TC looking forward to new season
WHUFC.com
Tony Cottee discusses West Ham United prospects ahead of the new season
29.06.2013
West Ham United legend Tony Cottee believes manager Sam Allardyce needs to
bring in one more forward to complement his forward line ahead of the
2013/14 Barclays Premier League season. Cottee lauded the signing of England
centre forward Andy Carroll and believes Modibo Maiga, Ricardo Vaz Te and
Elliot Lee have parts to play. However, the 146-goal striker believes Big
Sam will delve into the market to bring in one more frontman before the big
kick-off at home to Cardiff City on Saturday 17 August.
"It was a good season for the Club last year, finishing tenth in our first
season back in the Barclays Premier League," Cottee told West Ham TV. "Right
at the end of last season, I felt we needed to strengthen up front. "The
Andy Carroll conundrom has been resolved and we obviously have Modibo Maiga,
Ricardo Vaz Te and Elliot Lee as the guys who are squad players. To have a
successful season in the Premier League you need to have four quality
strikers. "That is the aim as we come towards the start of the season. We
need to get a striker in. The signing of Andy is great for the Club, so if
we can keep Maiga and Vaz Te and get one more in, then I feel that is where
our priorities lie. "We're pretty good in midfield. We could maybe do with a
couple of players with a little bit of pace in the squad. At centre-half
we're fine and I think we're OK in the goalkeeping position, so it's mainly
the forward positions for me."
Cottee also said he believes Romania captain and left-back Razvan Rat will
add welcome experience to the back four before going on to set out his goals
for 2013/14. "I am just hoping for a five-year period of stability at the
Club. I got frustrated with the Club being a yo-yo and going up and down, up
and down, because I don't think that did anyone any good. "Under Sam
Allardyce I do think we will get a period of stability and that is exactly
what the Club needs. We're three years away from going into the Olympic
Stadium and we simply must retain our Premier League status. "I don't want
the fans to get carried away just because we finished tenth. I don't want
fans thinking we're going to qualify for the Champions League next season
because that is unrealistic. With the budget and squad we've got, that's not
going to happen.
"It wouldn't be a disaster if we finished 12th or 13th next year, but
hopefully we can improve. If we can finish ninth next year, I'll be
absolutely thrilled with that and then hopefully eighth and seventh. "Once
we get into the Olympic Stadium, it will give the Club more money and more
sponsorship and commercial opportunities to develop the squad and give Sam
the chance to compete for Europe. That's my ultimate dream - to see us
compete for a place in the Champions League."
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Birmingham keen to bring Shane Ferguson and Ravel Morrison back
Last Updated: June 29, 2013 4:58pm
SSN
Birmingham are hoping to bring Shane Ferguson and Ravel Morrison back for
second loan spells, but will also promote from within. Discussions with
Newcastle United and West Ham United have been opened regarding further
season-long deals for Ferguson and Morrison. Blues boss Lee Clark will,
however, be exploring all avenues as he looks to piece together a
competitive squad for 2013/14. He is reluctant to block the path of academy
graduates, but also appreciates the need to get experienced bodies on board
for what will be another testing Championship campaign. Clark told the
Birmingham Mail when quizzed on his plans for the summer: "How many more
players? It's a tough one because as you know and as I've shown in the past,
I like to promote from within as well. "The scholars came in on Wednesday
and I've sat down with them to throw down the gauntlet - why not you take
the positions or have a go at taking the roles? "There's that possibility,
but there's also a possibility in regards Shane Ferguson and Ravel Morrison.
"We're still in dialogue with Newcastle United and West Ham United. I would
really like to get them, but we've got to see."
Opportunity
Clark added: "There are possibilities on both sides for promotion from
within, down to the young players. "I believe they're in an unbelievable
position because they've seen I'm not frightened to do it, they've seen the
position of the club and the position where you can get games, and lots of
games. "But ultimately it's up to them. I'm not just going to give them an
opportunity to be in the team and producing the goods as it's about the
whole package for me. It's about how they behave on and off the field."
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Jimmy Greaves on why West Ham fans shouldn't get too distressed by pictures
of Andy Carroll partying
29 Jun 2013 22:00
The Mirror
The football great tells the Sunday People's Dave Kidd that there used to be
a time when you'd fail a medical for having no alcohol in your bloodstream
Let's get one thing straight: Even at the height of my drinking, I never
dressed up as a giant chipmunk while sipping champagne in a Las Vegas
nightspot.
Nor did I climb on the shoulders of a fellow party-goer, bare-chested and in
a Superman cape while firing a smoke gun. But West Ham fans should not get
too distressed at photos of Andy Carroll, who has just cost the club
£15million, going ballistic in the Nevada desert at 4am, 36 hours before his
Hammers medical.
Because there was a time when you'd have failed a medical at West Ham if
they found out there was NO alcohol in your bloodstream. Not that new
signings had to undergo any sort of medical at English clubs in my playing
days. At least we were responsible drinkers down at West Ham.
When Bobby Moore, Clyde Best, Brian Dear and I were banned for a match after
Ron Greenwood discovered we had gone out for a few on the eve of an FA Cup
defeat at Blackpool, the fifth member of our party was club physio Robbie
Jenkins – how much more medically responsible could you get? We were banned
not because we went out boozing but because we went out boozing and then
lost 4-0. We had a far heavier session in Manchester the day before my
Hammers debut. I woke up feeling rough as a pair of sandpaper underpants,
yet we went to Maine Road and beat City, the champions of England, by five
goals to one. We never got banned after that one, funnily enough.
After Blackpool, we were suspended for what turned out to be a 4-1 home
defeat by Derby. The following week I scored the only goal at Coventry and
Bobby Moore ran half the length of the field to deliver a V-sign at Ron –
the most emotional I ever saw Bob on a football field. Earlier in my career,
when I signed for Tottenham, I made my debut in a reserve match at Plymouth.
I'd just come back from AC Milan, amid plenty of talk that I was a prima
donna who just wasn't up for it in Italy. So the best way I could endear
myself to my new team-mates was to go drinking with them before and during
the trip home on the sleeper from Devon.
On that journey we earned ourselves a real badge of honour when a Rugby
Football Union bigwig, on the same train, made an official complaint about
our rowdy behaviour. Those were the days when rugby players were regarded as
the most hardened drinkers of all, and it was a real feather in our caps. So
despite his strange taste in fancy dress, you certainly won't hear me
condemning Carroll for his heavy night in Vegas. It's a shame players cannot
go out drinking together more often – partly because of increased fitness
levels, which make them athletes first and footballers second and partly
because of the curse of mobile-phone cameras. They are missing out on a lot
of enjoyment and camaraderie, and I have always been convinced that,
whatever they earn, modern
players won't look back on their careers with the same sort of fondness as
we did. Summer holidays for top players have always been pretty brief – no
more than a month between the end of a post-season tour and the start of
pre-season training. For me, married with young kids, summer holidays were
generally a time to go away and do a little less drinking than I'd normally
do! Not so Carroll, it seems, who is an uncomplicated footballer and an
uncomplicated bloke.
He isn't a £35m player, or even a £15m one, and his status as a member of
the England squad shows how limited Roy Hodgson's striking options have
become. But Carroll is a big old-fashioned centre-forward who works hard on
the pitch and plays hard off it. Which makes him all right by me.
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West Ham among trio of clubs in hunt for Liverpool's Shelvey
PUBLISHED: 22:53, 29 June 2013 | UPDATED: 22:53, 29 June 2013
Daily Mail
Liverpool will let England Under-21 midfielder Jonjo Shelvey leave and
boyhood heroes West Ham, Swansea and Norwich are all interested. Norwich
are also fighting Hull for £5million Celtic striker Gary Hooper. Besiktas
are one of two Turkish clubs looking at signing striker Carlton Cole after
his release by West Ham. Cole, 29, is willing to consider a move abroad,
with Galatasaray interested, along with Premier League Hull.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
Sunday, June 30
Saturday, June 29
Daily WHUFC News - 29th June 2013
Trust sets up schools partnership
WHUFC.com
West Ham United Community Sports Trust has set up an exciting new
partnership with two schools.
28.06.2013
West Ham United Community Sports Trust has set up an exciting new
partnership with two prestigious schools. The partnership will see Trust
coaches deliver Player Development courses at Framlingham College and
Brandeston Hall in Woodbridge, Suffolk. The courses will be held with the
aim of engaging as many pupils from the two schools as possible, while they
will also be open to youngsters living locally as the Trust and Framlingham
College work together to increase sports participation. The Trust, which has
previously held two successful Player Development courses at Framlingham
College in October 2012 and February 2013, will host a two-day course at
Brandeston Hall on Monday 19 and Tuesday 20 August. The partnership will
continue throughout the 2013/14 season, with further courses being held
during the three half-term holidays, starting with a three-day course
between 28-30 October at Brandeston Hall.
Trust football development officer Bryan Glover said the partnership was the
latest example of the Club's commitment to making sport accessible to as
many children as possible. "I am delighted to have established this
partnership with Dan Wood at Framlingham College as it gives us the
opportunity to establish delivery in a new area and community," said Glover.
"When I attended Framlingham College and Brandeston Hall, I was pleasantly
surprised with the amount of West Ham supporters I met "I have since found
out that there is a large fan base in Suffolk, which is great, and I hope to
see as many West Ham fans on the courses as possible. "Our aim is to deliver
regular courses at both Framlingham College and Brandeston Hall throughout
the 2013/14 season."
The two-day Player Development course to be held in August will run from
9am-3pm each day and is open to boys and girls of all abilities aged 6-14.
Prices per child are £30 for one day and £55 for two days, with a ten per
cent sibling discount.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
MP Mike is a happy Hammer
WHUFC.com
Mike Gapes MP invited West Ham TV to Westminster to discuss his love for the
Club
28.06.2013
Whenever West Ham United are mentioned in the House of Commons, it is likely
that MIke Gapes is the man behind it. The Ilford South MP is a huge Hammers
fan, a fact he is never afraid to share with his colleagues at Westminster.
Since his election in 1992, Gapes has proposed Early Day Motions paying
tribute to the late Bobby Moore, commiserating with the Club's 2006 FA Cup
final defeat by Liverpool and another referring to West Ham's escape from
relegation in 2007. When he is not working for his constituents or chairing
the All Party Crossrail Group, the former Foreign Affairs Select Committee
chairman and Parliamentary Private Secretary for Northern Ireland and the
Home Office can be found cheering on his heroes in claret and blue. Born in
Snaresbrook, the 60-year-old faced the quandary so many children face when
growing up - which football team should he support? Speaking exclusively to
West Ham TV in the shadow of Big Ben, Gapes explains all. "I started
supporting West Ham seriously when I was eight, when I had to choose between
West Ham and Spurs. That season, Spurs won the double, but I stuck with West
Ham and we went on to win the FA Cup and the European Cup Winners' Cup and
then the World Cup. As far as I am concerned, I made the right choice. "My
brother is an Arsenal fan so I have had to put up with years of grief in the
1970s when we shared a room and his wall was red and white and mine was
painted claret and blue. We were both there at Wembley in 1980 when we beat
them in the FA Cup final!"
Gapes' career has seen him fill a wide variety of roles akin to a football
utility player. "I was elected in 1992 so I've been MP for Ilford South for
21 years. Before that, I worked in the Labour Party HQ for 15 years and was
involved in student politics. I joined the Labour Party when I was 16, so
I've done a lot of different things in my life, but for the last five
General Elections I've been the MP for Ilford South. "I have been on the
Foreign Affairs Committee for most of my time in Parliament and I chaired it
for five years during the last Parliament and am still a member. I spent two
years in the Northern Ireland Office between 1997 and 1999, when we got the
Belfast [or Good Friday] Agreement signed [which paved the way for the
devolution of power to Northern Ireland]. "I was also in the Home Office for
a year, but most of my time has been as a back-bencher on various committees
and that is what I do, apart from my constituency work."
Having supported the Hammers for more than 50 years, it is hardly surprising
that he has many fond memories of visits to the Boleyn Ground. "I remember
seeing Geoff Hurst score six against Sunderland in 1968 - that was one of
the first games I got a seat for. I remember Brian Dear's amazing
performance and his backheeled goal against West Brom in April 1965 and some
of the games when Billy Bonds rampaged down the pitch. "The Play-Off final
last year was an amazing experience and being at the FA Cup final in 1980
was a highlight for me."
Gapes has played once at the Boleyn Ground, but he is more at home in the
House of Commons, where he has shared his love for West Ham on a number of
occasions. "When Bobby Moore died, I proposed an Early Day Motion praising
him and paying tribute to him and, a lot later, when we staved off
relegation with Tevez and Zamora, I put down an Early Day Motion saying that
Sheffield United had gone down because they had lost at home to Wigan and
wishing them all the best in the First Division next season. That got me on
the front page of the Sheffield Star as a 'gloating cockney MP' so I wasn't
very popular in Sheffield."
Gapes is far from being the only West Ham supporter in Parliament too, with
fellow Labour MPs for Poplar and Limehouse Jim Fitzpatrick and Holbon and St
Pancras Frank Dobson also sharing their love of red with that of claret and
blue. "I can think of a few Hammers in Parliament. Frank Dobson is a fan and
I've seen him at games. David Amess, the Conservative MP for Southend West,
is a West Ham fan. My former colleague Tony McNulty, who lost his Harrow
East seat, is a fanatic and there are a few others that you come across. "We
haven't got a full team, so to speak, but we've certainly got a five-a-side
team and that's great!"
Looking forward, Gapes has endorsed the Club's plans to move to the Olympic
Stadium in Stratford in 2016. "I am very enthusiastic about it. First of
all, I think it's a great stadium. I was there during the Paralympics and
also visited the stadium while it was under construction and for anybody who
has been to the Emirates, it is the same architects, so I think the
sight-lines will be fine. "I also think the transport links will be much
better and I'll be able to get there in about ten minutes from Ilford on the
train! "I think it's good for the Club and it gives us the potential to get
to a higher level, but we've still got to get the results and have a team
that is worthy of that stadium. I think it's right and I'm in favour of it."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
GO'N to sign new deal
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 28th June 2013
By: Staff Writer
Gary O'Neil is poised to sign an extended contract with West Ham according
to reports this afternoon. The 30-year-old midfielder looked set to part
company with the club at the end of this month upon the culmination of his
existing contract, as a result of the two parties failing to agree terms on
a new deal. But reports emanating this afternoon suggest that the former
Middlesbrough player is ready to extend his stay in east London having
accepted West Ham's most recent contract offer. O'Neil was signed by former
manager Avram Grant in January 2011 for a paltry £1.5million, since when he
has gone on to make 55 appearances (including 15 from the bench) for West
Ham. He has scored three goals during that period - against Blackpool and
Peterborough in the Championship and the Goal of the Season contender at
home to West Brom back in March.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Gary O'Neil to sign new West Ham contract after agreeing terms
Last Updated: June 28, 2013 3:26pm
SSN
Gary O'Neil is set to stay at West Ham after agreeing a new contract with
the club. The midfielder's previous deal was due to expire at the end of the
month, but he has been in talks with the club for weeks. Terms have now been
agreed, and O'Neil has passed a medical examination. The 30-year-old, who
was bought from Middlesbrough in the 2011 January transfer window, expects
to sign his new contract early next week. O'Neil has scored three goals in
56 appearances for West Ham and helped secure promotion in 2012.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Gary O'Neil always expected to agree new deal at West Ham
Last Updated: June 28, 2013 10:33pm
SSN
Gary O'Neil says he was always confident he would remain at West Ham United,
despite officially being released by the club. The midfielder was among
those to see their contracts at Upton Park expire at the end of the 2012/13
campaign. With no extension agreed, O'Neil was dropped into the free agent
pool and freed to discuss terms with any interested parties. As it happens,
the club he has committed to is the same one he has spent the last two years
with. The 30-year-old claims that was always going to be the case, with
there a desire on both sides to get a new deal thrashed out. "Everything's
been agreed," O'Neil told Sky Sports News. "I didn't need a medical,
obviously they know me quite well. All the terms are agreed and everyone's
happy, so I'll just sign Monday morning. "It took a little while. With
everyone being on holiday stuff drags out, but we got there in the end."
On being released only to re-sign, O'Neil added: "That's the way it comes
out in the press, slightly differently to how it is. We were always sorting
it out and I was confident I would end up there."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
WHUFC.com
West Ham United Community Sports Trust has set up an exciting new
partnership with two schools.
28.06.2013
West Ham United Community Sports Trust has set up an exciting new
partnership with two prestigious schools. The partnership will see Trust
coaches deliver Player Development courses at Framlingham College and
Brandeston Hall in Woodbridge, Suffolk. The courses will be held with the
aim of engaging as many pupils from the two schools as possible, while they
will also be open to youngsters living locally as the Trust and Framlingham
College work together to increase sports participation. The Trust, which has
previously held two successful Player Development courses at Framlingham
College in October 2012 and February 2013, will host a two-day course at
Brandeston Hall on Monday 19 and Tuesday 20 August. The partnership will
continue throughout the 2013/14 season, with further courses being held
during the three half-term holidays, starting with a three-day course
between 28-30 October at Brandeston Hall.
Trust football development officer Bryan Glover said the partnership was the
latest example of the Club's commitment to making sport accessible to as
many children as possible. "I am delighted to have established this
partnership with Dan Wood at Framlingham College as it gives us the
opportunity to establish delivery in a new area and community," said Glover.
"When I attended Framlingham College and Brandeston Hall, I was pleasantly
surprised with the amount of West Ham supporters I met "I have since found
out that there is a large fan base in Suffolk, which is great, and I hope to
see as many West Ham fans on the courses as possible. "Our aim is to deliver
regular courses at both Framlingham College and Brandeston Hall throughout
the 2013/14 season."
The two-day Player Development course to be held in August will run from
9am-3pm each day and is open to boys and girls of all abilities aged 6-14.
Prices per child are £30 for one day and £55 for two days, with a ten per
cent sibling discount.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
MP Mike is a happy Hammer
WHUFC.com
Mike Gapes MP invited West Ham TV to Westminster to discuss his love for the
Club
28.06.2013
Whenever West Ham United are mentioned in the House of Commons, it is likely
that MIke Gapes is the man behind it. The Ilford South MP is a huge Hammers
fan, a fact he is never afraid to share with his colleagues at Westminster.
Since his election in 1992, Gapes has proposed Early Day Motions paying
tribute to the late Bobby Moore, commiserating with the Club's 2006 FA Cup
final defeat by Liverpool and another referring to West Ham's escape from
relegation in 2007. When he is not working for his constituents or chairing
the All Party Crossrail Group, the former Foreign Affairs Select Committee
chairman and Parliamentary Private Secretary for Northern Ireland and the
Home Office can be found cheering on his heroes in claret and blue. Born in
Snaresbrook, the 60-year-old faced the quandary so many children face when
growing up - which football team should he support? Speaking exclusively to
West Ham TV in the shadow of Big Ben, Gapes explains all. "I started
supporting West Ham seriously when I was eight, when I had to choose between
West Ham and Spurs. That season, Spurs won the double, but I stuck with West
Ham and we went on to win the FA Cup and the European Cup Winners' Cup and
then the World Cup. As far as I am concerned, I made the right choice. "My
brother is an Arsenal fan so I have had to put up with years of grief in the
1970s when we shared a room and his wall was red and white and mine was
painted claret and blue. We were both there at Wembley in 1980 when we beat
them in the FA Cup final!"
