide-rule pass by
the tireless Nolan. But just as QPR came again, Diakite lunged in on Vaz Te
to collect a second yellow card, 25 minutes after coming on as a substitute,
to take the wind out of QPR's sails. West Ham manager Sam Allardyce said:
"We've achieved our first Barclays Premier League away win, which is no mean
feat for a newly promoted team. I think the outstanding qualities we showed,
both in our ability to take the game to the opposition away from home and
our ability to score goals. were fantastic to see. "As the underdogs, having
just been promoted, to come to QPR and take the game to them and dominate
that first half was great. If I had to say anything, I was a little bit
disappointed we didn't get more than two. "There were an awful lot of fouls
and decisions the referee gave that he didn't need to do and an awful lot of
yellow cards he gave nearly spoilt the game."

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QPR 1 West Ham Utd 2
KUMB.com
Filed: Tuesday, 2nd October 2012
By: Staff Writer

West Ham are celebrating their first away win in the Premier League since
February 2011 after beating Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road tonight. A
scintillating first half display was the foundation upon which United's
first away win of the 2012/13 campaign - and the first since winning 3-1 at
Blackpool under Avram Grant - was built. Goals from Matt Jarvis and Ricardo
Vaz Te saw the Hammers take a 2-0 lead into the break and although they
conceded early on in the second period, the Hammers clung on to rise to
seventh spot in the table. Rangers, who have endured a shocking start to the
campaign offered little and ended the match with ten men after substitute
Diakite - who had only been on the pitch for 19 minutes - received his
marching orders with quarter-of-an-hour to go. Trigger-happy referee Mark
Clattenburg booked ten players on the night - an astonishing EIGHT of which
were from West Ham - yet somehow Sam Allardyce's team managed to finish the
game with all eleven still on the field. He was also criticised for playing
six minutes of extra time when there had been few reasons to add on time in
the second period bar substitutions. However West Ham amanged to cling on to
record a much deserved win regardless. The healthy and vocal travelling
contingent, which had made the short trip across London waited just three
minutes for the first goal of the night to arrive. Skipper Kevin Nolan's
initial shot - the result of some interplay between him and Ricardo Vaz Te -
was heading wide of the target before club-record signing Jarvis appeared at
the back post to send a deft header across Rangers 'keeper Julio Cesar into
the far corner. The Hammers almost scored a second on 11 minutes when Momo
Diame's 25-yard effort dipped just over the crossbar. However they were
forced to wait until ten minutes from the break before eventually doubling
their lead.

Mark Noble's free kick found its way out to James Tomkins, on as a
substitute for the injured Winston Reid. The central defender lobbed the
ball back into the mix where Vaz Te stole in at the far post to find the net
with a deft flick that took a slight deflection on the way in. The goal was
met by a wry smile from former West Ham number one Rob Green - who has
already lost his place at his new club - and captured perfectly by the TV
cameras. The only sour note of an otherwise excellent first half was the
injury to Reid which occured after he collided with Jussi Jaaskelainen as
the two sought to clear a ball into the box. The New Zealander lay prone for
several minutes before being replaced by Tomkins. The home side halved the
deficit just 12 minutes into the second half when substitute Taarabt found
the net with an impressive effort from outside the box. And although Jussi
Jaaskelainen had to be alert to keep West Ham ahead on a couple of occasions
thereafter, it was West Ham who went closest to adding what would have been
the game's fourth goal when a rejuvenated Vaz Te saw a wonderful dipping
volley turned against the cross bar by Cesar.

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Hammers pile more woe on Hoops
Jarvis and Vaz Te on target for happy Hammers
Last Updated: October 1, 2012 10:58pm
SSN

QPR remain without a Premier League win and bottom of the table after West
Ham inflicted a 2-1 defeat on the 10-man Hoops at Loftus Road in Monday
night's London derby.

Man of the match: Mark Noble gets the nod from us after shining in midfield
for the Hammers with a hard-working display.
Goal of the match: Adel Taarabt was quick to make an impact off the bench,
looping a wonderful effort over Jussi Jaaskelainen just seconds after coming
on the pitch.
Save of the match: Jaaskelainen pulled off a string of crucial blocks to
keep out the Hoops in the second half and the most notable was his
one-handed save which denied Esteban Granero.
Chance of the match: Kevin Nolan set up Carlton Cole with a gilt-edged
chance from close range after Samba Diakite had slipped to lose possession
but the striker poked it wide.
Talking point: Can QPR recover from a disastrous start to the season or is
relegation calling already? West Ham have marched into seventh but will they
be able to maintain their momentum?