Gapes' career has seen him fill a wide variety of roles akin to a football
utility player. "I was elected in 1992 so I've been MP for Ilford South for
21 years. Before that, I worked in the Labour Party HQ for 15 years and was
involved in student politics. I joined the Labour Party when I was 16, so
I've done a lot of different things in my life, but for the last five
General Elections I've been the MP for Ilford South. "I have been on the
Foreign Affairs Committee for most of my time in Parliament and I chaired it
for five years during the last Parliament and am still a member. I spent two
years in the Northern Ireland Office between 1997 and 1999, when we got the
Belfast [or Good Friday] Agreement signed [which paved the way for the
devolution of power to Northern Ireland]. "I was also in the Home Office for
a year, but most of my time has been as a back-bencher on various committees
and that is what I do, apart from my constituency work."
Having supported the Hammers for more than 50 years, it is hardly surprising
that he has many fond memories of visits to the Boleyn Ground. "I remember
seeing Geoff Hurst score six against Sunderland in 1968 - that was one of
the first games I got a seat for. I remember Brian Dear's amazing
performance and his backheeled goal against West Brom in April 1965 and some
of the games when Billy Bonds rampaged down the pitch. "The Play-Off final
last year was an amazing experience and being at the FA Cup final in 1980
was a highlight for me."
Gapes has played once at the Boleyn Ground, but he is more at home in the
House of Commons, where he has shared his love for West Ham on a number of
occasions. "When Bobby Moore died, I proposed an Early Day Motion praising
him and paying tribute to him and, a lot later, when we staved off
relegation with Tevez and Zamora, I put down an Early Day Motion saying that
Sheffield United had gone down because they had lost at home to Wigan and
wishing them all the best in the First Division next season. That got me on
the front page of the Sheffield Star as a 'gloating cockney MP' so I wasn't
very popular in Sheffield."
Gapes is far from being the only West Ham supporter in Parliament too, with
fellow Labour MPs for Poplar and Limehouse Jim Fitzpatrick and Holbon and St
Pancras Frank Dobson also sharing their love of red with that of claret and
blue. "I can think of a few Hammers in Parliament. Frank Dobson is a fan and
I've seen him at games. David Amess, the Conservative MP for Southend West,
is a West Ham fan. My former colleague Tony McNulty, who lost his Harrow
East seat, is a fanatic and there are a few others that you come across. "We
haven't got a full team, so to speak, but we've certainly got a five-a-side
team and that's great!"
Looking forward, Gapes has endorsed the Club's plans to move to the Olympic
Stadium in Stratford in 2016. "I am very enthusiastic about it. First of
all, I think it's a great stadium. I was there during the Paralympics and
also visited the stadium while it was under construction and for anybody who
has been to the Emirates, it is the same architects, so I think the
sight-lines will be fine. "I also think the transport links will be much
better and I'll be able to get there in about ten minutes from Ilford on the
train! "I think it's good for the Club and it gives us the potential to get
to a higher level, but we've still got to get the results and have a team
that is worthy of that stadium. I think it's right and I'm in favour of it."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
GO'N to sign new deal
KUMB.com
Filed: Friday, 28th June 2013
By: Staff Writer
Gary O'Neil is poised to sign an extended contract with West Ham according
to reports this afternoon. The 30-year-old midfielder looked set to part
company with the club at the end of this month upon the culmination of his
existing contract, as a result of the two parties failing to agree terms on
a new deal. But reports emanating this afternoon suggest that the former
Middlesbrough player is ready to extend his stay in east London having
accepted West Ham's most recent contract offer. O'Neil was signed by former
manager Avram Grant in January 2011 for a paltry £1.5million, since when he
has gone on to make 55 appearances (including 15 from the bench) for West
Ham. He has scored three goals during that period - against Blackpool and
Peterborough in the Championship and the Goal of the Season contender at
home to West Brom back in March.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Gary O'Neil to sign new West Ham contract after agreeing terms
Last Updated: June 28, 2013 3:26pm
SSN
Gary O'Neil is set to stay at West Ham after agreeing a new contract with
the club. The midfielder's previous deal was due to expire at the end of the
month, but he has been in talks with the club for weeks. Terms have now been
agreed, and O'Neil has passed a medical examination. The 30-year-old, who
was bought from Middlesbrough in the 2011 January transfer window, expects
to sign his new contract early next week. O'Neil has scored three goals in
56 appearances for West Ham and helped secure promotion in 2012.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Gary O'Neil always expected to agree new deal at West Ham
Last Updated: June 28, 2013 10:33pm
SSN
Gary O'Neil says he was always confident he would remain at West Ham United,
despite officially being released by the club. The midfielder was among
those to see their contracts at Upton Park expire at the end of the 2012/13
campaign. With no extension agreed, O'Neil was dropped into the free agent
pool and freed to discuss terms with any interested parties. As it happens,
the club he has committed to is the same one he has spent the last two years
with. The 30-year-old claims that was always going to be the case, with
there a desire on both sides to get a new deal thrashed out. "Everything's
been agreed," O'Neil told Sky Sports News. "I didn't need a medical,
obviously they know me quite well. All the terms are agreed and everyone's
happy, so I'll just sign Monday morning. "It took a little while. With
everyone being on holiday stuff drags out, but we got there in the end."
On being released only to re-sign, O'Neil added: "That's the way it comes
out in the press, slightly differently to how it is. We were always sorting
it out and I was confident I would end up there."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
Friday, June 28
Daily WHUFC News - 28th June 2013
Dear delighted with Hammers' progress
WHUFC.com
Brian Dear is happy to see West Ham United thriving in the Barclays Premier
League
27.06.2013
West Ham United favourite Brian Dear looked on with pride as his former club
made a successful return to the Barclays Premier League. The Academy product
and 1965 European Cup Winners' Cup winner is a regular visitor to the Boleyn
Ground, whether it be to cheer on his old side or to collect donations on
behalf of the Bobby Moore Fund for Cancer Research UK. Dear, who is a great
supporter of the charity founded in memory of his late team-mate and
captain, said he is excited for the future of both the Hammers and the Fund.
"We're still in the Barclays Premier League and it's the only place to be,"
said the 69-year-old. "When we go to the Olympic Stadium, it's imperative we
go there as a Premier League side. Sam Allardyce has done a good job this
year. We play to our strengths and tenth place is great.
"Sam's a nice man and he contributes to the Bobby Moore Fund. He's very
involved with Stephanie Moore with the charity. He's made his mark on West
Ham and I think he'll be OK. "The Club has raised nearly £60,000 this year
and that's through the players and other initiatives. Sam donates the
proceeds from his Evening Standard column, which a lot of people don't know
about, but that's how strong they are in support of Bobby's Fund. All power
to them and long may it continue."
Naturally, Dear is still in awe of his former captain, who sadly passed away
following a dignified battle with bowel cancer in February 1993. "You can't
but remember Bobby Moore. We don't win many World Cups! What better assist
than Bobby to Geoff Hurst and he smacks it in the back of the net. That must
be the greatest assist of all time, even if I'm a bit biased."
One special day that Dear and Moore shared was the aforementioned European
Cup Winners' Cup final victory over German side 1860 Munich on 19 May 1965,
when Alan Sealey's brace secured a 2-0 success for Ron Greenwood's Hammers.
It doesn't seem 48 years ago, it was a wonderful night. We won the trophy
and the year after that three of our boys won the World Cup. It was a big
three years for West Ham and it was just a pity that the lads in the latter
years got beaten in the final [in 1976], as it would have been great to win
it twice. But it was awesome. "When you walk out there at Wembley, you're
oblivious to what's happening around you. Bobby asked me how I felt in the
dressing room and I said I was ok, and he said walk out behind me and you'll
get your photo taken! Immediately I was alright. No nerves. We just played
our normal game. Alan got the two goals and we came away with the trophy.
"Hopefully when it gets to 50 years a few of us might be able to get
together and celebrate it properly. It was just a wonderful day and we were
so proud. Our side was all English boys as well. Six or seven were local
lads from Barking, Dagenham, Canning Town, East Ham or Upton Park. That will
never happen again. It makes it even more special."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Olympic Stadium could host cricket festival - Essex chief
BBC.co.uk
Essex chief Derek Bowden says plans to play Twenty20 cricket at the Olympic
Stadium could include other teams. The Chelmsford club have discussed the
prospect with London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC), the organisation
responsible for the stadium's future.
Multi-purpose cricket stadiums
Melbourne Cricket Ground: The Australian 100,000-capacity venue has hosted
football, Aussie Rules and both codes of rugby as well as cricket
Moses Mabhida Stadium: Located in Durban, South Africa, the 54,000-seater
stadium was a World Cup football venue that also hosts cricket
Eden Park: Auckland's 50,000-capacity stadium hosts rugby union and rugby
league and has a removable cricket pitch
Westpac Stadium: Capable of holding 36,000, the Wellington venue hosts
football, rugby union, rugby league and cricket
Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium: Football and cricket are played at the
70,000-capacity stadium in Kochi, India
"I had a conversation with the LLDC a few weeks ago and they're very keen
for there to be a cricket festival," the Essex chief executive told BBC
Essex.
"Not before 2016 because there is work to be done. But we're keen to do it."
West Ham will be the main tenants of the venue from 2016, but the LLDC has
previously said it would be open to cricket being played at the East London
arena, which will also host athletics and possibly rugby. Essex, who are
also trying to finalise plans for an £80m redevelopment of their Chelmsford
ground, regularly sell out their 7,000-capacity venue and hope to attract
larger crowds in Stratford. "The conversations I've had have been about a
two-week window where we, and maybe a few other counties, play cricket there
to maximise the use of the stadium and mitigate the investment needed to
convert it for cricket," said Bowden, a former chief executive of Ipswich
Town. "Job number one is our own ground redevelopment, but we're looking
forward to playing cricket in London."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Will the next transfer move be indicative of what funds are left in the pot?
By S J Chandos
West Ham Till I Die
With the Andy Carroll signing done and dusted, it will be interesting to see
West Ham's next move in the transfer market? The latest rumour is that we
are the verge of completing a £3m move for Ecuadorian winger Jefferson
Montero from Mexican club, Morelia. Mind you, new Everton manager, Roberto
Martinez, is also said to be interested, so lets wait and see what happens
on that one? Apparently, Martinez previously tried to sign the player for
Wigan and, of course, he used his Hispanic cultural and language advantage
to beat us to the signature of Ivan Ramis last season. What a good decision
that turned to be for the player, a season playing in front of home crowds
of 5,000, in a town where football is a minority sporting interest, and then
relegation to the Championship! True, Ramis had the first laugh in scoring
in the 1-4 League Cup defeat at Upton Park, but as the saying goes, its all
about who has the last laugh and that was most definitely West Ham. Still,
good luck to him come the new season, whether that is in the Championship,
with Wigan, or back in Spain?
A very interesting alternative rumour was that the club were interested in
signing James Milner from Man City. Milner is an hard working and effective
wide midfield player and would be a good addition to the squad. And it could
be that he is surplus to requirements following the change in management at
Man City. The question is how much the asking price will be for a current
England international? There is a school of thought that says that the vast
majority of the transfer pot has been committed with the signing of Carroll
from Liverpool and that the rest of our signings will be loan or Bosman
deals. Both Rat and Adrian have been Bosman/nominal fee signings, so the
nature and value of the next signing may be an indicator of the actual
transfer resources available to Sam Allardyce in the remainder of this
window.
Regardless, the fact is that we need to follow up on the Carroll signing
with at least two new strikers. Whether it is a £12m swoop for Wilfred Bony
or loan deals for the like of Demba Ba? We need to improve the quality of
our strikers and our ability to score away from home. Last season, we
struggled to score on our travels and that must be rectified next season.
Ten goals from a midfielder is a nice bonus, but our leading scorer should,
by rights, be one of our strikers. If our striker additions are to be loan
deals, they must be a big improvement upon the deals struck last season. One
loanee who spent his time on the bench and another that could not get out of
the Development Squad! I wonder how much those two loan deals cost last
season in total? Regardless of the criticisms of Carlton Cole, he was a
decent alternative option to have available in the squad. His exit means
that we no longer have that option and we must now follow through and secure
a better quality of striker. That was how I originally interpreted the
decision to release Carlton Cole, that it was a clear declaration of intent
that we would recruit better strikers to help move the club forward.
Otherwise we might just as well have retained Cole for another season or
two.
Much will depend on whether Maiga is sold. I have previously argued that he
deserves another chance, based in what he produced on the few occasions that
he got a first team opportunity last season. It has been suggested that one
issue could be Maiga is not industrious enough for a Sam Allardyce side? If
he does get another season, the player needs to buckle down and do his fair
share of the hard graft in order to bring his attacking skills more
regularly in to the first team. Personally, I rate Maiga as a player and
would have liked to see him playing more often, last season, in an attacking
three with Carroll and Jarvis. The player did not get enough consistent
match time in the last campaign to fully demonstrate what he can do.
Hopefully a retained Maiga will put that right next season. But if Maiga
does exit then our ability to recruit new quality additions up front becomes
even more imperative.
Many fans are sceptical about how any new strikers will be utilised next
season. Their rationale being that if Allardyce sticks to his 4-3-3 system
(or 4-5-1 in some people's opinion) the opportunities to accommodate a
second central striker will be distinctly limited. And any quality potential
recruits will be aware of this and will accordingly be reluctant to join.
This, of course, pre-supposes that a 4-4-2 will not be deployed more often
next season. One common argument why this is unlikely to happen is that a
second striker cannot be easily accommodated with captain Kevin Nolan's
attacking role in Allardyce's system? Personally, I can see the positive
arguments for playing 4-3-3. However, too often last season, especially away
from home, Carroll become too isolated up front and the absence of a second
striker invited teams to push forward and attack us with impunity. This can
be overcome in a 4-3-3 if we have the right type of players either side of
Carroll, players of pace, who can cross the ball and finish with equal
proficiency. Jarvis did very well last season, but he needs to be more
direct at times, use his pace and score more frequently. He can do it, after
all most of us remember that stunning display of pace, power and finishing
that he put in for Wolves against West Ham at Upton Park in the second
season of Zola's managerial tenure. That is the Matt Jarvis that I am still
waiting to see in a West Ham shirt.
Finally, it is good to see the squad back in a stylish and quality Adidas
kit. The Adidas designs are different class and fans with longer memories
will always associate the brand with both the excellent 1981-82 and 1985-86
sides. For me, the 1981-82 kit is second only to the classic Bukta kit of
1961-76 as West Ham's all-time greatest. As for the new designs, I like them
and look forward to purchasing one of the new shirts. Adidas is probably
more expensive then some other sportswear firms, but arguably it is worth it
for the extra quality and design. But there is always the alternative of the
excellent retro shirts that are available.They are good quality these days
and there is a much wider choice of eras available. I have a number of
retros amongst my own collection, including the 1957-58 home, 1964-65 home &
away and 1980 FA Cup shirts.
SJ. Chandos.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham: Church may give up the ghost
Soprtsdirectnews.com
by Robert Shepherd27th June 2013 4:12pm BST
Exclusive
West Ham are set to escape the enforcement of restrictive covenants imposed
by the Catholic Church when they change stadiums, because nobody can prove
what they are. The Hammers will leave their long-time Upton Park home and
relocate a few miles west to Stratford's Olympic Stadium in 2016, with the
old stadium set to be replaced with a retail park and some luxury flats.
Although the freehold to the Boleyn Ground is owned by the club, title
registers filed with the Land Registry detail historic agreements with the
church and the former Archbishop of Westminster, the Most Reverend Edward
Henry Manning, over the use of the site dating back to 1869. However,
neither the Land Registry or the Diocese of Brentwood, which now has
jurisdiction over the area, can locate the documents.
A spokeswoman for the Diocese of Brentwood told SportsDirect News that
three-years-ago, the Diocese of Westminster made renewed inquiries but "it
went cold" after Tottenham Hotpspur lauched a legal challenge to move to the
£486 million Olympic Stadium. The spokeswoman said: "If these documents are
found, it could be that West Ham would want to buy them out. However, it's a
strange one at the moment because we know the documents were created and
existed, but we don't know if they still do."
The Hammers have long had a relationship with the church in that the club
has either rented or bought land from various dioceses over the years. In
1959 a further agreement was signed between the club and the then Archbishop
of Westminster, outlining guarantees on the passage of water and sewer pipes
and gas and electricity cables to the Church-owned properties. In 2000, the
club paid to build a new home for the adjacent St Edward's school in
exchange for land to redevelop the Centenary Stand. If you find the
documents, please hand them into the Diocese of Westminster or Brentwood.
West Ham were unavailable for comment.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Arsenal's Young Striker Unsure of Future Amid Interest from West Ham
By ADRIAN BACK: Subscribe to Adrian's RSS feed | June 27, 2013 6:05 PM GMT
Ibitimes.co.uk
Arsenal youngster Joel Campbell admits that he is unsure where his future
lies after spending the last two seasons away from the Emirates, first in
France and then in Spain. The Costa Rica international was signed by the
Gunners back in the summer of 2011 but was instantly loaned to FC Lorient
where he scored three goals in his 25 league appearances. He then spent last
season at Real Betis where he managed just two goals but won plenty of
plaudits for performances in his 28 league games. Campbell has most recently
been linked with a possible move to West Ham United who are said to be
looking for a new striker to partner Andy Caroll after Carlton Cole failed
to earn a new contract and was allowed to leave the club. The Hammers could
face competition from Premier League new boys Crystal Palace who, according
to reports on London24.com, have also shown an interest in signing the 21
year old.
The Arsenal striker admits that he is unsure where he will be playing his
club football next season but feels it will be in either Spain or England.
"I'm still not sure which team I'm going to play for, I could stay in Spain
or go to the Premier League," Capbell told aldia.cr. "There is no way I can
lose because they are the two most important leagues in the world."
Despite being linked with West Ham and Palace, Campbell is still confident
that he will one day represent Arsenal who failed to obtain a work permit
for the striker when he first joined from Costa Rican side Deportivo
Sprissa. "At the moment I am enjoying my football," added Campbell. "When
God wants it, I will play for Arsenal. I am very calm. I am 21 years old and
I am still gaining experience."
West Ham do have a good relationship with Arsenal having loaned Marouane
Chamakh last season, and the Gunners may feel that be loaning Campbell on
the short term to a Premier League side they will have a better
understanding of his potential.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
WHUFC.com
Brian Dear is happy to see West Ham United thriving in the Barclays Premier
League
27.06.2013
West Ham United favourite Brian Dear looked on with pride as his former club
made a successful return to the Barclays Premier League. The Academy product
and 1965 European Cup Winners' Cup winner is a regular visitor to the Boleyn
Ground, whether it be to cheer on his old side or to collect donations on
behalf of the Bobby Moore Fund for Cancer Research UK. Dear, who is a great
supporter of the charity founded in memory of his late team-mate and
captain, said he is excited for the future of both the Hammers and the Fund.
"We're still in the Barclays Premier League and it's the only place to be,"
said the 69-year-old. "When we go to the Olympic Stadium, it's imperative we
go there as a Premier League side. Sam Allardyce has done a good job this
year. We play to our strengths and tenth place is great.
"Sam's a nice man and he contributes to the Bobby Moore Fund. He's very
involved with Stephanie Moore with the charity. He's made his mark on West
Ham and I think he'll be OK. "The Club has raised nearly £60,000 this year
and that's through the players and other initiatives. Sam donates the
proceeds from his Evening Standard column, which a lot of people don't know
about, but that's how strong they are in support of Bobby's Fund. All power
to them and long may it continue."
Naturally, Dear is still in awe of his former captain, who sadly passed away
following a dignified battle with bowel cancer in February 1993. "You can't
but remember Bobby Moore. We don't win many World Cups! What better assist
than Bobby to Geoff Hurst and he smacks it in the back of the net. That must
be the greatest assist of all time, even if I'm a bit biased."
One special day that Dear and Moore shared was the aforementioned European
Cup Winners' Cup final victory over German side 1860 Munich on 19 May 1965,
when Alan Sealey's brace secured a 2-0 success for Ron Greenwood's Hammers.
It doesn't seem 48 years ago, it was a wonderful night. We won the trophy
and the year after that three of our boys won the World Cup. It was a big
three years for West Ham and it was just a pity that the lads in the latter
years got beaten in the final [in 1976], as it would have been great to win
it twice. But it was awesome. "When you walk out there at Wembley, you're
oblivious to what's happening around you. Bobby asked me how I felt in the
dressing room and I said I was ok, and he said walk out behind me and you'll
get your photo taken! Immediately I was alright. No nerves. We just played
our normal game. Alan got the two goals and we came away with the trophy.
"Hopefully when it gets to 50 years a few of us might be able to get
together and celebrate it properly. It was just a wonderful day and we were
so proud. Our side was all English boys as well. Six or seven were local
lads from Barking, Dagenham, Canning Town, East Ham or Upton Park. That will
never happen again. It makes it even more special."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Olympic Stadium could host cricket festival - Essex chief
BBC.co.uk
Essex chief Derek Bowden says plans to play Twenty20 cricket at the Olympic
Stadium could include other teams. The Chelmsford club have discussed the
prospect with London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC), the organisation
responsible for the stadium's future.
Multi-purpose cricket stadiums
Melbourne Cricket Ground: The Australian 100,000-capacity venue has hosted
football, Aussie Rules and both codes of rugby as well as cricket
Moses Mabhida Stadium: Located in Durban, South Africa, the 54,000-seater
stadium was a World Cup football venue that also hosts cricket
Eden Park: Auckland's 50,000-capacity stadium hosts rugby union and rugby
league and has a removable cricket pitch
Westpac Stadium: Capable of holding 36,000, the Wellington venue hosts
football, rugby union, rugby league and cricket
Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium: Football and cricket are played at the
70,000-capacity stadium in Kochi, India
"I had a conversation with the LLDC a few weeks ago and they're very keen
for there to be a cricket festival," the Essex chief executive told BBC
Essex.
"Not before 2016 because there is work to be done. But we're keen to do it."
West Ham will be the main tenants of the venue from 2016, but the LLDC has
previously said it would be open to cricket being played at the East London
arena, which will also host athletics and possibly rugby. Essex, who are
also trying to finalise plans for an £80m redevelopment of their Chelmsford
ground, regularly sell out their 7,000-capacity venue and hope to attract
larger crowds in Stratford. "The conversations I've had have been about a
two-week window where we, and maybe a few other counties, play cricket there
to maximise the use of the stadium and mitigate the investment needed to
convert it for cricket," said Bowden, a former chief executive of Ipswich
Town. "Job number one is our own ground redevelopment, but we're looking
forward to playing cricket in London."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Will the next transfer move be indicative of what funds are left in the pot?
By S J Chandos
West Ham Till I Die
With the Andy Carroll signing done and dusted, it will be interesting to see
West Ham's next move in the transfer market? The latest rumour is that we
are the verge of completing a £3m move for Ecuadorian winger Jefferson
Montero from Mexican club, Morelia. Mind you, new Everton manager, Roberto
Martinez, is also said to be interested, so lets wait and see what happens
on that one? Apparently, Martinez previously tried to sign the player for
Wigan and, of course, he used his Hispanic cultural and language advantage
to beat us to the signature of Ivan Ramis last season. What a good decision
that turned to be for the player, a season playing in front of home crowds
of 5,000, in a town where football is a minority sporting interest, and then
relegation to the Championship! True, Ramis had the first laugh in scoring
in the 1-4 League Cup defeat at Upton Park, but as the saying goes, its all
about who has the last laugh and that was most definitely West Ham. Still,
good luck to him come the new season, whether that is in the Championship,
with Wigan, or back in Spain?
A very interesting alternative rumour was that the club were interested in
signing James Milner from Man City. Milner is an hard working and effective
wide midfield player and would be a good addition to the squad. And it could
be that he is surplus to requirements following the change in management at
Man City. The question is how much the asking price will be for a current
England international? There is a school of thought that says that the vast
majority of the transfer pot has been committed with the signing of Carroll
from Liverpool and that the rest of our signings will be loan or Bosman
deals. Both Rat and Adrian have been Bosman/nominal fee signings, so the
nature and value of the next signing may be an indicator of the actual
transfer resources available to Sam Allardyce in the remainder of this
window.
Regardless, the fact is that we need to follow up on the Carroll signing
with at least two new strikers. Whether it is a £12m swoop for Wilfred Bony
or loan deals for the like of Demba Ba? We need to improve the quality of
our strikers and our ability to score away from home. Last season, we
struggled to score on our travels and that must be rectified next season.
Ten goals from a midfielder is a nice bonus, but our leading scorer should,
by rights, be one of our strikers. If our striker additions are to be loan
deals, they must be a big improvement upon the deals struck last season. One
loanee who spent his time on the bench and another that could not get out of
the Development Squad! I wonder how much those two loan deals cost last
season in total? Regardless of the criticisms of Carlton Cole, he was a
decent alternative option to have available in the squad. His exit means
that we no longer have that option and we must now follow through and secure
a better quality of striker. That was how I originally interpreted the
decision to release Carlton Cole, that it was a clear declaration of intent
that we would recruit better strikers to help move the club forward.
Otherwise we might just as well have retained Cole for another season or
two.
Much will depend on whether Maiga is sold. I have previously argued that he
deserves another chance, based in what he produced on the few occasions that
he got a first team opportunity last season. It has been suggested that one
issue could be Maiga is not industrious enough for a Sam Allardyce side? If
he does get another season, the player needs to buckle down and do his fair
share of the hard graft in order to bring his attacking skills more
regularly in to the first team. Personally, I rate Maiga as a player and
would have liked to see him playing more often, last season, in an attacking
three with Carroll and Jarvis. The player did not get enough consistent
match time in the last campaign to fully demonstrate what he can do.
Hopefully a retained Maiga will put that right next season. But if Maiga
does exit then our ability to recruit new quality additions up front becomes
even more imperative.
Many fans are sceptical about how any new strikers will be utilised next
season. Their rationale being that if Allardyce sticks to his 4-3-3 system
(or 4-5-1 in some people's opinion) the opportunities to accommodate a
second central striker will be distinctly limited. And any quality potential
recruits will be aware of this and will accordingly be reluctant to join.
This, of course, pre-supposes that a 4-4-2 will not be deployed more often
next season. One common argument why this is unlikely to happen is that a
second striker cannot be easily accommodated with captain Kevin Nolan's
attacking role in Allardyce's system? Personally, I can see the positive
arguments for playing 4-3-3. However, too often last season, especially away
from home, Carroll become too isolated up front and the absence of a second
striker invited teams to push forward and attack us with impunity. This can
be overcome in a 4-3-3 if we have the right type of players either side of
Carroll, players of pace, who can cross the ball and finish with equal
proficiency. Jarvis did very well last season, but he needs to be more
direct at times, use his pace and score more frequently. He can do it, after
all most of us remember that stunning display of pace, power and finishing
that he put in for Wolves against West Ham at Upton Park in the second
season of Zola's managerial tenure. That is the Matt Jarvis that I am still
waiting to see in a West Ham shirt.
Finally, it is good to see the squad back in a stylish and quality Adidas
kit. The Adidas designs are different class and fans with longer memories
will always associate the brand with both the excellent 1981-82 and 1985-86
sides. For me, the 1981-82 kit is second only to the classic Bukta kit of
1961-76 as West Ham's all-time greatest. As for the new designs, I like them
and look forward to purchasing one of the new shirts. Adidas is probably
more expensive then some other sportswear firms, but arguably it is worth it
for the extra quality and design. But there is always the alternative of the
excellent retro shirts that are available.They are good quality these days
and there is a much wider choice of eras available. I have a number of
retros amongst my own collection, including the 1957-58 home, 1964-65 home &
away and 1980 FA Cup shirts.
SJ. Chandos.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham: Church may give up the ghost
Soprtsdirectnews.com
by Robert Shepherd27th June 2013 4:12pm BST
Exclusive
West Ham are set to escape the enforcement of restrictive covenants imposed
by the Catholic Church when they change stadiums, because nobody can prove
what they are. The Hammers will leave their long-time Upton Park home and
relocate a few miles west to Stratford's Olympic Stadium in 2016, with the
old stadium set to be replaced with a retail park and some luxury flats.
Although the freehold to the Boleyn Ground is owned by the club, title
registers filed with the Land Registry detail historic agreements with the
church and the former Archbishop of Westminster, the Most Reverend Edward
Henry Manning, over the use of the site dating back to 1869. However,
neither the Land Registry or the Diocese of Brentwood, which now has
jurisdiction over the area, can locate the documents.
A spokeswoman for the Diocese of Brentwood told SportsDirect News that
three-years-ago, the Diocese of Westminster made renewed inquiries but "it
went cold" after Tottenham Hotpspur lauched a legal challenge to move to the
£486 million Olympic Stadium. The spokeswoman said: "If these documents are
found, it could be that West Ham would want to buy them out. However, it's a
strange one at the moment because we know the documents were created and
existed, but we don't know if they still do."
The Hammers have long had a relationship with the church in that the club
has either rented or bought land from various dioceses over the years. In
1959 a further agreement was signed between the club and the then Archbishop
of Westminster, outlining guarantees on the passage of water and sewer pipes
and gas and electricity cables to the Church-owned properties. In 2000, the
club paid to build a new home for the adjacent St Edward's school in
exchange for land to redevelop the Centenary Stand. If you find the
documents, please hand them into the Diocese of Westminster or Brentwood.
West Ham were unavailable for comment.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Arsenal's Young Striker Unsure of Future Amid Interest from West Ham
By ADRIAN BACK: Subscribe to Adrian's RSS feed | June 27, 2013 6:05 PM GMT
Ibitimes.co.uk
Arsenal youngster Joel Campbell admits that he is unsure where his future
lies after spending the last two seasons away from the Emirates, first in
France and then in Spain. The Costa Rica international was signed by the
Gunners back in the summer of 2011 but was instantly loaned to FC Lorient
where he scored three goals in his 25 league appearances. He then spent last
season at Real Betis where he managed just two goals but won plenty of
plaudits for performances in his 28 league games. Campbell has most recently
been linked with a possible move to West Ham United who are said to be
looking for a new striker to partner Andy Caroll after Carlton Cole failed
to earn a new contract and was allowed to leave the club. The Hammers could
face competition from Premier League new boys Crystal Palace who, according
to reports on London24.com, have also shown an interest in signing the 21
year old.
The Arsenal striker admits that he is unsure where he will be playing his
club football next season but feels it will be in either Spain or England.
"I'm still not sure which team I'm going to play for, I could stay in Spain
or go to the Premier League," Capbell told aldia.cr. "There is no way I can
lose because they are the two most important leagues in the world."
Despite being linked with West Ham and Palace, Campbell is still confident
that he will one day represent Arsenal who failed to obtain a work permit
for the striker when he first joined from Costa Rican side Deportivo
Sprissa. "At the moment I am enjoying my football," added Campbell. "When
God wants it, I will play for Arsenal. I am very calm. I am 21 years old and
I am still gaining experience."
West Ham do have a good relationship with Arsenal having loaned Marouane
Chamakh last season, and the Gunners may feel that be loaning Campbell on
the short term to a Premier League side they will have a better
understanding of his potential.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
Thursday, June 27
Daily WHUFC News - 27th June 2013
Potts relieved by England equaliser
WHUFC.com
West Ham United's Dan Potts gave a penalty away in England's 1-1 FIFA U20
World Cup draw with Chile
26.06.2013
Dan Potts was relieved man as England came from a goal down to secure a
deserved 1-1 FIFA U20 World Cup Group E draw with Chile on Wednesday.
The Young Lions had suffered the disappointment of throwing away a two-goal
lead to draw 2-2 with Iraq in their opening Group E fixture in Antalya,
Turkey, on Sunday, and looked to be in trouble when West Ham United
left-back Potts brought down Manchester United forward Angelo Henriquez
inside the penalty area. Nicolas Castillo confidently converted the penalty
to give the South Americans a 32nd-minute lead, but Potts' blushes were
spared as England equalised on 64 minutes. Everton's Ross Barkley drove
forward and found Tottenham Hotspur's Harry Kane, who scored low into the
corner. With Iraq beating Egypt 2-1 in the day's other Group E fixture,
England go into Saturday's final round of games knowing they should progress
to the last-16 with a win over the Africans, who have already been
eliminated. Iraq and Chile have four points and England two, with Egypt
pointless at the bottom of the standings.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Athletes excited by Stratford move
WHUFC.com
West Ham TV visited Woodford Green Athletics Club to discuss the move to the
Olympic Stadium
26.06.2013
West Ham United's move to the London 2012 Olympic Stadium will see the
Club's new home undergo a multi-million pound transformation to turn it into
a 54,000-capacity UEFA Category 4 venue. However, while the Olympic Stadium
will become one of world football's most iconic grounds, the innovative
retractable seating that will be installed means it will retain use for
athletics and a wide range of other sports. Alongside the world-class events
set to be held at the Olympic Stadium, local people of all ages will be able
to run in the same arena as Mo Farah and Usain Bolt at community and school
meets. West Ham TV visited the famous Woodford Green with Essex Ladies
Athletics Club, which has produced Olympic champion Sally Gunnell, Olympic
hurdlers Tiffany Porter and Sarah Claxton and six-times British 100m
champion Joice Maduaka. There, athletes of all ages spoke excitedly of the
prospect of sharing a venue with the Hammers. Among the club's members is
West Ham's chaplain, Rev Alan Bolding, who is still sprinting at the age of
72. "I do the 100m and 200m and last year, in my age-group, I was No3 in the
UK but I get slower each year!" said Rev Bolding. "I started sprinting when
I was 13 and stopped when I was 17, then took it up again when I was 62.
"About eight of our members officiated at the Olympic Stadium in the
Olympics and Paralympics track and field events, which was good for the
club. "What a wonderful opportunity we've got for West Ham to go into that
Stadium! My only dream is to run on that track in a proper event. I just
pray that I'm around in 2016 when West Ham play their first match there. I'm
so excited!"
One member to take part at London 2012 was team leader, coach and long
distance runner Alistair Holford, who led a group of Woodford Green AC Games
Makers who looked after the kit and other items discarded by athletes before
their event. "It was just a wonderful experience, both for me as a team
leader but also for my team of kit carriers who loved it," Holford
confirmed. "It is good news that there will be a permanent use for the
stadium and other sports and events will be able to take place there.
"Particularly for athletics, it is really, really important and I think it
would have been absolutely criminal if the stadium was knocked down to a
25,000 capacity, particularly with the World Athletics Championships coming
up in four years time. "My son Angus took part in the test event at the
Olympic Stadium before London 2012, running the 10,000m, and just to have
the opportunity to run on that track was great for him and for the
youngsters here who potentially could run on that track."
Many of Holford's fellow athletes agree that the ability to use the stadium
for both football and other sports will be central to its future success,
while also giving them the opportunity to experience world-class facilities
in a truly historic venue.
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West Ham set to sign Jefferson Montero
KUMB.com
Filed: Wednesday, 26th June 2013
By: Staff Writer
West Ham are said to be 'close' to finalising the capture of Ecuadorian
midfielder Jefferson Montero. According to journalist Jamie Jackson, United
are on the verge of tying up a deal for the 23-year-old international winger
who currently plays for Mexican club Monarcas Morelia in the Liga MX
(Mexican equivalent of the Premier League). Should the deal go through,
Montero is expected to sign a four-year contract worth around £30,000 per
week. Born in Babahoyo - the capital city of Ecuador's Los Rios province -
in 1989, Montero began his professional career with local club Club Sport
Emelec at the age of 16 before joining Independiente José Terán. It was
whilst with second division Independiente that he began to attract
widespread attention after impressing in the first team. Following a short
loan spell in 2008 with Mexican side Dorados de Sinaloa, Montano was snapped
up by Spanish side Villareal in April 2009 on a five-year contract. His move
to Spain appeared to be proving fruitful when he was promoted from
Villareal's B team to the first team squad as back-up for Santi Cazorla, now
at Arsenal, at the start of the 2010/11 season. However having failed to
secure a first team spot, Montero was loaned firstly to Levante and then to
Real Betis (where he played alongside new Hammers signing Adrian) before
joining his current club Morelia on a permanent basis a year ago this month.
Montero is understood to have two years remaining on his current contract,
but West Ham are said to have triggered a £3million release clause.
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Where do West Ham need to improve next season?
KUMb.com
Filed: Wednesday, 26th June 2013
By: footballtips.com
No matter how successful a season is, you are always looking to improve in
the summer months. This is the case for West Ham United as they aim to build
on their top ten finish and something we have discussed at lengths with
fellow tipsters on footballtips.com.
First of all, it is worth mentioning that if the Hammers were offered 10th
again – they would take it. If the 2013/2014 season follows the same
pattern, there will not be too many complaints. West Ham cannot stand still
and expect to have the same success though. Teams around them will be
improving and they need too as well.
So, which weaknesses need addressing ahead of the new Premier League season?
Well, one of them already has been. The face that Andy Carroll was only a
loan signing last season was a problem. Who was Sam Allardyce going to get
to replace the England international in the summer? Luckily, he has got the
man himself. Carroll has agreed to sign permanently for West Ham and this is
fantastic news. He can become a Hammers legend and help the club push on –
no doubt about that.
What could be key though is finding an alternative to Carroll. Not only is
he injury prone – something that will hopefully improve – but you can't
always rely on his battering ram approach getting results. So, another
striker is needed. Carlton Cole has been released and this makes room for a
new recruit. Somebody proven at Premier League level would be ideal, making
Darren Bent a possible candidate.