The result marked a first away win for the Hammers this season and saw Sam
Allardyce's men climb into seventh at the expense of Mark Hughes'
strugglers.
West Ham wasted little time breaking the deadlock in West London as Matt
Jarvis scored in just the third minute, nodding home after Kevin Nolan and
Ricardo Vaz Te had paired up with a great one-two. The lively Vaz Te then
added another in the 35th minute, squeezing home a tidy James Tomkins cross
after the Hoops defence had failed to properly clear a Hammers corner.
Substitute Adel Taarabt pulled one back with a classy strike in the second
half only seconds after coming on the pitch to inspire glimmers of hope in
Hughes' side and Hammers goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen was forced to pull
off a string of impressive saves.

But QPR's woes were compounded with 15 minutes remaining when Samba Diakite
was sent off after earning his second booking 20 minutes after coming off
the bench and they were unable to see the comeback through. West Ham also
saw chances go begging late on, with Andy Carroll coming close after making
his comeback from a hamstring injury as a 72nd-minute substitute.

Indiscipline

Referee Mark Clattenburg handed out 11 bookings in all and eight of those
went to players in claret and blue, who will be fined for indiscipline but
held out for three valuable points. Coming into the game, the surprise team
news was that Carroll was deemed fit enough to be included amongst the
substitutes after missing the past four matches with a hamstring injury.
Former West Ham goalkeeper Rob Green was on the opposing bench and was
taunted from the start by the vocal visiting support, having lost his place
in the QPR team just four games after his summer move from Upton Park.

The England international was reminded of his decision throughout the match
by 1,681 away supporters, who had a goal to cheer after just three minutes.
Kevin Nolan linked up well with Vaz Te down the left but struck a poor
scooped effort that was going harmlessly wide until Jarvis snuck in to nod
home past Julio Cesar. It was a bolt out of the blue in what was an
unspectacular opening, although the Hammers came close to a second in the
11th minute when Mohamed Diame's 25-yard thunderbolt deflected off Ryan
Nelsen and flew just over.

Joey O'Brien reacted quickly to stop James Collins putting into his own goal
from an Esteban Granero free-kick that saw an unfortunate collision between
Winston Reid and his own goalkeeper. The New Zealand international required
nearly four minutes of treatment after appearing to be knocked out by Jussi
Jaaskelainen and saw James Tomkins come on in his place. The break in play
did not change the game's momentum as only Stephane Mbia's quick reactions
prevented Diame getting a head on a right-wing Nolan cross.

It was not all positive for West Ham, though, as O'Brien became their second
casualty of the first half and had to be replaced by George McCartney 11
minutes from half-time. The injuries were the only blot on a fine opening 45
minutes for West Ham, which got better as Vaz Te doubled the visitors'
advantage moments later. Mark Noble swung in a free-kick and the resulting
penalty-box melee was cleared only as far as Tomkins, whose superb
first-time cross was met by an equally impressive acrobatic effort from Vaz
Te. "Greeno, what's the score?" rung around Loftus Road following the goal
and would have gone up a notch had a Carlton Cole header or Noble's
deflected long-range strike found the target. The latter and Diame were both
booked heading into the break from which West Ham returned on top. Cesar did
well to deny Diame three minutes after the restart and it took until the
55th-minute introductions of Taarabt and Diakite to change course. The
former was welcomed with particularly loud cheers and showed why within two
minutes, making space to curl home an exquisite 25-yard effort into the top
right-hand corner.

Celebration

Taarabt was booked for lifting his shirt and was soon joined in
Clattenburg's notebook by fellow replacement Diakite. West Ham's McCartney
was the next, before Jaaskelainen was reprimanded shortly after denying
Granero with an excellent stop. Cole and Nolan both received yellow cards as
the match became a bit of a farce and Allardyce soon brought on Carroll for
the former. Jaaskelainen spilled a driven Cisse shot at the near post as QPR
pushed for an equaliser, before the hosts' task was made all the more
difficult as Diakite received a second yellow a late lunge on Diame. Vaz Te
had an excellent strike palmed onto the bar by Cesar after Collins became
the seventh West Ham player to be booked. Cisse and Alejandro Faurlin were
both denied by Jaaskelainen as QPR pushed for a leveller that never came as
West Ham held out for victory, although not before Tomkins became the final
player booked.