The striker's time is definitely up at Aston Villa and there is no doubt,
given a run of games, he can make a handy contribution. This is as a partner
to Carroll or as an alternative. Demba Ba has also been mentioned and this
would be a similar capture to Bent, while Matej Vydra – who scored plenty
while on-loan at Watford last season – is a more youthful alternative.
Elsewhere, Kevin Nolan needs a hand with scoring goals from midfield. He
managed ten last season – a superb return once again – but when he has a dry
spell in front of goal, the team suffers. He finished with a hat-trick
against Reading of course. If he can continue this from August onwards, with
the help of another goal-scoring midfielder, West Ham are well set up to win
games of football.
In terms of potential candidates, how about Wigan's Shaun Maloney? He was
superb last season and can operate in a deeper role, but still be a
significant goal threat. Some may argue he hasn't got the best goal-scoring
record, but if he is playing as part of a dangerous West Ham team – this can
change.
Maloney would also give defenders somebody else to think about. He gets into
fantastic positions and can draw players away from his team-mates, opening
up plenty of space elsewhere. Then, the Scotland international proved more
than once that he is capable of producing a moment of magic. The last minute
free-kick against Queens Park Rangers definitely stands out.
It is then all about shutting out the opposition, something which was a bit
of a problem at times – particularly away from home. Allardyce's men had a
spell on the road when they conceded first and the floodgates opened. If
they are to have the best possible chance of a top ten finish again – the
amount of times this happened has to be reduced. A couple of defensive
recruits would be more than welcome.
Who could fit the bill in this regard? It's hard to say without knowing the
transfer budget the Hammers have to work with, but Ludovic Sane has been
linked and he wouldn't break the bank. One of the star performers for
Bordeaux last season, the 26-year-old is ready for the next challenge in his
career and could add some youthful steel to Allardyce's backline.
It musn't be forgotten that Romanian Captain Razvan Rat has already come in
too, so hopefully, a more experienced defence will have a solid look to it
in the 2013/2014 season.
Overall, there isn't a need for drastic changes. West Ham were excellent
last season and achieved more than they thought possible. It is about fine
tuning and improving the overall quality of the squad.
A couple of injuries last season and West Ham looked limited on options. If
they are to push on, this can't be the case from August onwards. An
experienced defender, alternative proven goalscorer to Carroll and a
creative midfielder to take the pressure off Nolan would be a great start to
building a brighter future.
Then, a few early wins would go down well too! West Ham have superb momentum
after finishing the campaign strongly and it is important to continue this
in the transfer market and the opening weeks.
Bring on the new season!
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The mine of talent and the minefield of life
KUMB.com
Filed: Wednesday, 26th June 2013
By: Julie Stewart
A mine of untapped talent has awaited treasure seekers over the years, at
the home of the claret and blue.
Unfortunately those seeking goal scoring, midfield magic-making or even shot
stopping excellence have come bearing their treasure maps of scouting
reports and plundered the Boleyn Ground. Their promises of honing gems into
sparkling diamonds to glisten in the shop window of the footballing world
have attracted many away from the Hammers.
One of the most famous is now part of the Chelsea vault of wealth, in the
form of Frank Lampard. The box-to-box midfielder, who has a current
international scoring record of a goal every 3.31 games, may have been
polished in SW6 but he was made in E13. It is not just moving on that can
affect a player's West Ham career, or his appearance on any pitch, though.
Injured to an End
Compared to many careers football is fleeting in its existence; injury can
make the timeline even briefer. Dean Ashton was an England international
when his career was interrupted in 2006 whilst training with his country.
The Hammers striker broke his ankle and although he returned to action for
the club in the 2007-2008 season the injury proved to be a weakness which
effectively ended his career following an ankle sprain in September 2008.
Ashton now lives his life away from the passion and physicality of football.
He still has his life off the pitch though, a fact sadly not true of former
wearer of the claret and blue Marc-Vivien Foé. Surely no-one can forget the
dramatic death of the Cameroon international whilst playing for his country
10 years ago to the day. It was tragic that a gifted life ended at the age
of 28, but he died doing something for which he had great passion.
The Addictions of Sport and Life
Injury is just one potential challenge to a footballer's career. In a world
full of pressure and temptation it is all too easy for addiction to become
an issue. Matthew Etherington spoke to the press in 2010 about the gambling
addiction which saw him lose approximately £1.5 million. Whether it was the
greyhounds, horses, or poker, Etherington had a problem which was only
addressed with the assistance of his family.
For anyone, footballer or not, addiction can seem impossible to overcome.
The absolute compulsion to partake of an activity or substance despite the
consequences can be life consuming, and most definitely life altering. In
the case of Matthew Etherington, Sporting Chance assisted him in dealing
with his issues. They provide help, for amateur and professional sports
people, in dealing with addiction issues.
Addiction can affect anyone in any walk of life the world over and dedicated
local recovery programmes exist to help those in difficulty. Details are
provided of potential recovery programmes and help for those affected to
regain control of their lives. There is discussion as to how long it takes
to control addiction and how that answer depends on the individual. Advice
on how to control addiction, and where to get assistance is available online
via addiction support.
The Survivors and Stayers
Just like people from all walks of life footballers can experience
difficulties along the way; they are not immune. There have been some West
Ham greats who have survived any pitfalls in life and gone on to be legends
for the club, and those who will always be in the hearts of fans.
There are few people who can truly be regarded as iconic in the world of
sport but Bobby Moore is one of them. Even those who are not Hammers fans
have to admit, however grudgingly, that he was a player who graced any pitch
he played on. The player that Pelé once said was the greatest defender he
ever played against captained the institution that is West Ham for 10 years.
In the modern age of massive transfer fees, and seemingly limited loyalty
which can often be bought, it is refreshing to remember that there are some
footballers who have dedicated their life and talent to one club.
There are those footballers who move to where fame and riches wait and there
are those who live their lives by their hearts. Some have their choices
taken from them by injury or worse. Several more struggle to control
addictive impulses which pressure and fame can exacerbate. One thing which
many share is how lucky they are to have played for the great club that has
been, is, and always will be, West Ham United.
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Transfer latest: 26 June
KUMb.com
Filed: Wednesday, 26th June 2013
By: Staff Writer
In just five days' time, the West Ham United first team squad returns to
training at Chadwell Heath.
And with 1st July rapidly approaching, transfer speculation is beginning to
pick up with the start of the new 2013/14 Premier League season less than
two months away.
Despite West Ham United's chairman-in-waiting Jack Sullivan having revealed
that the club do not expect to do any business within the next few days, the
media and the agents continue to flood the pages of your favourite websites
and newspapers with potential transfer stories - the latest of which we
bring you in a handy round-up...
* Udinese striker Matej Vydra, who spent last season on loan at Watford is
said to be interesting a number of Premier League clubs, one of whom are
said to be West Ham. The 21-year-old scored 20 goals for the Hornets in last
season's Championship and is likely to be made available for loan again this
coming season.
Vydra's agent, Ondrej Chovanec, told isport.blesk.cz: "Udinese don't want to
sell him for £8million, so they have given us freedom to discuss loan spells
with the Premier League clubs that are interested. At the moment we have
offers from four Premier League clubs - West Brom, West Ham, Swansea and
Sunderland. Udinese don't want Matej to have to get used to life in a
different country, so now it seems likely that he will be playing on in
England."
* Former Crystal Palace youngster Wilfried Zaha continues to be linked with
a move to east London, despite just having joined Manchester United in a
£15million deal. The 20-year-old, who is considered unlikely to be part of
David Moyes' first team plans next season is also said to be interesting the
likes of Everton and Aston Villa.
* Arsenal youngster Joel Campbell is reported to be a target of both West
Ham and newly-promoted Crystal Palace. The 20-year-old forward spent last
season on loan at Real Betis but is said to be wanted by the two clubs.
Betis would provide further competition for his signature, having already
told Arsenal that they want the youngster to return to the Benito Villamarín
next season.
* For a second successive summer, West Ham find themselves linked with a
move for Chelsea's Victor Moses. The former Wigan winger, for whom a move to
east London was first mooted last summer before he moved to Stamford Bridge
is a loan option for Sam Allardyce as he seeks to improve his attacking
options. Chelsea paid the Latics £9million whne signing the youngster last
August.
* Ravel Morrison is wanted again by Birmingham manager Lee Clark. The
19-year-old former Manchester United midfielder has seen just eight minutes
of first team football since joining West Ham 18 months ago and a return to
St Andrews would seem a likely option.
"It's well documented I want the loan players who were here last year to
return," Clark told birminghammail.co.uk. "We're in dialogue with their
clubs to try and get that happening again. The wheels are turning and the
main thing for me is that if they're not going to be involved with West Ham
and Newcastle respectively, they want to come back to us."
* Juventus striker Manolo Gabbiadini is being linked with a potential loan
move to West Ham after he revealed that he would be interested in spending a
year abroad. The Italian Under 21 international spent last season on loan
with Bolgna but would like to try his luck on foreign shores. "My priority
at the moment is Juventus," he said, "but we'll have to see what happens. It
is still early in the summer. I've always said that one day I would like to
experience life abroad."
* Long-term Hammers target Wilfried Bony could be on his way to Swansea City
after the Welsh club were reported to have made a £10million bid for the
Vitesse Arnhem striker. Interest in Bony, who was heavily linked with a move
to east London earlier in the year has cooled since Andy Carroll completed
his permanent move from Liverpool.
* Ipswich are keen to take West Ham's third-choice goalkeeper Stephen
Henderson on loan for a third spell. The former Portsmouth stopper spent
five months at Portman Road last season in two seperate spells - initially
from October to January, before returning at the end of the winter transfer
window for a further two months.
Speaking about the possibilty of bringing Henderson back to Suffolk, Town
boss Mick McCarthy remarked: "Stephen is under contract with his club, which
kind of makes life difficult. But he was really good for us and I need
another goalkeeper."
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It's Hall over
KUMb.com
Filed: Wednesday, 26th June 2013
By: Staff Writer
Rob Hall seems certain to leave West Ham for Bolton Wanderers - despite the
two clubs being unable to agree a fee. Once considered to be the brightest
prospect in West Ham United's Academy, the 19-year-old is on his way out of
the Boleyn Ground having failed to agree terms on a new contract. Hall -
whose only start for West Ham's first team came in the 4-1 home defeat by
relegated Wigan Athletic in last season's Capital One Cup - has
provisionally agreed to join the Championship side, managed by Dougie
Freedman, but will be unable to do until the two club's reach agreement over
his valuation. That now appears destined to be decided by a tribunal with
Bolton not prepared to meet West Ham's demands; West Ham are thought to
value Hall at the £1million mark, although the Trotters are not prepared to
pay more than half that figure. Hall, who has been at West Ham since
childhood and has represented England at all youth levels from Under 16 to
Under 19 spent two months on loan at the Reebok Stadium last season. His
only first team appearance came in a 2-2 draw against Blackpool at the
beginning of May.
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West Ham confident of signing Ecuador winger Jefferson Montero
• 23-year-old has also been linked with a move to Everton
• Morelia winger likely to accept £30,000-a-week contract
Jamie Jackson
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 26 June 2013 14.51 BST
West Ham United are close to signing Jefferson Montero by triggering the
Ecuadorian's £3m release clause that would take him from a Mexican club,
Morelia, to the Boleyn Ground. Roberto Martínez, the new Everton manager, is
also interested in Montero, who reportedly came close to signing for the
Spaniard when in charge of Wigan Athletic in January. But it is understood
that West Ham are confident of securing his services. The 23-year-old
Montero will earn £30,000 a-week in what should be a four-year contract,
having impressed the West Ham manager, Sam Allardyce, who hopes the winger
can help provide the service to the club's record signing, Andy Carroll,
next season. Montero, who has played for Ecuador more than 25 times,
impressed in the 1-1 draw with Argentina in a World Cup qualifier in Quito
early this month when a number of scouts from English clubs were present.
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
WHUFC.com
West Ham United's Dan Potts gave a penalty away in England's 1-1 FIFA U20
World Cup draw with Chile
26.06.2013
Dan Potts was relieved man as England came from a goal down to secure a
deserved 1-1 FIFA U20 World Cup Group E draw with Chile on Wednesday.
The Young Lions had suffered the disappointment of throwing away a two-goal
lead to draw 2-2 with Iraq in their opening Group E fixture in Antalya,
Turkey, on Sunday, and looked to be in trouble when West Ham United
left-back Potts brought down Manchester United forward Angelo Henriquez
inside the penalty area. Nicolas Castillo confidently converted the penalty
to give the South Americans a 32nd-minute lead, but Potts' blushes were
spared as England equalised on 64 minutes. Everton's Ross Barkley drove
forward and found Tottenham Hotspur's Harry Kane, who scored low into the
corner. With Iraq beating Egypt 2-1 in the day's other Group E fixture,
England go into Saturday's final round of games knowing they should progress
to the last-16 with a win over the Africans, who have already been
eliminated. Iraq and Chile have four points and England two, with Egypt
pointless at the bottom of the standings.
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Athletes excited by Stratford move
WHUFC.com
West Ham TV visited Woodford Green Athletics Club to discuss the move to the
Olympic Stadium
26.06.2013
West Ham United's move to the London 2012 Olympic Stadium will see the
Club's new home undergo a multi-million pound transformation to turn it into
a 54,000-capacity UEFA Category 4 venue. However, while the Olympic Stadium
will become one of world football's most iconic grounds, the innovative
retractable seating that will be installed means it will retain use for
athletics and a wide range of other sports. Alongside the world-class events
set to be held at the Olympic Stadium, local people of all ages will be able
to run in the same arena as Mo Farah and Usain Bolt at community and school
meets. West Ham TV visited the famous Woodford Green with Essex Ladies
Athletics Club, which has produced Olympic champion Sally Gunnell, Olympic
hurdlers Tiffany Porter and Sarah Claxton and six-times British 100m
champion Joice Maduaka. There, athletes of all ages spoke excitedly of the
prospect of sharing a venue with the Hammers. Among the club's members is
West Ham's chaplain, Rev Alan Bolding, who is still sprinting at the age of
72. "I do the 100m and 200m and last year, in my age-group, I was No3 in the
UK but I get slower each year!" said Rev Bolding. "I started sprinting when
I was 13 and stopped when I was 17, then took it up again when I was 62.
"About eight of our members officiated at the Olympic Stadium in the
Olympics and Paralympics track and field events, which was good for the
club. "What a wonderful opportunity we've got for West Ham to go into that
Stadium! My only dream is to run on that track in a proper event. I just
pray that I'm around in 2016 when West Ham play their first match there. I'm
so excited!"
One member to take part at London 2012 was team leader, coach and long
distance runner Alistair Holford, who led a group of Woodford Green AC Games
Makers who looked after the kit and other items discarded by athletes before
their event. "It was just a wonderful experience, both for me as a team
leader but also for my team of kit carriers who loved it," Holford
confirmed. "It is good news that there will be a permanent use for the
stadium and other sports and events will be able to take place there.
"Particularly for athletics, it is really, really important and I think it
would have been absolutely criminal if the stadium was knocked down to a
25,000 capacity, particularly with the World Athletics Championships coming
up in four years time. "My son Angus took part in the test event at the
Olympic Stadium before London 2012, running the 10,000m, and just to have
the opportunity to run on that track was great for him and for the
youngsters here who potentially could run on that track."
Many of Holford's fellow athletes agree that the ability to use the stadium
for both football and other sports will be central to its future success,
while also giving them the opportunity to experience world-class facilities
in a truly historic venue.
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West Ham set to sign Jefferson Montero
KUMB.com
Filed: Wednesday, 26th June 2013
By: Staff Writer
West Ham are said to be 'close' to finalising the capture of Ecuadorian
midfielder Jefferson Montero. According to journalist Jamie Jackson, United
are on the verge of tying up a deal for the 23-year-old international winger
who currently plays for Mexican club Monarcas Morelia in the Liga MX
(Mexican equivalent of the Premier League). Should the deal go through,
Montero is expected to sign a four-year contract worth around £30,000 per
week. Born in Babahoyo - the capital city of Ecuador's Los Rios province -
in 1989, Montero began his professional career with local club Club Sport
Emelec at the age of 16 before joining Independiente José Terán. It was
whilst with second division Independiente that he began to attract
widespread attention after impressing in the first team. Following a short
loan spell in 2008 with Mexican side Dorados de Sinaloa, Montano was snapped
up by Spanish side Villareal in April 2009 on a five-year contract. His move
to Spain appeared to be proving fruitful when he was promoted from
Villareal's B team to the first team squad as back-up for Santi Cazorla, now
at Arsenal, at the start of the 2010/11 season. However having failed to
secure a first team spot, Montero was loaned firstly to Levante and then to
Real Betis (where he played alongside new Hammers signing Adrian) before
joining his current club Morelia on a permanent basis a year ago this month.
Montero is understood to have two years remaining on his current contract,
but West Ham are said to have triggered a £3million release clause.
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Where do West Ham need to improve next season?
KUMb.com
Filed: Wednesday, 26th June 2013
By: footballtips.com
No matter how successful a season is, you are always looking to improve in
the summer months. This is the case for West Ham United as they aim to build
on their top ten finish and something we have discussed at lengths with
fellow tipsters on footballtips.com.
First of all, it is worth mentioning that if the Hammers were offered 10th
again – they would take it. If the 2013/2014 season follows the same
pattern, there will not be too many complaints. West Ham cannot stand still
and expect to have the same success though. Teams around them will be
improving and they need too as well.
So, which weaknesses need addressing ahead of the new Premier League season?
Well, one of them already has been. The face that Andy Carroll was only a
loan signing last season was a problem. Who was Sam Allardyce going to get
to replace the England international in the summer? Luckily, he has got the
man himself. Carroll has agreed to sign permanently for West Ham and this is
fantastic news. He can become a Hammers legend and help the club push on –
no doubt about that.
What could be key though is finding an alternative to Carroll. Not only is
he injury prone – something that will hopefully improve – but you can't
always rely on his battering ram approach getting results. So, another
striker is needed. Carlton Cole has been released and this makes room for a
new recruit. Somebody proven at Premier League level would be ideal, making
Darren Bent a possible candidate.
The striker's time is definitely up at Aston Villa and there is no doubt,
given a run of games, he can make a handy contribution. This is as a partner
to Carroll or as an alternative. Demba Ba has also been mentioned and this
would be a similar capture to Bent, while Matej Vydra – who scored plenty
while on-loan at Watford last season – is a more youthful alternative.
Elsewhere, Kevin Nolan needs a hand with scoring goals from midfield. He
managed ten last season – a superb return once again – but when he has a dry
spell in front of goal, the team suffers. He finished with a hat-trick
against Reading of course. If he can continue this from August onwards, with
the help of another goal-scoring midfielder, West Ham are well set up to win
games of football.
In terms of potential candidates, how about Wigan's Shaun Maloney? He was
superb last season and can operate in a deeper role, but still be a
significant goal threat. Some may argue he hasn't got the best goal-scoring
record, but if he is playing as part of a dangerous West Ham team – this can
change.
Maloney would also give defenders somebody else to think about. He gets into
fantastic positions and can draw players away from his team-mates, opening
up plenty of space elsewhere. Then, the Scotland international proved more
than once that he is capable of producing a moment of magic. The last minute
free-kick against Queens Park Rangers definitely stands out.
It is then all about shutting out the opposition, something which was a bit
of a problem at times – particularly away from home. Allardyce's men had a
spell on the road when they conceded first and the floodgates opened. If
they are to have the best possible chance of a top ten finish again – the
amount of times this happened has to be reduced. A couple of defensive
recruits would be more than welcome.
Who could fit the bill in this regard? It's hard to say without knowing the
transfer budget the Hammers have to work with, but Ludovic Sane has been
linked and he wouldn't break the bank. One of the star performers for
Bordeaux last season, the 26-year-old is ready for the next challenge in his
career and could add some youthful steel to Allardyce's backline.
It musn't be forgotten that Romanian Captain Razvan Rat has already come in
too, so hopefully, a more experienced defence will have a solid look to it
in the 2013/2014 season.
Overall, there isn't a need for drastic changes. West Ham were excellent
last season and achieved more than they thought possible. It is about fine
tuning and improving the overall quality of the squad.
A couple of injuries last season and West Ham looked limited on options. If
they are to push on, this can't be the case from August onwards. An
experienced defender, alternative proven goalscorer to Carroll and a
creative midfielder to take the pressure off Nolan would be a great start to
building a brighter future.
Then, a few early wins would go down well too! West Ham have superb momentum
after finishing the campaign strongly and it is important to continue this
in the transfer market and the opening weeks.
Bring on the new season!
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The mine of talent and the minefield of life
KUMB.com
Filed: Wednesday, 26th June 2013
By: Julie Stewart
A mine of untapped talent has awaited treasure seekers over the years, at
the home of the claret and blue.
Unfortunately those seeking goal scoring, midfield magic-making or even shot
stopping excellence have come bearing their treasure maps of scouting
reports and plundered the Boleyn Ground. Their promises of honing gems into
sparkling diamonds to glisten in the shop window of the footballing world
have attracted many away from the Hammers.
One of the most famous is now part of the Chelsea vault of wealth, in the
form of Frank Lampard. The box-to-box midfielder, who has a current
international scoring record of a goal every 3.31 games, may have been
polished in SW6 but he was made in E13. It is not just moving on that can
affect a player's West Ham career, or his appearance on any pitch, though.
Injured to an End
Compared to many careers football is fleeting in its existence; injury can
make the timeline even briefer. Dean Ashton was an England international
when his career was interrupted in 2006 whilst training with his country.
The Hammers striker broke his ankle and although he returned to action for
the club in the 2007-2008 season the injury proved to be a weakness which
effectively ended his career following an ankle sprain in September 2008.
Ashton now lives his life away from the passion and physicality of football.
He still has his life off the pitch though, a fact sadly not true of former
wearer of the claret and blue Marc-Vivien Foé. Surely no-one can forget the
dramatic death of the Cameroon international whilst playing for his country
10 years ago to the day. It was tragic that a gifted life ended at the age
of 28, but he died doing something for which he had great passion.
The Addictions of Sport and Life
Injury is just one potential challenge to a footballer's career. In a world
full of pressure and temptation it is all too easy for addiction to become
an issue. Matthew Etherington spoke to the press in 2010 about the gambling
addiction which saw him lose approximately £1.5 million. Whether it was the
greyhounds, horses, or poker, Etherington had a problem which was only
addressed with the assistance of his family.
For anyone, footballer or not, addiction can seem impossible to overcome.
The absolute compulsion to partake of an activity or substance despite the
consequences can be life consuming, and most definitely life altering. In
the case of Matthew Etherington, Sporting Chance assisted him in dealing
with his issues. They provide help, for amateur and professional sports
people, in dealing with addiction issues.
Addiction can affect anyone in any walk of life the world over and dedicated
local recovery programmes exist to help those in difficulty. Details are
provided of potential recovery programmes and help for those affected to
regain control of their lives. There is discussion as to how long it takes
to control addiction and how that answer depends on the individual. Advice
on how to control addiction, and where to get assistance is available online
via addiction support.
The Survivors and Stayers
Just like people from all walks of life footballers can experience
difficulties along the way; they are not immune. There have been some West
Ham greats who have survived any pitfalls in life and gone on to be legends
for the club, and those who will always be in the hearts of fans.
There are few people who can truly be regarded as iconic in the world of
sport but Bobby Moore is one of them. Even those who are not Hammers fans
have to admit, however grudgingly, that he was a player who graced any pitch
he played on. The player that Pelé once said was the greatest defender he
ever played against captained the institution that is West Ham for 10 years.
In the modern age of massive transfer fees, and seemingly limited loyalty
which can often be bought, it is refreshing to remember that there are some
footballers who have dedicated their life and talent to one club.
There are those footballers who move to where fame and riches wait and there
are those who live their lives by their hearts. Some have their choices
taken from them by injury or worse. Several more struggle to control
addictive impulses which pressure and fame can exacerbate. One thing which
many share is how lucky they are to have played for the great club that has
been, is, and always will be, West Ham United.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Transfer latest: 26 June
KUMb.com
Filed: Wednesday, 26th June 2013
By: Staff Writer
In just five days' time, the West Ham United first team squad returns to
training at Chadwell Heath.
And with 1st July rapidly approaching, transfer speculation is beginning to
pick up with the start of the new 2013/14 Premier League season less than
two months away.
Despite West Ham United's chairman-in-waiting Jack Sullivan having revealed
that the club do not expect to do any business within the next few days, the
media and the agents continue to flood the pages of your favourite websites
and newspapers with potential transfer stories - the latest of which we
bring you in a handy round-up...
* Udinese striker Matej Vydra, who spent last season on loan at Watford is
said to be interesting a number of Premier League clubs, one of whom are
said to be West Ham. The 21-year-old scored 20 goals for the Hornets in last
season's Championship and is likely to be made available for loan again this
coming season.
Vydra's agent, Ondrej Chovanec, told isport.blesk.cz: "Udinese don't want to
sell him for £8million, so they have given us freedom to discuss loan spells
with the Premier League clubs that are interested. At the moment we have
offers from four Premier League clubs - West Brom, West Ham, Swansea and
Sunderland. Udinese don't want Matej to have to get used to life in a
different country, so now it seems likely that he will be playing on in
England."
* Former Crystal Palace youngster Wilfried Zaha continues to be linked with
a move to east London, despite just having joined Manchester United in a
£15million deal. The 20-year-old, who is considered unlikely to be part of
David Moyes' first team plans next season is also said to be interesting the
likes of Everton and Aston Villa.
* Arsenal youngster Joel Campbell is reported to be a target of both West
Ham and newly-promoted Crystal Palace. The 20-year-old forward spent last
season on loan at Real Betis but is said to be wanted by the two clubs.
Betis would provide further competition for his signature, having already
told Arsenal that they want the youngster to return to the Benito Villamarín
next season.
* For a second successive summer, West Ham find themselves linked with a
move for Chelsea's Victor Moses. The former Wigan winger, for whom a move to
east London was first mooted last summer before he moved to Stamford Bridge
is a loan option for Sam Allardyce as he seeks to improve his attacking
options. Chelsea paid the Latics £9million whne signing the youngster last
August.
* Ravel Morrison is wanted again by Birmingham manager Lee Clark. The
19-year-old former Manchester United midfielder has seen just eight minutes
of first team football since joining West Ham 18 months ago and a return to
St Andrews would seem a likely option.
"It's well documented I want the loan players who were here last year to
return," Clark told birminghammail.co.uk. "We're in dialogue with their
clubs to try and get that happening again. The wheels are turning and the
main thing for me is that if they're not going to be involved with West Ham
and Newcastle respectively, they want to come back to us."
* Juventus striker Manolo Gabbiadini is being linked with a potential loan
move to West Ham after he revealed that he would be interested in spending a
year abroad. The Italian Under 21 international spent last season on loan
with Bolgna but would like to try his luck on foreign shores. "My priority
at the moment is Juventus," he said, "but we'll have to see what happens. It
is still early in the summer. I've always said that one day I would like to
experience life abroad."
* Long-term Hammers target Wilfried Bony could be on his way to Swansea City
after the Welsh club were reported to have made a £10million bid for the
Vitesse Arnhem striker. Interest in Bony, who was heavily linked with a move
to east London earlier in the year has cooled since Andy Carroll completed
his permanent move from Liverpool.
* Ipswich are keen to take West Ham's third-choice goalkeeper Stephen
Henderson on loan for a third spell. The former Portsmouth stopper spent
five months at Portman Road last season in two seperate spells - initially
from October to January, before returning at the end of the winter transfer
window for a further two months.
Speaking about the possibilty of bringing Henderson back to Suffolk, Town
boss Mick McCarthy remarked: "Stephen is under contract with his club, which
kind of makes life difficult. But he was really good for us and I need
another goalkeeper."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
It's Hall over
KUMb.com
Filed: Wednesday, 26th June 2013
By: Staff Writer
Rob Hall seems certain to leave West Ham for Bolton Wanderers - despite the
two clubs being unable to agree a fee. Once considered to be the brightest
prospect in West Ham United's Academy, the 19-year-old is on his way out of
the Boleyn Ground having failed to agree terms on a new contract. Hall -
whose only start for West Ham's first team came in the 4-1 home defeat by
relegated Wigan Athletic in last season's Capital One Cup - has
provisionally agreed to join the Championship side, managed by Dougie
Freedman, but will be unable to do until the two club's reach agreement over
his valuation. That now appears destined to be decided by a tribunal with
Bolton not prepared to meet West Ham's demands; West Ham are thought to
value Hall at the £1million mark, although the Trotters are not prepared to
pay more than half that figure. Hall, who has been at West Ham since
childhood and has represented England at all youth levels from Under 16 to
Under 19 spent two months on loan at the Reebok Stadium last season. His
only first team appearance came in a 2-2 draw against Blackpool at the
beginning of May.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
West Ham confident of signing Ecuador winger Jefferson Montero
• 23-year-old has also been linked with a move to Everton
• Morelia winger likely to accept £30,000-a-week contract
Jamie Jackson
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 26 June 2013 14.51 BST
West Ham United are close to signing Jefferson Montero by triggering the
Ecuadorian's £3m release clause that would take him from a Mexican club,
Morelia, to the Boleyn Ground. Roberto Martínez, the new Everton manager, is
also interested in Montero, who reportedly came close to signing for the
Spaniard when in charge of Wigan Athletic in January. But it is understood
that West Ham are confident of securing his services. The 23-year-old
Montero will earn £30,000 a-week in what should be a four-year contract,
having impressed the West Ham manager, Sam Allardyce, who hopes the winger
can help provide the service to the club's record signing, Andy Carroll,
next season. Montero, who has played for Ecuador more than 25 times,
impressed in the 1-1 draw with Argentina in a World Cup qualifier in Quito
early this month when a number of scouts from English clubs were present.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
Wednesday, June 26
Daily WHUFC News - 26th June 2013
The Big Interview - Martin Allen
WHUFC.com
It has been quite a year for ex-West Ham United star and Gillingham manager
Martin Allen
25.06.2013
Martin Allen is one of those players who will always be held in high esteem
by West Ham United fans. The tough-tackling central midfielder spent six
seasons at the Boleyn Ground between 1989 and 1995, scoring 34 goals in 232
appearances in claret and blue and becoming a terrace hero in east London.
Since hanging up his boots, Allen has forged a career as a manager, enjoying
success at Barnet, Brentford, Milton Keynes Dons and Notts County before
leading Gillingham to their first title in 49 years courtesy of winning
League Two last season. The official website caught up with 'Mad Dog' to ask
the 47-year-old to share his thoughts on the Hammers and the Gills.
Congratulations Martin! You must be immensely proud to have led Gillingham
to the League Two title last season?
MA: "It has been a brilliant year, promotion in the first season at
Gillingham. They were all free transfers, with young players coming through.
I think we've played some good football and it's been a magnificent year.
"I've been to several Play-Offs but never managed to quite get over the
line, often taking over clubs in trouble in relegation areas and building
teams to get into the Play-Offs. "It's been unbelievable. It was not only
promotion, but we were the champions, so for me personally it's an
unbelievable feeling. I always thought I'd be known as the firefighter,
coming in to stop teams getting relegated, but to be able to do this over a
longer period was definitely the highlight of my whole career, without a
shadow of a doubt."
To win a title is a great achievement at any level, so what was your secret
at Gillingham?
MA: "We had been top the whole season, and we played good football. We get
it down and play, we get our full-backs overlapping. Towards the end of the
season, we were getting 10-11,000 sell-out crowds every week. We just kept
going and going and going right through to the very end and somehow or other
we managed to stay in there, hang in there, and came through it. "And now to
be a champion, I think my nickname has changed from Mad Dog to Top Dog!"
What about your old Club West Ham United? Were you also pleased to see the
Hammers enjoy such a comfortable season in the Barclays Premier League?
MA: "I think it was quite a remarkable season for West Ham to be honest. I
came to watch them play against Manchester United with my Chairman Paul
Scally, as a guest of Mr Gold. The hospitality beforehand was absolutely
first-class and then the performance from the team was quite outstanding.
"The movement, the passing and I thought Andy Carroll on the night was
absolutely outstanding. I thought he was a Julian Dicks-type warrior and
character. The West Ham supporters love that hero-type person and I thought
he was brilliant. "The team not only used him with his height, his power and
his strength, but they also played good football. They moved the ball around
the pitch on the grass and I thought they had a good mixture."
As a fellow manager, have you been impressed by the job Sam Allardyce has
done since he came to the Boleyn Ground?
MA: "It's amazing to finish in the top ten. It's an unbelievable achievement
and to do what has happened is quite remarkable. Sam has brought in good
players. He's only doing here what he did at Bolton. "In the next couple of
years you can see where this team and this club is going. I just think over
the next couple of years it won't just stabilise - it will get better,
bigger and stronger. And with the fan base going into the new stadium, I
think it has the potential to be a club that's challenging. "The crowd on
that night against Manchester United, the atmosphere was absolutely first
class. That's important as well, that the supporters continue to get behind
the manager, get behind the players. No doubt in the summer, they want to
get stronger and keep improving. Sam Allardyce is a very good man at player
recruitment and I think the future is very bright, most definitely."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Roeder returns - at Millwall
KUMB.com
Filed: Tuesday, 25th June 2013
By: Staff Writer
Former West Ham United manager Glenn Roeder has returned to football - as a
scout for new Millwall manager Steve Lomas. The much-maligned Roeder, who
was in charge at the Boleyn Ground between 2001 and 2003 has joined his
former Hammers captain at the New Den in order to suggest potential new
signings. Lomas - who was hired as the new Millwall manager amidst howls of
protests from the club's supporters - said: ""The chief scout Jamie Johnson
is away on holiday for two weeks so I've got a few people speaking to agents
for me that I trust. "For me to get around the amount of agents there are
would be virtually impossible on my own, which is effectively what I am for
the time being. There's a lot to do and I can't spend all day speaking to
agents, so I've got a couple of people doing that."
Lomas has also signed former West Ham goalkeeper Stephen Bywater, now 32,
who spent eight years in east London.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Four Premier League clubs in for Matej Vydra
By Vasek Kadlec. Last Updated: June 25, 2013 1:33pm
SSN
Four Premier League clubs have expressed an interest in taking Udinese
striker Matej Vydra on loan, claims his agent. The Czech forward was brought
to the attention of an English audience in 2012/13 while taking in a
productive loan spell at Watford - which saw him named Championship Player
of the Year and take the Hornets to within 90 minutes of promotion to the
Premier League. Unsurprisingly, he has drawn plenty of admiring glances
ahead of the summer transfer window - with West Bromwich Albion, West Ham
United, Swansea City and Sunderland said to be keen on bringing him back to
England. Vydra's representative claims a move to the Premier League is now
the main focus for his client, with an offer from Bundesliga outfit Werder
Bremen having been knocked back.
After holding talks with Udinese and Watford owner Giampaolo Pozzo on
Monday, Ondrej Chovanec told isport.blesk.cz: "We agreed that none of the
offers (for a permanent transfer) are in the region that would interest
Udinese. "They don't want to sell him for £8million, so they have given us
freedom to discuss loan spells with the Premier League clubs that are
interested. "At the moment we have offers from four Premier League clubs -
West Brom, West Ham, Swansea and Sunderland."
On the decision to reject a move to Germany, Chovanec added: "At Udinese
they don't want Matej to have to get used to life in a different country, so
now it seems likely that he will be playing on in England."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Carroll always seemed nailed on for his Hammers move but he was reluctant to
leave his Anfield of dreams
By NEIL ASHTON
PUBLISHED: 00:00, 26 June 2013 | UPDATED: 00:00, 26 June 2013
Daily Mail
When Andy Carroll officially signed for West Ham last week it all seemed so
cut and dried. Liverpool agreed to sell the striker for £15million and he
signed a six-year contract after he had an accelerated medical in London.
Scratch beneath the surface though and Sam Allardyce will tell you that
Carroll took some persuading to join him at Upton Park full time. The
England striker was reluctant to sever his ties at Anfield, despite spending
a successful season with West Ham. He had joined Liverpool for £35m in
January 2011 and he didn't want to give up on his career at the five-time
European Cup winners so easily. Ultimately Carroll was always going to leave
Merseyside this summer, but it says something about him that it took him
time to adjust to the idea. Naturally it will be confusing for him. How can
a football club spend a record British transfer fee of £35m on a player and
then decide within two years that he isn't good enough to play for them?
It's something Carroll struggles to understand and it's hard to blame him,
particularly when they accepted a £20m loss on him last week. Walking away
from Liverpool is difficult for any player, particularly when they believed
so highly in him when they signed him from Newcastle. He arrived when
Fernando Torres was leaving for Chelsea during that extraordinary period in
January 2011. Liverpool's former director of football Damien Comolli had
courted him and the club's then caretaker manager Kenny Dalglish believed he
was a big asset. Carroll bought into Liverpool's history and heritage,
recognising that he was registered with one of the most powerful voices in
football. There had been times at Liverpool, notably when he scored against
Chelsea in the FA Cup final in 2012 after coming on as a substitute, when he
looked as though his future could still be with them. In the semi-final the
previous month, his Liverpool team-mate Jamie Carragher had launched a
passionate defence of the striker during a live television interview.
Carroll had scored the winner against Everton at Wembley in the semi-final
three minutes from time. 'For me that goal was worthy £35m,' Carragher said
at the time. Carragher is no-one's fool. The former Liverpool defender knows
a player and he bought into Carroll's physical approach up front. Prior to
the 2012 FA Cup final Carragher said: 'Andy has got all the attributes you
need to be a top centre forward. Now that he is in the England squad he can
establish himself as the country's No 9 for the next decade. We will be
looking for him to do that with Liverpool.' They believed in his ability,
but his style isn't suited to the swift interchanges and flexibility of
Brendan Rodgers' teams. At times last season Carroll was convinced that he
could still make an impression at Anfield after a year being picked
regularly by West Ham.