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West Ham captain Kevin Nolan hails crucial win for his side against QPR
Last Updated: October 2, 2012 12:06am
SSN

West Ham captain Kevin Nolan was glad to see his side claim an 'absolutely
vital' first away triumph of the Premier League season. The promoted Hammers
took a third-minute lead against hosts QPR through Matt Jarvis' first goal
for the club before Ricardo Vaz Tedoubled their advantage in the 35th
minute, both goals coming from far-post finishes. QPR pulled a goal back
with a stunning 57th-minute effort from Adel Taarabt just moments after he
came on as a substitute, but they lost Samba Diakite to a second yellow card
15 minutes from time and the remaining 10 men could not find an equaliser.
The result leaves QPR rooted to the foot of the standings with only two
points from six games, while West Ham moved into the top seven, with
Tottenham and West Brom on 11 points.

Nolan told Sky Sports of the win: "It was absolutely vital. Absolutely
delighted with the win today. "They made us work for the win in the second
half. It was a fantastic first-half performance, the second half I thought
we dug in and we could have won it by more in the end really." Nolan also
praised his side for the way they fought to hold off QPR's attempted
comeback after the break. "We knew at some point they had to make changes,
we had to be ready for that and I thought we dealt with it well," he said.
"It was a great goal (from Taarabt ) but I thought after that we responded
well, we dug in, they had the man sent off which helped us, but I thought
overall we were well deserving of the win. "Tonight we proved we are tough
to beat and we have quality."

Resilience

Man-of-the-match Mark Noble also hailed West Ham's resilience after QPR
battled for a way back and is already looking ahead to another London derby
when the Hammers host Arsenal this weekend. He said: "I think in the first
half we controlled the game. We got an early goal, then got another one and
controlled it from then on. "It's a tough place to come and play here and
when they scored their goal we had to dig in and fight and we've done that
tonight, the lads were brilliant. "The morale's brilliant, we've had a good
start. Obviously we've got Arsenal next week so we've got to concentrate on
that one now, it's going to be a tough game."

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West Ham boss Sam Allardyce felt his side put on a Jekyll and Hyde
performance in the 2-1 win at QPR
Last Updated: October 1, 2012 11:22pm
SSN

West Ham boss Sam Allardyce felt his side put on a Jekyll and Hyde
performance in the 2-1 win at QPR. The result, courtesy of goals from
Ricrado Vaz Te and Matt Jarvis,lifted West Ham to seventh - their highest
position in four years - but the manager felt his side could have made
matters easier for themselves.
"We showed two sides of our team," he told Sky Sports. "The one side was the
great first half we gave and completely dominated the opposition on their
own ground. "We are a newly promoted team and we have taken the game to QPR
and led through two quality finishes. Let's face it it could have been more
than 2-0 at half-time. "Adel Taarabt's brilliant strike to make it 2-1 was a
worry for us because it lifted the crowd and their players. "We had to show
the other side of our character which is good honest hard work and
defending. After they had a man sent off, we should really have seen the
game off with more goals."

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Should we Attempt to Sign Andy Carroll in January?
By S J Chandos
West Ham Till I Die

Tonight's victory is the first at Loftus Road that I can recall since the
mid-1970s. I said that we had to break that duck some time and so it prove
tonight. Thankfully, Allardyce set up a very attacking away formation and we
took the game to QPR from the kick off. Going in at half-time 0-2 up was
fully deserved, considering our domination of the game up to that point.
That first half performance was extremely impressive and at the heart of it
was the industry and skill of the midfeld triumvirite of Noble, Diame and
Nolan. Their collective work in midfield allowed us dominate QPR and bring
the sparkling skills of Vaz Te and Jarvis in to the game. It was also a very
brave and hard running performance from Carlton Cole, which should have
rightfully been rewarded with a goal.