He believes he is a better player, more rounded and experienced. With Luis
Suarez suspended until September following the extraordinary incident with
Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic, Carroll saw another opportunity. But
the striker is certainly the man for Allardyce and West Ham's manager wants
to build the best team in the club's history. He is being given the backing
from the board to do it, too. He has sold Carroll the dream, convincing him
that they will soon be one of London's major attractions. The length of the
contract underlines the club's commitment to Carroll and he will be a
long-standing player by the time they move into the Olympic Stadium. That
60,000-seater stadium is bigger than Anfield and it was another bargaining
chip for Allardyce over the summer.
The Hammers manager has a different philosophy to Rodgers and showed some of
his hand when he spoke about Carroll's arrival last weekend. 'I look at Andy
and think, "Is he better than what I already have here and the answer to
that is yes".' It's a simple but effective formula, something Allardyce has
relied on throughout his managerial career. Carroll is not in Suarez's
class, but it didn't stop him thinking about what might have been at
Anfield.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Bolton unable to agree fee with West Ham for Rob Hall
TalkSport
By Marc Isaacs | Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Bolton have been unable to agree a fee with West Ham for the signature of
talented youngster Rob Hall and could be heading to a transfer tribunal.
Dougie Freedman was hoping the 19-year-old would sign in time for the start
of pre-season training next week, but will now be forced to wait a bit
longer until he can join up with the first-team squad. Hall spent two months
on loan at Bolton last season and wants to make a permanent move to the
Reebok Stadium after failing to make his breakthrough into the West Ham
first-team. The England Under-19 forward is out of contract with the east
London club, but they are still entitled to some money as he came through
the development ranks at Upton Park. If Bolton cannot match the fee that
West Ham are looking for, then the two clubs will have to attend an
independent hearing to settle the matter.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
http://vyperz.blogspot.com
WHUFC.com
It has been quite a year for ex-West Ham United star and Gillingham manager
Martin Allen
25.06.2013
Martin Allen is one of those players who will always be held in high esteem
by West Ham United fans. The tough-tackling central midfielder spent six
seasons at the Boleyn Ground between 1989 and 1995, scoring 34 goals in 232
appearances in claret and blue and becoming a terrace hero in east London.
Since hanging up his boots, Allen has forged a career as a manager, enjoying
success at Barnet, Brentford, Milton Keynes Dons and Notts County before
leading Gillingham to their first title in 49 years courtesy of winning
League Two last season. The official website caught up with 'Mad Dog' to ask
the 47-year-old to share his thoughts on the Hammers and the Gills.
Congratulations Martin! You must be immensely proud to have led Gillingham
to the League Two title last season?
MA: "It has been a brilliant year, promotion in the first season at
Gillingham. They were all free transfers, with young players coming through.
I think we've played some good football and it's been a magnificent year.
"I've been to several Play-Offs but never managed to quite get over the
line, often taking over clubs in trouble in relegation areas and building
teams to get into the Play-Offs. "It's been unbelievable. It was not only
promotion, but we were the champions, so for me personally it's an
unbelievable feeling. I always thought I'd be known as the firefighter,
coming in to stop teams getting relegated, but to be able to do this over a
longer period was definitely the highlight of my whole career, without a
shadow of a doubt."
To win a title is a great achievement at any level, so what was your secret
at Gillingham?
MA: "We had been top the whole season, and we played good football. We get
it down and play, we get our full-backs overlapping. Towards the end of the
season, we were getting 10-11,000 sell-out crowds every week. We just kept
going and going and going right through to the very end and somehow or other
we managed to stay in there, hang in there, and came through it. "And now to
be a champion, I think my nickname has changed from Mad Dog to Top Dog!"
What about your old Club West Ham United? Were you also pleased to see the
Hammers enjoy such a comfortable season in the Barclays Premier League?
MA: "I think it was quite a remarkable season for West Ham to be honest. I
came to watch them play against Manchester United with my Chairman Paul
Scally, as a guest of Mr Gold. The hospitality beforehand was absolutely
first-class and then the performance from the team was quite outstanding.
"The movement, the passing and I thought Andy Carroll on the night was
absolutely outstanding. I thought he was a Julian Dicks-type warrior and
character. The West Ham supporters love that hero-type person and I thought
he was brilliant. "The team not only used him with his height, his power and
his strength, but they also played good football. They moved the ball around
the pitch on the grass and I thought they had a good mixture."
As a fellow manager, have you been impressed by the job Sam Allardyce has
done since he came to the Boleyn Ground?
MA: "It's amazing to finish in the top ten. It's an unbelievable achievement
and to do what has happened is quite remarkable. Sam has brought in good
players. He's only doing here what he did at Bolton. "In the next couple of
years you can see where this team and this club is going. I just think over
the next couple of years it won't just stabilise - it will get better,
bigger and stronger. And with the fan base going into the new stadium, I
think it has the potential to be a club that's challenging. "The crowd on
that night against Manchester United, the atmosphere was absolutely first
class. That's important as well, that the supporters continue to get behind
the manager, get behind the players. No doubt in the summer, they want to
get stronger and keep improving. Sam Allardyce is a very good man at player
recruitment and I think the future is very bright, most definitely."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Roeder returns - at Millwall
KUMB.com
Filed: Tuesday, 25th June 2013
By: Staff Writer
Former West Ham United manager Glenn Roeder has returned to football - as a
scout for new Millwall manager Steve Lomas. The much-maligned Roeder, who
was in charge at the Boleyn Ground between 2001 and 2003 has joined his
former Hammers captain at the New Den in order to suggest potential new
signings. Lomas - who was hired as the new Millwall manager amidst howls of
protests from the club's supporters - said: ""The chief scout Jamie Johnson
is away on holiday for two weeks so I've got a few people speaking to agents
for me that I trust. "For me to get around the amount of agents there are
would be virtually impossible on my own, which is effectively what I am for
the time being. There's a lot to do and I can't spend all day speaking to
agents, so I've got a couple of people doing that."
Lomas has also signed former West Ham goalkeeper Stephen Bywater, now 32,
who spent eight years in east London.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Four Premier League clubs in for Matej Vydra
By Vasek Kadlec. Last Updated: June 25, 2013 1:33pm
SSN
Four Premier League clubs have expressed an interest in taking Udinese
striker Matej Vydra on loan, claims his agent. The Czech forward was brought
to the attention of an English audience in 2012/13 while taking in a
productive loan spell at Watford - which saw him named Championship Player
of the Year and take the Hornets to within 90 minutes of promotion to the
Premier League. Unsurprisingly, he has drawn plenty of admiring glances
ahead of the summer transfer window - with West Bromwich Albion, West Ham
United, Swansea City and Sunderland said to be keen on bringing him back to
England. Vydra's representative claims a move to the Premier League is now
the main focus for his client, with an offer from Bundesliga outfit Werder
Bremen having been knocked back.
After holding talks with Udinese and Watford owner Giampaolo Pozzo on
Monday, Ondrej Chovanec told isport.blesk.cz: "We agreed that none of the
offers (for a permanent transfer) are in the region that would interest
Udinese. "They don't want to sell him for £8million, so they have given us
freedom to discuss loan spells with the Premier League clubs that are
interested. "At the moment we have offers from four Premier League clubs -
West Brom, West Ham, Swansea and Sunderland."
On the decision to reject a move to Germany, Chovanec added: "At Udinese
they don't want Matej to have to get used to life in a different country, so
now it seems likely that he will be playing on in England."
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Carroll always seemed nailed on for his Hammers move but he was reluctant to
leave his Anfield of dreams
By NEIL ASHTON
PUBLISHED: 00:00, 26 June 2013 | UPDATED: 00:00, 26 June 2013
Daily Mail
When Andy Carroll officially signed for West Ham last week it all seemed so
cut and dried. Liverpool agreed to sell the striker for £15million and he
signed a six-year contract after he had an accelerated medical in London.
Scratch beneath the surface though and Sam Allardyce will tell you that
Carroll took some persuading to join him at Upton Park full time. The
England striker was reluctant to sever his ties at Anfield, despite spending
a successful season with West Ham. He had joined Liverpool for £35m in
January 2011 and he didn't want to give up on his career at the five-time
European Cup winners so easily. Ultimately Carroll was always going to leave
Merseyside this summer, but it says something about him that it took him
time to adjust to the idea. Naturally it will be confusing for him. How can
a football club spend a record British transfer fee of £35m on a player and
then decide within two years that he isn't good enough to play for them?
It's something Carroll struggles to understand and it's hard to blame him,
particularly when they accepted a £20m loss on him last week. Walking away
from Liverpool is difficult for any player, particularly when they believed
so highly in him when they signed him from Newcastle. He arrived when
Fernando Torres was leaving for Chelsea during that extraordinary period in
January 2011. Liverpool's former director of football Damien Comolli had
courted him and the club's then caretaker manager Kenny Dalglish believed he
was a big asset. Carroll bought into Liverpool's history and heritage,
recognising that he was registered with one of the most powerful voices in
football. There had been times at Liverpool, notably when he scored against
Chelsea in the FA Cup final in 2012 after coming on as a substitute, when he
looked as though his future could still be with them. In the semi-final the
previous month, his Liverpool team-mate Jamie Carragher had launched a
passionate defence of the striker during a live television interview.
Carroll had scored the winner against Everton at Wembley in the semi-final
three minutes from time. 'For me that goal was worthy £35m,' Carragher said
at the time. Carragher is no-one's fool. The former Liverpool defender knows
a player and he bought into Carroll's physical approach up front. Prior to
the 2012 FA Cup final Carragher said: 'Andy has got all the attributes you
need to be a top centre forward. Now that he is in the England squad he can
establish himself as the country's No 9 for the next decade. We will be
looking for him to do that with Liverpool.' They believed in his ability,
but his style isn't suited to the swift interchanges and flexibility of
Brendan Rodgers' teams. At times last season Carroll was convinced that he
could still make an impression at Anfield after a year being picked
regularly by West Ham.
He believes he is a better player, more rounded and experienced. With Luis
Suarez suspended until September following the extraordinary incident with
Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic, Carroll saw another opportunity. But
the striker is certainly the man for Allardyce and West Ham's manager wants
to build the best team in the club's history. He is being given the backing
from the board to do it, too. He has sold Carroll the dream, convincing him
that they will soon be one of London's major attractions. The length of the
contract underlines the club's commitment to Carroll and he will be a
long-standing player by the time they move into the Olympic Stadium. That
60,000-seater stadium is bigger than Anfield and it was another bargaining
chip for Allardyce over the summer.
The Hammers manager has a different philosophy to Rodgers and showed some of
his hand when he spoke about Carroll's arrival last weekend. 'I look at Andy
and think, "Is he better than what I already have here and the answer to
that is yes".' It's a simple but effective formula, something Allardyce has
relied on throughout his managerial career. Carroll is not in Suarez's
class, but it didn't stop him thinking about what might have been at
Anfield.
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Bolton unable to agree fee with West Ham for Rob Hall
TalkSport
By Marc Isaacs | Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Bolton have been unable to agree a fee with West Ham for the signature of
talented youngster Rob Hall and could be heading to a transfer tribunal.
Dougie Freedman was hoping the 19-year-old would sign in time for the start
of pre-season training next week, but will now be forced to wait a bit
longer until he can join up with the first-team squad. Hall spent two months
on loan at Bolton last season and wants to make a permanent move to the
Reebok Stadium after failing to make his breakthrough into the West Ham
first-team. The England Under-19 forward is out of contract with the east
London club, but they are still entitled to some money as he came through
the development ranks at Upton Park. If Bolton cannot match the fee that
West Ham are looking for, then the two clubs will have to attend an
independent hearing to settle the matter.
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
Tuesday, June 25
Daily WHUFC News - 25th June 2013
Inside the bowels of the Boleyn
WHUFC.com
Stadium Tours give Hammers supporters a unique insight behind the scenes at
the Boleyn Ground
24.06.2013
What club historian John Helliar doesn't know about West Ham United,
probably isn't worth knowing. The Hammers' very own walking encyclopaedia,
Helliar has been guiding supporters around the Boleyn Ground for some years
now, granting visitors the rare opportunity to peruse behind the scenes.
Guests are invited to amble alongside the hallowed Boleyn Ground turf, sit
in manager Sam Allardyce's seat in the dugout and take a look inside the
home dressing room, all packed into a 90-minute stadium tour. Whether it be
in the Alpari Stand Upper or the Press Room, Helliar is on hand at every
turn to explain the whys and wherefores, blending the club's illustrious
history with the present day goings on. In July, Helliar will hand over the
reins to Hammers greats Phil Parkes and Alan Taylor, who will lead a series
of special Former Player Tours around their old stomping ground.
Helliar told West Ham TV: "I show our visitors all parts of the ground -
everything from the Chairman's Suite upstairs to the Alpari Stand. Then I
take them down to the dressing rooms, the Press Room and all around on pitch
side as well. It gives them the chance to actually see where the action
takes place and sit in the seats where the manager, the staff and all the
substitutes are on matchday.
"The tours have grown over the last few years and I really enjoy it. I find
it fascinating. It's nice to get so many people coming and saying how much
they get out of the experience. It's great to be able to share with them
something about West Ham United, from the very early days of the Thames
Ironworks right through to the present day.
"No two tours are alike. You can always count on getting different reactions
to the various parts of the ground we visit. Different people ask different
questions and about different eras. We get a lot of fans who still remember
the club in the 1960s and 1970s, who have been going with their fathers and
grandfathers for some 30 or 40 years. And then, of course, there's the
current generation who know and love West Ham from the present day."
Helliar himself has long-established family connections with the Hammers,
seeing as his father Jack was club historian and programme editor before
him. The family printing business, Helliar and Sons, which published the
programme for decades, is still based in Barking Road.
As a result, John has no shortage of his own West Ham stories and memories
to share, though it's England's FIFA World Cup triumph in 1966 that still
ranks at the very top.
"One of my favourite parts of the tour is in the Legends Restaurant, where
there is the iconic picture from 1966 of Bobby Moore lifting the Jules Rimet
trophy, on the shoulders of Ray Wilson and Geoff Hurst. There's also the
famous Champions Statue at the end of the Barking Road now, and looking at
them both, it brings back very fond memories of being there with my father.
"I was fortunate enough to see the glory days of the '60s and then other
very special occasions, particularly the European nights under the lights."
For all the satisfaction Helliar gets from the experience, his guests are
typically every bit as enthused with their day out in east London. Martyn
Vincent, with his young nephew Charlie in tow, told West Ham TV: "It's
great, because when you're sitting in the stands, you don't get to see
what's going on behind the scenes."
Meanwhile, young Hammer Elliot Paterson was particularly thrilled to have
seen where his heroes prepare prior to kick-off. He said: "I loved going
along the sideline and sitting in the manager's seat, but mainly walking
around the home dressing room, to see where all the players sit. It's really
exciting to think they actually sit there! I can't really put it into
words."
Helliar urged his fellow Hammers to take up this exciting opportunity,
insisting visitors can be sure of the warmest of welcomes.
"We'd certainly enjoy having you here. We think it's a worthwhile experience
and the feedback we get shows just how much people enjoy it, while they tell
us it's the best tour of any football club they've been to. I think that
says it all."
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Premier League clubs chasing Ecuador winger Jefferson Montero
Last Updated: June 24, 2013 3:09pm
SSN
Ecuador winger Jefferson Montero finally hopes to complete a move to the
Premier League this summer. The Morelia wide-man almost joined Wigan in
January, only for the deal to fall through, but he is now hopeful of sealing
a move to England. It is understood a host of clubs are ready to meet his
buy-out clause of £3.5million, and a number of scouts from English teams
watched him play 90 minute s of Ecuador's World Cup qualifying draw with
Argentina earlier this month. Swansea, West Brom, West Ham and Hull City are
all understood to be keen on the 23-year-old, who has already spent time in
Europe in La Liga.
"Jefferson is ready to move to England," Dan Chapman of Full Contact
confirmed to Sky Sports. "We can confirm a number of clubs are showing an
interest, which is not surprising after his performance against Argentina
last week."
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Karren Brady: 'I love politics, I want to get involved'
By Michael Northcott Monday, 24 June 2013
www.managementtoday.co.uk
Often, you know you're onto a wrong 'un when someone from showbiz thinks
that being a media tart is a reasonable precursor to a political career. But
the latest such case, Karren Brady, could actually have some legs. The
Apprentice star says that she wants to get involved in politics, and is so
determined that she would 'never accept a safe seat'.
She says: 'I would always want a difficult seat: being fast-tracked is not
something that appeals to me.' The self-made millionaire and vice-chairman
of West Ham United FC has often been the subject of speculation about future
Conservative candidates. Some have even suggested that she could one day be
the leader of the party. But for the first time, she has nailed her colours
to the mast, saying: 'I want to get involved.'
Brady's comments come just a week after business secretary Vince Cable
insulted the nation's intelligence by saying that the BBC programme gives 'a
completely false impression about what being an apprentice actually
involves'. If he had watched any episodes of the most recent two series, he
would have learned that the programme doesn't actually feature any type of
apprenticeship whatever. Instead, it is focused on a group of entrepreneurs
pitching for £250,000 of investment from Sugar.
Of course, for the legions of people who were worried that Sugar's weekly
boardroom sackings were representative of life as an actual apprentice, we
feel obliged to point out that it is all theatrics. A geniune apprenticeship
– if you can get one – should be a rewarding and satisfying experience, OK?
Anyway, Brady reckons that the political sphere could do with some more
people with business experience. She said: 'You need people who are right at
the cutting edge. I wish a lot more business people did get into politics.
We'd be in a much better place now.' She's not the only one who thinks that
more politicians ought to have had some 'front-line' experience before going
into the House of Commons and waxing lyrical about the business community.
Vince Cable may be a bit politically whimsy, but he is pretty much the only
front-bencher to have any experience in business prior to politics, having
spent some years at Shell. That must count for something…
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Newcastle table £12m bid for Bony
By Warren Haughton | Monday, June 24, 2013
Talksport
Newcastle are chasing Wilfried Bony but face competition from Everton,
Swansea and Anzhi Makhachkala for the highly-rated Vitesse Arnhem striker.
Alan Pardew is keen to add a top-quality forward to his squad and the
Mapgies have stepped up their interest in Bony, tabling a £12million bid for
the Ivorian.
However, talkSPORT understands Vitesse are holding out for £15 million for
the 24-year-old, who scored 31 goals in the Dutch top-flight last season and
is now keen to test himself in the Premier League. That has opened the door
for Russian side Anzhi, who have big money to spend and could easily meet
Vitesse's valuation, while Everton and Swansea are also monitoring Bony's
situation. West Ham have been heavily linked with a move for the former
Sparta Prague man in the past, but their interest has cooled following the
permanent signing of Andy Carroll from Liverpool.