Overall, it was an excellent team performance and everyone played their
part. It was particularly good to see Tomkins, McCartney and Carroll enter
the fray. Cole gave a committed performance, full of running and the use of
his physicality to disrupt the QPR defence, and then he duly gave way to
Andy Carroll, who had an instant positive impact on the course of the game.
QPR made changes early in the 2nd half and scored soon thereafter. From the
time Taarabt scored with his powerful drive, QPR managed to gain the upper
hand, for a period, and West Ham had to really dig in and fight to prevent
an equaliser. Seeing this, Sam Allardyce obviously felt that Carroll's
introduction would set QPR different problems and give his team a new outlet
to relieve the mounting pressure on the West Ham defence. And so it proved,
as West Ham found Carroll with balls forward that (in conjunction with the
QPR red card) changed the flow of the game back in West Ham's favour.
Carroll was clearly a lacking in match fitness, after his injury lay-off,
but made a willing target man, caused the QPR defenders continual problems
and even had time to carry out defensive duties, when called upon to do so.

It was an impressive re-introduction to the West Ham Utd FC first team and
the club's management and board must know (in the unlikely event that they
did not know before!) what an absolute gem they have in Andy Carroll. One
wonders whether, if Carroll's performances continue in this impressive vein,
the board might consider financing a permanent deal in January? Obviously,
if Liverpool honour the full one year loan agreement, then West Ham will
stick to the original plan to thrash out a permanent deal next summer.
However, if there is any suggestion of a Liverpool recall, might not the
board consider exercising its 'first option in to buy' in January instead?
Of course, it all depends on the finances of the club and whether we are in
a position to do it in January. However, if our PL status looks fairly safe
come the New Year, might not the board splash out in anticipation of the
following season's increased TV revenue being virtually in the bag?
Similarly, another positive background factor might be West Ham winning the
tenancy of the Olympic Stadium, with the anticipated additional revenue from
the sale of Upton Park and access to strong, new revenue streams, from 2014
onwards, as a result of occupying a 60,000 capacity OS.

Personally, I suspect that recall will not be an issue as long as Rogers
remains the Liverpool Manager. Carroll does not fit in to his system or
intended playing style, so a recall would most likely be to finance a deal
to sign an alternative striker. But, in practical terms, can they actually
do that in January? Would not such a deal break FIFA rules, in terms of
Caroll appearing for three different clubs in a single season? As such, the
probability is that, whilst Rogers is at the helm, Liverpool would leave
Carroll at West Ham, with a view to cashing in next summer. At least at West
Ham, Carroll would be playing regularly, in the shop window and proving his
worth, rather than just warming the bench at Anfield.

It's an interesting situation but, I guess, we will have to wait and see
what happens this January?

SJ. Chandos.

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Be Carr-ful with Andy
By ANDREW DILLON
Published: 5 hrs ago
The Sun

SAM ALLARDYCE last night urged Roy Hodgson to go easy on star striker Andy
Carroll. England boss Hodgson saw Carroll return from a month out with a
hamstring injury as a sub in West Ham's 2-1 win at QPR. Carroll could
feature when Hodgson names his squad on Thursday for the World Cup
qualifiers against San Marino and Poland. But boss Allardyce warned: "Andy's
woefully short of match practice — I'm sure Roy will deal with that in the
right way."

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QPR 1 West Ham 2
Last Updated: 02nd October 2012
The Sun

MARK HUGHES is sure he will be given time to put things right at QPR.
Rock-bottom Rangers are still looking for their first top-flight win of the
season after crashing to the Hammers. The odds on Harry Redknapp taking over
at the Hoops were last night slashed to 15-8. But current boss Sparky said:
"I think I will be given the time to see this job through. "We've had big
investment in the club and we're looking to improve — and we will. "It's
still early days but until we get positive results on board, everything is
up for debate and focus comes on the club. We just need to start winning
football matches and then everything else will go away." On this evidence,
that is easier said than done. First-half goals from Matt Jarvis and Ricardo
Vaz Te put West Ham firmly in control. And although Rangers hit back
strongly after sending on Adel Taarabt for the last 35 minutes, they looked
like a team destined for relegation. Hughes admitted: "I thought our
performance in the first half was a step backwards."