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Benayoun begins intensive training regime in bid to win contract at West
Brom
By JOHN EDWARDS
PUBLISHED: 10:30, 24 June 2013 | UPDATED: 10:30, 24 June 2013
Daily Mail
Yossi Benayoun has signalled his intent to extend his Barclays Premier
League career by embarking on a week of intensive training with Maccabi
Haifa, ahead of a decision on his future. The Israel midfielder's Premier
League days looked to be over after he was released by Chelsea at the age of
33 and left pondering a possible move to MLS side New York Red Bulls. But
interest from West Brom rekindled his ambition to remain in England and
prove he can still make an impact in the top flight. Eager to convince
Hawthorns boss Steve Clarke that he can cope with the rigours of the Premier
League, the former West Ham, Liverpool and Chelsea winger began a seven-day
conditioning programme with Israeli League runners-up Haifa on Sunday. He
will formulate his plans for next season after that, and after completing
his first session, he admitted he wants to hit the ground running, should he
land one more contract in English football's top division. 'I must work on
my fitness and make sure I am in peak condition, and I am grateful to Haifa
for allowing me to join them for the coming week,' he said. 'I am going to
work hard every day, so that wherever I go when I decide on my future, I
will start the pre-season programme with my new club in good shape. I should
know more next weekend.'
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Record numbers attend open trials day
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 24th June 2013
By: Staff Writer
West Ham United Ladies' junior section attracted a record attendance for
their annual trials day last weekend.
More than 130 aspiring young footballers, all eager to wear the famous
claret and blue colours for the forthcoming 2013/14 season attended the
day's two sessions with many coming from top London clubs, local academies
and schools of excellence.
With the high numbers in attendance, the Club's junior managers were
rewarded with the arduous task of whittling down the numbers to form their
new squads for the coming season with existing players and new triallists
all competing for the same positions.
In other WHULFC news the previously-vacant Under 11 manager's position has
been filled by Greg Regan. Greg comes to the club with a strong background
in youth football having coached several local teams (plus Essex youth
Futsal). "I'm really excited to be taking this young West Ham side on," he
said, "and grateful to be given this opportunity."
Finally, the senior Ladies section is in the process of lining up some
exciting pre-season games against tough opposition. One match already
confirmed is against Arsenal Ladies, arguably the strongest women's side in
the country.
Having recently won the Womans' FA Cup with a convincing 3-0 win against
Bristol Academy, Arsenal will be fielding a string of England internationals
who will provide the Hammers with a stern test. In charge for that game will
be new Hammers manager Mark Saunderson.
The Ladies are looking to entice a healthy support to this pre-season
friendly which will be staged on Wednesday, 24th July at Thurrock FC (Ship
Lane, Aveley RM19 1YN). The match is scheduled for a 7.45pm kick off.
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Second Season Syndrome
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 24th June 2013
By: David Hautzig
The minute a newly promoted team survives their first year back in the top
flight of English football, talk of a mystical and deadly disease begins.
The dreaded 'Second Season Syndrome'. And the way it's presented makes it
seem plausible. Even logical.
Teams coming up from the Championship can rely on the fact that 16 of the
clubs they will play know them and their methods about as well as they know
the dietary practices of Inuit Eskimos. (Seal blubber is very important to
them, by the way, which always makes me less nervous when I enjoy a bit of
the fat on my pork chops. That's a discussion for another day. Worth it,
too.) They can use their opponent's lack of familiarity to their advantage.
But once the second season gets going, they can no longer rely on that.
However the statistics suggest otherwise. Actually, that's being polite. The
statistics pretty much shoot the whole idea down in my view. Of the 62 teams
that have been promoted to the Premier League, only eight have been
relegated in their second season at the top. Admittedly, it has happened
more in recent times than in the years following the birth of the EPL.
In the 1990s it only happened once. Middlesbrough finished 12th in their
first year up after winning Division One. But in their sophomore campaign
they were relegated on the last day of the season despite spending bags of
money on players like Fabrizio Ravanelli and Emerson to push onward and
upward. And to add insult to injury, it was a three-point deduction for
postponing a fixture that eventually euthanised their EPL life.
As best as I could muster in between work, kids, mowing the lawn, and
reading Twitter (Admit it. You do it too), here are the statistics for the
so-called Second Season Syndrome. I grabbed it off some article online. It
isn't a research paper needed to receive some degree so I just took it at
face value...
Clubs promoted to the Premier League (1992-2012) – 62
Clubs relegated after first season - 27
Clubs relegated after second season – 8
Middlesbrough
1995/96 12th (43 points)
1996/97 19th (39 points)*
*deducted three points
Bradford
1999/00 17th (36 points)
2000/01 20th (26 points)
Ipswich
2000/01 5th (66 points)
2001/02 18th (36 points)
West Brom
2004/05 17th (34 points)
2005/06 19th (30 points)
Reading
2006/07 8th (55 points)
2007/08 18th (36 points)
Hull
2008/09 17th (35 points)
2009/10 19th (30 points)
Birmingham
2009/10 9th (50 points)
2010/11 18th (39 points)
QPR
2011/12 17th (37 points)
2012/13 20th (25 points)
Not so fab: it sooned turned sour for Ravanelli and Juninho at Middlesbrough
Now I'd like to show you Sam Allardyce's numbers throughout his managerial
career. Sam's time at Bolton is the best way to judge him, in my opinion.
2001-02: 40pts, 16th
2002-03: 44pts, 17th (we went down with 42)
2003-04: 53pts, 8th
2004-05: 56pts, 6th
2005-06: 56pts, 8th
2006-07: 56pts, 7th (Bolton were 5th with two to play when Sam left. Everton
finished on 58pts, Spurs on 60.)
Every year he either matched or exceeded his point total from the previous
year. Add that he has never been relegated as a manager, and second season
syndrome seems more like a convenient bit of superstition used by people who
want to "analyse" us. Facts, however, get in the way. We seem to have a
manager and a board that have a methodical and conservative approach to
moving the club forward.
I would even classify the permanent signing of the giant, flying striker
with the ponytail from up north as conservative. During the weeks of Twitter
madness leading up to his putting pen to paper, my best friend Jon would
remind me that from an on-pitch perspective, Andy Carroll joining us
permanently did not add to the squad. It simply maintained what we had last
season.
So bearing that in mind, our record signing was in fact somewhat
conservative because we had tasted the goods before we brought them home to
make dinner. That would NOT have been the case with Bony, Negredo, Hooper,
Rhodes, or any other name that we were linked with to help avoid this Second
Season Syndrome that really doesn't exist.
There is an old cliche that anybody that has ever bought some lumber in the
hope they could build whatever it is they need or want.
Measure twice. Cut once.
As I follow the happenings at our beloved club, I can almost see Sam, Karen,
and the two Davids in their offices with that little squared-off pencil that
every carpenter uses. They measure things out, grab their ruler or square,
and draw the line. Then they do it again. And then they bring it to each
other to have another look. Finally, they cut. It's boring. It's a bit
tedious. But it's also unlikely the framing of the house will crack and
either need serious repair or just collapse one day in the middle of
breakfast.
I am a VERY nervous supporter. There are times I can barely watch our games.
During the playoff final against Blackpool the guy sitting next to me at a
bar was genuinely concerned about me because I was shivering from fear and
worry. And I will almost certainly go through that for large parts of the
upcoming season. But I won't fret because it's our second season back. I
will have regular panic attacks because we are who we are.
West Ham United.
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That Was The Season That Was 2012/13 - Part Four
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 24th June 2013
By: Gordon Thrower
Will we get sucked into a relegation scrap? Will we get a refereeing
decision in our favour at Anfield? And will Reading suppoters ever get over
their strange infatuation with inflatable toys? These and other questions
are answered in the concluding part of Gordon Thrower's review of the
2012/13 season, which covers the months of May, February, April and March
2013. Just not in that order though.....
February
David Sullivan starts the month off with an interview in which he reveals
that the transfer deadline came with threats of violence from an unnamed
agent who wanted part of a particular deal. The thought occurs to us that,
that over the years in his chosen profession, Mr Sullivan is likely to have
made acquaintance with a number of very large gentlemen happy to look after
him and, as a result, the agent concerned is either very brave or very
stupid.
England beat Brazil 2-1 at Wembley with goals from Rooney and Lampard. A
double blow or fat power then. The unlikely name of Fred is on the
scoresheet for the Brazilians, who also see Joe Hart save a penalty. Ashley
Cole gets his 100th cap. No comment.
On the pitch we return to winning ways with a 1-0 victory over Swansea at
the Boleyn. We are a lot more dominant than the score suggests, though JJ is
required to make a couple of late saves to keep all three points where they
belong leaving us back in 11th spot on 30 points with 13 matches left to
play. Andy Carroll is on target in his first start since November, prompting
thoughts of what might have been had his season not been so blighted by
injury.
The club announces a new shirt sponsorship deal for 2013/14 with Alpari. Not
having been paying attention when they blagged the naming rights to what I
still think of as the West Stand, I am surprised to discover that the
company is, in fact, a foreign exchange trading business, rather than the
manufacturer of the sort of breakfast cereal made from the stuff found at
the bottom of budgie cages.
Some of that sponsorship money will come in handy at Allardyce Towers
following an FA fine of £8,000 for pointing out that Man Utd get more than
favourable treatment from referees. Allardyce's comments are deemed to bring
the game into disrepute whilst the bias and generally dreadful standards of
refereeing in this country are not. Messenger shot. Again. The FA goes on to
charge Galileo with heresy for suggesting that the Earth orbits the Sun and
not vice-versa only to find that the Catholic church got their first.
Our perennial propensity to travel sickness continues as a struggling Villa
side beat us 2-1 at Villa Park. An og is our only reward as our tendency to
not win games away from the Boleyn reaches worrying proportions. Sam
maintains that we deserved something out of the game, even though our only
consolation in the match comes through an own goal.
For what seems like the tenth month in a row, we are promised a decision on
the Olympic Stadium "within a week" meaning that there will be at least
another week of us having to dodge stupid press statements from Barry Hearn.
One person who won't be about should we move up the road is Freddie
Piquionne. Admit it you thought he'd gone ages ago didn't you?! He's off to
the states where Portland Timbers snap up his services.
The 20th anniversary of the passing of Bobby Moore arrives. Kumb radio,
having survived a dodgy choice of opening night guest, produces what can
only be described as a masterpiece grabbing interviews from such luminaries
as Sir Trevor, Bran Dear, Harry Redknapp and many many more, all of whom
give their time to reminisce about the great man. If you haven't heard the
podcast you really are missing out. It's on something called "iTunes" if you
look hard enough apparently. Kudos once more to messrs. Scull and Longman.
Our old chum Paolo Di Canio is in the news as he walks out of Swindon
following the transfer of a player without his authorisation. Just about
everyone else walks out with him leaving the physio and the kit man as the
only backroom staff available to the club. Di Canio memorably sneaks back
into the club offices in the middle of the night to pick up his personal
belongings.
There's more commemoration of Bobby as we play Spurs. Or rather Gareth Bale
as they have rightly become known. Bale is on target twice and a Sigurdsson
scramble give Spurs a largely undeserved 3-2 win, Bale's winner coming in
stoppage time to give Spurs a win in their cup final.
The League Cup Final is contested between Swansea and League Two (Division 4
in old money) Bradford City. Contested is probably the wrong word as for
Bradford, who have eliminated Wigan (tee hee), Arsenal (tee hee) and Villa
(meh), it proves to be a match too far as the Taffs romp home 5-0 winners.
Bradford eventually return to Wembley where they are promoted via the
playoffs.
The shortest month ends with us a place lower in 14th spot with 30 points
from 27 games. Still ten required for the magic number. Don't panic just
yet…..
March
It's a quiet month on the pitch as a combination of international breaks and
our not being in the Cup means that we only get to play three games.
Someone at the club has discovered the "Quells" as we finally shake off the
travel sickness. We claim a victory for football as well as we shake off the
need to make two early substitutions and win 1-0 at the Britannia Stadium.
Jack Collison is on target as Stoke's already tawdry reputation is dragged
further through the mud by a succession of blatant but unsuccessful dives in
an attempt to win penalties.
The club announces that it will be making a "Lifetime Achievement Award" to
Billy Bonds MBE at the end of the season. If Alou Diarra is reading this, we
suggest that you needn't wait by the phone for someone to announce yours.
Another Olympic announcement is made. This updates the previous announcement
and confirms that another announcement announcing the imminent announcement
of a decision on the Stadium, is imminent. Or at least it will be soon.
Probably.
Barry Hearn announces that his legal team, none of whom have any interest in
unnecessarily prolonging the whole process thus increasing their fees,
honest, have told him that he has a case for judicial review should the
Stadium be given to West Ham. The announcement can only just be heard over
the sound of lawyers' cash registers all going "kerchinggg".
We return to losing ways on the road again as Chelsea - aided by another
dreadful refereeing decision - beat us 2-0. Andy Carroll's effort is ruled
out for a non-existent foul by another referee whose conduct can be said to
bring the game into disrepute far more than anyone who complains about the
standard of refereeing in this country.
Finally, after another announcement promising an announcement about the
future of the Olympic statement, an announcement is made. The stadium will
be rented out to West Ham from 2016 once alterations have been made. Barry
Hearn's lawyers stick in their request for judicial review, barely
suppressing laughter as they order new yachts on the strength of Hearn's
cash.
The details of the deal are revealed: the club will cough up £25m towards
the conversion costs with LDDC and Newham chipping in the balance of the
reported £175m cost of turning the place into a stadium fit for football.
These costs will include some form of retractable seating to cover the
running track, thus enabling the spectators to actually see the match. The
track will remain in place for athletics in the summer and the stadium will
also be used for concerts, though if anyone who performed at the closing
ceremony of the games (except the Who) is reading this, you've had your go –
go and play at Brisbane Road instead.
The club will also pay an index-linked £2m a year in rental costs. Profits
from the operation of the stadium will be split between the club and the
taxpayer and the owners agree to split any profits from the sale of the club
with the taxpayer in the event of any sale occurring within a set period of
our moving in.
The club commit a PR own goal. In amongst all the Olympic stuff about having
a "commitment to affordable football" the club sends a letter to all
disabled supporters informing them of what appears to be an effective
doubling of ticket prices for the 2013/14 season. The club later denies that
a figure has been decided – merely that tickets will be linked to a
particular price band, though on 2012/13 prices this would seem to double
the cost. Eventually there is a bit of climb down and the increase is
eventually reduced but the whole affair leaves a nasty taste in the mouth.
The whole thing has the air of a governmental announcement. You know the
sort of thing, wanting to increase a particular tax by 25p they announce a
50p rise and then reduce it to 25p after the inevitable furore, leaving us
all to feel really grateful while getting what they wanted all along.
Cynical? Us? You bet.
England's World Cup campaign continues to cough and splutter. An 8-0 win
over San Marino is welcome, if expected. Two from Defoe and one each from
Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lampard, Young, Rooney, Sturridge and an OG improve the
goal-difference against a team that probably contains a postman or two if I
could be bothered to research its composition. However, a few days later a
1-1 draw with Montenegro, a country with the same population as a village in
Wiltshire, is less satisfying. Rooney gives us the lead but the
Montenegrans' second-half equaliser from Damjanovic is no more than they
deserve. Roy Hodgson stops just short of saying that there are no easy games
in international football, presumably the trip to San Marino being to fresh
in everyone's minds for him to be allowed to get away with that one.
The double header is overshadowed by a(nother) row over the selection of Rio
Ferdinand. Disappointingly, having been selected for the squad Ferdinand
withdraws due to a clash with his personal treatment and training regime.
Another sad reflection of the malevolent influence his employers have had
upon the game.
We return to league action as former assistant boss Steve Clarke's West Brom
are sent packing 3-1 at the Boleyn. Carroll nets a brace, the second of
which is a peach of a volley from a pass dropping over his shoulder. A Goal
Of The Season candidate. In between the Geordie striker's pair, Gary O'Neil
dispatches a volley that is itself no mean finish. Much humour is derived
from the second half introduction of Peter Odemwinge, "he drove to QPR. They
left him in his car" and "what a waste of petrol" chants greeting his
arrival.
The only down side of the win is the reappearance of George McCartney. Well
not Linda's reappearance as such, more his almost immediate departure with a
recurrence of the knee ligament injury that has kept him on the sidelines
all season. It's confirmed that the injury has effectively ended his season.
After a winless streak lasting 8 games Sunderland sack Martin O'Neill and
replace him with Paolo Di Canio. In a spot of hypocrisy and cant that is
amazing, even for a failed politician David Milliband stirs up some
publicity for himself by announcing his resignation from the board of the
Wearside club over Di Canio's alleged political sympathies. Strangely,
nobody picks up on Milliband's earlier eulogy of deceased historian Eric
Hobsbaum, whose views on the deaths of 20 million Soviet citizens could mark
him down as an apologist for genocide. The fact that Milliband's new job as
the head of a charity in New York would probably have meant his quitting
Sunderland anyway also eludes the papers, for whom Di Canio makes a much
better story.
The two wins in March have effectively steadied the ship a bit, not that it
was ever rocking at all, honest. We end the month in 11th spot with 36
points from 30 games – a game in hand over just about everyone else in the
league as well. Nearly safe then…..
April
The month commences with the traditional kumb.com April 1st story suggesting
that Barry Hearn will be fundraising for his increasingly pointless legal
costs by releasing a revamped version of "Snooker Loopy". A fair number of
people fall for it, suggesting that, where Hearn is concerned, his past
record of stupidity is so well established that nothing is too daft to be
considered implausible where he is concerned. We decide not to include the
England Supporters Band in the list of participants on the proposed record
as we reckon nobody would believe that they've actually learnt to play a
fifth tune.
Rumours that Jimmy Tarbuck has been arrested are confirmed. Though hopes
that Cilla Black, Ken Dodd, Stan Boardman and Tom O'Connor might also be
rounded up for crimes against comedy are sadly wide of the mark as it
transpires that the Tarbuck arrest is part of Operation Yewtree rather than
a general clampdown against unfunny scousers.
Whilst we're on the subject of legal shenanigans, the three investigators
who were in no way employed by Tottenham Hotspur to spy on anyone, appear in
court on charges of fraud by false representation. All three plead "not
guilty" and are remanded to appear in court in January 2014. Rumours that
the three had had cyanide capsules stamped "THFC" confiscated from them when
arrested are, of course, totally made up.
Operation Yewtree notches up a conviction as Stuart Hall pleads guilty to 14
counts of indecent assault during the height of his "It's A Knockout" fame.
Hall is eventually sentenced to a remarkably light sentence of 15 months,
which should see him out inside a year. Or possibly six months if he plays
his joker.
The winless streak at Anfield extends into its 51st year as we draw 0-0. Yet
again we are on the wrong end of a scouse-friendly refereeing decision as
Tomkins is kicked up in the air in the box. Strangely, ref Taylor, who was
so ready to issue a red card to Carlton Cole for something that wasn't a
foul in the Everton match, when presented with a clear and obvious penalty
decision to give chooses not to. Taylor's inaction continues the tradition
of many a year as bent refereeing assists the Anfield side once more.
Collison has a late effort cleared off the line, though the suspicion
remains that unless the ball actually breaks the net up there we won't be
awarded anything. And even then it'll probably be a throw-in.