Vaz Te pulled the ball back to his skipper Kevin Nolan, whose outstretched
right leg sent it spiralling to the far post where the unmarked Jarvis
nodded back across the face of goal and into the net. Mo Diame almost made
it 2-0 with a deflected effort which flew inches wide before West Ham were
dealt a blow when defender Winston Reid went off seeing stars in the 23rd
minute following a collision with his own keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen. Yet the
New Zealander's replacement, James Tomkins, crossed for Vaz Te to hook the
second goal past a flapping Julio Cesar 10 minutes before the break. With
the natives restless, Hughes sent on Taarabt and Samba Diakite on 55 minutes
and the game almost turned. Taarabt, axed after Rangers' opening-day 5-0
home spanking by Swansea, announced his return in glorious fashion. The
Moroccan's first touch saw him mug Guy Demel, before cutting inside and
curling a beauty past Jaaskelainen. Esteban Granero and Alejandro Faurlin
were both denied equalisers by superb stops from the Finnish keeper. But
just when it looked like Rangers might salvage a point, Diakite was sent off
in the 75th minute after his second booking following a rash challenge on
Demel.

Andy Carroll returned as a late sub for West Ham and should have made it
3-1. But he was thwarted by Cesar, then blasted the rebound into Row Z. It
was West Ham's first league away win this season — but they face a £25,000
fine after fussy ref Mark Clattenburg booked EIGHT of their players. Boss
Sam Allardyce said: "It didn't spoil the result as far as we were concerned
but some of his decisions nearly spoilt the game as a spectacle." The
Hammers are now up to seventh yet Big Sam added: "I'm just a bit
disappointed we didn't score more."

DREAM TEAM
SUN STAR MAN — COLLINS (WEST HAM)
QPR: Julio Cesar 6, Hill 5, Nelsen 5, Mbia 5, Onuoha 5, Wright-Phillips 6,
Granero 7, Faurlin 6, Park 5, Zamora 6, Cisse 6. Subs: Diakite (Park 55) 4,
Taarabt (Wright-Phillips 56) 7, Hoilett (Onuoha 84) 5. Not used: Green,
Mackie, Ephraim, Ehmer. Booked: Taarabt, Diakite. Sent off: Diakite.
WEST HAM: Jaaskelainen 7, Demel 6, Reid 5, Collins 7, O'Brien 5, Noble 7,
Diame 6, Vaz Te 6, Nolan 7, Jarvis 7, Cole 7. Subs: Tomkins (Reid 23) 7,
McCartney (O'Brien 35) 5, Carroll (Cole 72) 5. Not used: Henderson, Maiga,
Benayoun, O'Neil. Booked: Diame, Noble, McCartney, Jaaskelainen, Cole,
Nolan, Collins, Tomkins.

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Allardyce thrilled with win, but not ref
Thurrockgazette.co.uk
6:17am Tuesday 2nd October 2012 in National Sport © Press Association 2012

West Ham manager Sam Allardyce was delighted by his side's performance at
QPR on Monday night but rather less enamoured by referee Mark Clattenburg.
The Hammers secured their first away league win of the season thanks to a
fine 2-1 victory in west London, with record signing Matt Jarvis netting
after three minutes. Ricardo Vaz Te acrobatically doubled the visitors'
advantage and, while substitute Adel Taarabt pulled one back in style, West
Ham held on for a victory that propels them to seventh. "We've achieved our
first Barclays Premier League (away) win, which is no mean feat for a
newly-promoted team," Allardyce said. "I think the outstanding qualities we
showed today both in our ability to take the game to the opposition away
from home and our ability to score goals was fantastic to see."

He added: "As the underdogs, having just been promoted, to come to QPR and
take the game to them and dominate that first half was great for me to see.
If I had to say anything, I was a little bit disappointed we didn't get more
than two." The only blot on a fine evening for the Hammers were the enforced
first-half substitutions of Winston Reid through concussion and Joey O'Brien
due to a hamstring injury. It could have been a whole lot worse, though, as
referee Clattenburg handed out eight yellow cards to West Ham players. "He
hasn't spoilt our result but if you look at the spectacle as a game I think
there were an awful lot of fouls and decisions he gave that he didn't need
to do," Allardyce said.

QPR manager Mark Hughes was also frustrated with Clattenburg, who sent off
substitute Samba Diakite after handing him two yellow cards in a 20-minute
period. "He has made two similar challenges," the Welshman said. "I wouldn't
say they were reckless. "The first one was a genuine attempt to get the ball
but the lad has just nicked it away from him. It doesn't warrant a yellow
card in my view. Some referees give them, some don't." Asked if he was
confident he would get time to see the job through, the QPR boss said: "I
would think so. We have had a big investment and we're looking to improve
this year and we will."

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