The draw at Anfield is followed by another as we pick up our fourth point of
the season from Southampton. Carroll equalises with a free kick.
Southampton's supporters add to their already poor reputation for football
knowledge by shouting "hoof" at every pass over two feet whilst forgetting
to do the same at all the 60 yard clearances their own defenders make. The
suspicion that the media are just too lazy to watch games properly is
confirmed by the tv commentary which states something like "West Ham's long
ball game will mean that the home side will have dominated possession this
half" just as the graphic appears on screen: "Possession Southampton 45%
West Ham 55%" Still best not to let the truth get in the way eh lads?
And talking of the truth Man Utd come to the Boleyn and get a point, yes,
you've guessed it, totally thanks to another friendly refereeing decision.
Vaz Te opens the scoring with a header, a goal which is cancelled out by
Valencia's close range effort fifteen minutes before the break. Diame gives
us a deserved lead ten minutes into the second half with a wonder goal that
puts one in mind of his strike against Arsenal earlier in the season – only
much, much better. Where do you think you're going with that Goal Of The
Season trophy Andy?
Van Persie's late late equaliser comes from him being offside. Not a little
bit offside mind, a good couple of yards. Predictably the dishonest Ferguson
tries to deflect attention from yet another point cheated out of a match by
suggesting that Andy Carroll should have been sent off – presumably for
potentially damaging Vidic's elbow with his head.
Having already swelled the FA coffers for pointing out that Ferguson owes a
hellofa lot in his career to mysteriously beneficial decisions from
officials, Sam is a bit more careful in his words this time round.
Meanwhile, the rest of us wonder which division of the Salford and District
Sunday League Fergie's whingers would be in had referees had done their job
over the years.
Journalistic standards plumb new depths in the form of one Patrick Collins
who turns out a piece that has "I'm scared of Fergie" stamped all through
it. Repeating the "long-ball" myth the "journalist" does a hatchet job on
Andy Carroll that has "I'm writing this to avoid being banned from Old
Trafford" shining through like a watermark. At least I hope that's his
excuse – I'd be horrified to think someone could be so stupid to have
written that without being commissioned to do so.
Collins' effort contains comments to the effect that those nice foreign
players play the game in a much nicer way to us nasty old English. Not quite
sure of what he made of one of those nice guys, Luis Suarez then. Racist
diver and serial cheat Suarez adds a new chapter to his already sordid book
by biting Chelsea's Ivanovic. Not something I can imagine Carroll doing, Mr
Collins.
Suarez gets a ten match ban and, having defended the player throughout his
racist diving days I suppose it's sadly inevitable that his employers go
straight into victim mode and express shock at the length of the ban.
Meanwhile, attempts to respond to Collins' article in an infinitely more
measured and sensible manner than it really deserves are stymied by the
Mail's website, as anything that shows even the mildest criticism is
blocked. How strange that the paper that backed the Nazis in the 1930's
should end up mimicking news agencies from Soviet-era USSR.
Not that there were any, but any lingering doubts as to relegation are
dispelled as we beat Wigan 2-0. It's a repeat of the opening game of the
season against Villa as the visitors have a load of possession and do the
square root of damn all with it. Jarvis' cross eludes everyone to give us
the lead and Nolan's late effort seals all three points, giving him his
100th career goal in the process. The win has the added bonus of pushing
Wigan nearer to the drop – not long now Whelan….
Reigning Hackett Of The Year Barry Hearn gets some bad news from m'learned
friends as he is told that there are no grounds to have the decision to
lease the Olympic Stadium to West Ham subjected to judicial review. The
summing up reads: "whilst we have every sympathy with the legal profession's
desire to relieve Barry Hearn of every last penny he has, there comes a time
when one should stop milking it. Trebles all round then". Or something like
that.
We go down 2-1 at Man City – hey guess what. Yup a clear penalty is turned
down by Howard Webb who, presumably, is too confused by the Manchester bit
of the home team's name to do his job properly. Mind you it's been years
since he did his job properly anyway. Carroll is on target deep into
stoppage time as Joe Hart makes a complete hash of things to give us a
consolation comedy goal.
Reading supporters, some of whom had been convinced that a European spot was
on the cards this time last year if the customers of a certain hostelry in
north Hampshire are anything to go by, are confused by their end of season
plans. Having been relegated along with QPR by the end of the month their
supporters desperately try to find an excuse to avoid having to watch their
team's last game of the season at the Boleyn. They hit upon the idea of
pretending that they are boycotting the match on the grounds that the
tickets are a few quid more expensive than the amount they charged us.
Others are worried that this will affect the sole reason many of them go to
football matches, namely their end of season inflatable party. "If it's not
organised there'll be less inflatables" warns one really worried
correspondent, whose use of grammar promotes speculation that he may have
been the spotty Herbert responsible for printing off all those "Judus" pages
all those years ago.
With QPR and Reading taking their hoops back to the second tier there is
only one relegation place left to avoid as we end the month well out of it
all in 10th place with 42 points from 35 games. Never in doubt. Now can we
hold on to 10th……
May
The Geordies are in town for a match that has "end of season" all over it as
it finishes 0-0. This still leaves them still not quite clear of the drop
and some of us get a bit concerned that Whelan might somehow manage to
scrape his way out of it yet again.
The "Hammer of The Year" awards night takes place up west. Winston Reid gets
both the supporters' and the players' version of the award. Tickets for the
glittering event cost something like the same amount as the Greek national
debt. We write to the German government to see if they'd like to finance
something more worthwhile for a change by buying us a couple of tickets. I
expect that their letter is still in the post.
Sky clear their schedules to brown nose Man Utd yet again as their manager
announces his retirement. Journalists write eulogies that wax lyrical about
the miserable git, somehow managing to omit the fact that he's a liar, a
cheat and a thuggish bully whose team would be plying its trade in the
Salford And District Sunday League but for his systematic intimidation of
referees. In fact the media are so far up the backside of the ignorant oaf,
fifty journalists are offered life memberships by the Institute Of
Proctology.
Sam causes a spot of mild consternation amongst TV executives by uttering a
slightly rude word on Sky. Referring to his missing out on a player whilst
Bolton manager due to an administrative snafu, he suggests that the guilty
party might have received a "bollocking". Sky presenters fall over
themselves to apologise to those watching because, like, us football
supporters never usually encounter bad language like that and we're really,
really likely to be shocked. I myself have an attack of the vapours and have
to lie down in a darkened room for a few days at the sheer horror of it all.
Sky's nauseating coverage of Ferguson's retirement is, of course, far more
offensive but we're still waiting for the apology for that one.
David Moyes is announced as the new manager in Salford, meaning that our
forthcoming trip to Goodison will coincide with his last home game in charge
there. A hiding to nothing then and, predictably, we go down 2-0 as everyone
says their goodbyes.
Rio Ferdinand announces his retirement from international football. "I've
checked the fixture list and I'm at the hairdressers for the Ireland match
and the manicurist is coming over for the Brazil trip. I think the World Cup
qualifyers clash with my pottery classes as well" his statement probably
doesn't read.
Strangely, for an organisation that is celebrating its 150th anniversary,
the FA seems to lack any sense of the fact that it really ought to be the
guardian of the game's traditions as the FA Cup is once more shoved to
teatime on the penultimate Saturday of the season. This gives supporters of
Man City and Wigan about ten minutes after the final whistle to get to
Euston after the game to catch the last train back to the northwest. The
train companies eventually sort something out, laying on a few extra trains
to Manchester for the City fans, and one of those push-pull trolley things
they had on the Great St Trinian's Train Robbery for the Wigan fans.
Wigan's chairman happens to mention that he once broke his leg in a Cup
Final. In every interview. "Nice day Dave" his postman opines. "Yes postie.
Did you know I once broke my leg in a Cup Final?" replies the dodgy one. The
postman rolls his eyes and replies "yeah I think you mentioned it once".
Whelan leads his team out at Wembley, though we reckon a few of the kids
employed as slave labour to enable him to make his millions might have been
a more apt choice of mascot.
The match itself is a disaster for City who blow it as Wigan notch a late
winner. Bizarre stats of the match include the fact that it's the first Cup
Final between teams managed by managers with the same first name since 1963
(Matts Busby & Gilles), and the fact that the Cup Final has now been won for
the third consecutive time by a manager called Roberto. Deed Poll Sam, is
what we're saying. It's the way forward.
The Sun ties itself into knots over the Man City manager role. Having
earlier quoted a Spanish source as confirming "100%" that Pep Guardiola
would be taking over in the summer, only to see the ex-Barca boss go to
Bayern, they now confirm that Mancini will stay at the Etihad "even if they
lose the Cup Final". City lose the Cup Final and Mancini gets sacked. Still
they had a 50-50 chance of getting it right I suppose.
The footballing gods return from their day off a few days later and a 4-1
defeat at Arsenal relegates Whelan's mob to the second tier. Relegation
enables Whelan to return to his default setting of trying to cash in on
Roberto Martinez. In a rather obvious attempt to increase the compensation
levels Whelan suggests that Everton might not be big enough a club for
Martinez, adding "I broke my leg in an FA Cup Final once you know".
Reading are the visitors to the Boleyn for the last game of the season,
their supporters managing the neat trick of somehow being outnumbered by
their inflatables. We go 2-0 up through Nolan and Vaz Te. Whilst we're
looking at the holiday brochures in the changing room they start the second
half before us and level the scores before a late brace from the skipper
completes his hat-trick and gives us a 4-2 victory.
The muppet quota in the Premier League for 2013/14 is maintained as Crystal
Palace (basically they're what Reading would be if they were based in
Croydon) are promoted via the playoffs joining Cardiff and Hull in the top
flight.
Palace beat Watford 1-0 in the final, spurred on by their manager Ian
Holloway's criticism of Watford's extensive, but quite legal use of the loan
system. Nobody seems to want to point out that the main player responsible
for Palace's pogress through the playoffs is Wilfried Zaha, a player who
signed for Man Utd in January only to be loaned back immediately to Crystal
Palace. Meanwhile, Cardiff's arrival means that they will join Swansea and
Gareth Bale as the Welsh teams in the top flight.
Karma, already hard at work in the relegation of Wigan (whose chairman once
broke his leg in a Cup Final) puts in a spot of overtime as Sheffield United
are knocked out of the League 1 (Division Three in real money) playoffs by
Yeovil Town, for whom ex-Hammer Marek Stech features in goal. Some of us
muse on the fact that Lord Griffiths was satisfied that Carlos Tevez was the
sole reason for Sheffield United's relegation in 2007. Given their
subsequent relegation and failure to return to the top flight, that theory
is pretty much knackered then. Any chance of our money back Lord G?
Tony Pulis arrives at a board meeting at Stoke clutching an 800-page
dossier. "This is my vision for the club's future covering everything from
the Academy to the first team" he proudly announces. Chairman Coates is not
to be outdone. "Here's my own dossier" he announces. "It's only one page
long – take it with you on your way out" he continues, handing Pulis his
P45. Mark Hughes is announced as Pulis' replacement.
Benitez's long reign as boss comes to an end as Chelsea win the Europa
League by beating Benfica 2-1 in Amsterdam. Now we all know John Terry is
stupid. However you'd have thought that he'd have sussed out that there is
no need to prove it by now. Nope. Yet again he strips down to his playing
kit to collect the trophy from a match he didn't play in. This prompts
another rash of photo-shopped efforts on the web showing him picking up
various accolades, including the Eurovision Song Contest trophy. An attempt
to show him picking up the Mastermind fruitbowl fails as the processing
power required for such a suspension of disbelief exceeds that available in
total on the planet.
Meanwhile Chelsea fans bid farewell to the manager they've been abusing all
season with a banner proclaiming "We Forgive You." Quite for what Benitez is
being forgiven we can't quite work out – not being Roberto Di Matteo
presumably.
For a few days Chelsea hold both the Europa and Champions League titles.
This means that during 2012/13 we've beaten The European Champions, Europa
Cup winners, FA Cup Winners and League Cup winners. Also, but for some
dubious refereeing we'd also have beaten both previous and current Premier
League title holders. We've also been beaten by two of the three relegated
teams. All of which means something deep and meaningful I expect.
Chelsea's reign as European Champions comes to an end as the all-German
so-called Champions League final at Wembley is won by Bayern who beat
Borussia Dortmund 2-1. Insert your own beach towel joke here.
We get down to the serious business of preparing for 2013/14 by confirming
the arrival of Razven Rat, whilst an almost tearful Carlton Cole is released
– he goes with our best wishes for the future. Unlike Marouane Chamakh and
Emanuel Pogatetz, who simply go after uninspiring loan spells.
We agree a fee with Liverpool for Andy Carroll, who goes on holiday to muse
over the club's offer having picked up a heel injury that keeps him out of
the England squad for the post-season friendlies with the Republic Of
Ireland and Brazil.
We are linked with a chap called Ludovic Sane who we are praying joins us if
only for the gift that his surname presents to those of us who write match
reports.
Oop north Dave Whelan announces that he has had talks with Roberto Martinez
and that he is confident that his most valuable asset, er, I mean prized
colleague and manager will stay at the club, which is owned by a chairman
who once broke his leg in a Cup Final. Apparently. This announcement is
followed by an announcement that Martinez wants to go and talks open with
Everton.
Dodgy Dave starts bigging his asset up. "Martinez is a must for Everton" he
spouts. When it's pointed out that he had previously been of the opinion
that Everton were not a big enough club for Martinez, Whelan changes the
subject: "Have I ever shown you my scar? There's a funny story about how I
got it" he starts as journos stampede for the exit.
Martinez eventually signs for Everton whose owner Bill Kenwright, has his
own memories "I used to be in Coronation Street you know" he informs
everyone, though with the current climate being what it is, boasting of
having appeared in a soap opera only seems to interest those running
Operation Yewtree.
More fun at Liverpool where Suarez claims that it'd be difficult for him to
stay on Merseyside if Real Madrid came in for him. This is followed by a
statement from the player's agent to the effect that he has no desire to
leave. This, in turn, is followed by a self-pitying statement from the
player that, actually, he does want to leave because of the nasty English
press, who aren't judging him on his undoubted talents as a player. We feel
sorry for Suarez – I mean racially abuse someone, dive, cheat and bite
someone and those horrid journos label you as a racist, diving, biting,
cheat. So unfair. Liverpool claim he's not for sale which means that by the
time I write the opening month of next season's review I expect he'll be
gone.
England draw an uninspiring match with the Republic Of Ireland 1-1 at
Wembley. Having not given him the honour of leading out the side on his
actual 100th cap, England make Ashley Cole captain for the match. Well,
they've given it to John Terry and Steven Gerrard in the past so what's
another ignorant thug amongst so many. We fully expect future England
captains to be selected from a list provided by those involved in Operation
Yewtree, though even the FA would presumably draw the line at Jim Davidson.
After all he is of Scottish extraction.
So that's about it, No trophy to finish up with this term but there again no
depressing thoughts of spending the following 12 months in a lower division
either. It was a creditable top ten finish including some fine performances
from the players, who, in stark contrast to our last season in the top
flight, have spent the season looking like a team.
This review also ends with us on the verge of signing Britain's most
expensive player, though you'll have to wait until next season's review to
see how that one pans out.
Given a top ten finish it seems churlish to have a moan but next time round,
if I had a magic wand I'd ask for us to be a little more adventurous away
from the Boleyn - after all who knows we might win a few more games that
way. A cup run would be nice as well – I sort of miss Wembley. The deed poll
forms are in the post Sam – Roberto Allardyce has a decent ring to it!
Have a good summer (if/when it finally comes).
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
WHUFC.com
Stadium Tours give Hammers supporters a unique insight behind the scenes at
the Boleyn Ground
24.06.2013
What club historian John Helliar doesn't know about West Ham United,
probably isn't worth knowing. The Hammers' very own walking encyclopaedia,
Helliar has been guiding supporters around the Boleyn Ground for some years
now, granting visitors the rare opportunity to peruse behind the scenes.
Guests are invited to amble alongside the hallowed Boleyn Ground turf, sit
in manager Sam Allardyce's seat in the dugout and take a look inside the
home dressing room, all packed into a 90-minute stadium tour. Whether it be
in the Alpari Stand Upper or the Press Room, Helliar is on hand at every
turn to explain the whys and wherefores, blending the club's illustrious
history with the present day goings on. In July, Helliar will hand over the
reins to Hammers greats Phil Parkes and Alan Taylor, who will lead a series
of special Former Player Tours around their old stomping ground.
Helliar told West Ham TV: "I show our visitors all parts of the ground -
everything from the Chairman's Suite upstairs to the Alpari Stand. Then I
take them down to the dressing rooms, the Press Room and all around on pitch
side as well. It gives them the chance to actually see where the action
takes place and sit in the seats where the manager, the staff and all the
substitutes are on matchday.
"The tours have grown over the last few years and I really enjoy it. I find
it fascinating. It's nice to get so many people coming and saying how much
they get out of the experience. It's great to be able to share with them
something about West Ham United, from the very early days of the Thames
Ironworks right through to the present day.
"No two tours are alike. You can always count on getting different reactions
to the various parts of the ground we visit. Different people ask different
questions and about different eras. We get a lot of fans who still remember
the club in the 1960s and 1970s, who have been going with their fathers and
grandfathers for some 30 or 40 years. And then, of course, there's the
current generation who know and love West Ham from the present day."
Helliar himself has long-established family connections with the Hammers,
seeing as his father Jack was club historian and programme editor before
him. The family printing business, Helliar and Sons, which published the
programme for decades, is still based in Barking Road.
As a result, John has no shortage of his own West Ham stories and memories
to share, though it's England's FIFA World Cup triumph in 1966 that still
ranks at the very top.
"One of my favourite parts of the tour is in the Legends Restaurant, where
there is the iconic picture from 1966 of Bobby Moore lifting the Jules Rimet
trophy, on the shoulders of Ray Wilson and Geoff Hurst. There's also the
famous Champions Statue at the end of the Barking Road now, and looking at
them both, it brings back very fond memories of being there with my father.
"I was fortunate enough to see the glory days of the '60s and then other
very special occasions, particularly the European nights under the lights."
For all the satisfaction Helliar gets from the experience, his guests are
typically every bit as enthused with their day out in east London. Martyn
Vincent, with his young nephew Charlie in tow, told West Ham TV: "It's
great, because when you're sitting in the stands, you don't get to see
what's going on behind the scenes."
Meanwhile, young Hammer Elliot Paterson was particularly thrilled to have
seen where his heroes prepare prior to kick-off. He said: "I loved going
along the sideline and sitting in the manager's seat, but mainly walking
around the home dressing room, to see where all the players sit. It's really
exciting to think they actually sit there! I can't really put it into
words."
Helliar urged his fellow Hammers to take up this exciting opportunity,
insisting visitors can be sure of the warmest of welcomes.
"We'd certainly enjoy having you here. We think it's a worthwhile experience
and the feedback we get shows just how much people enjoy it, while they tell
us it's the best tour of any football club they've been to. I think that
says it all."
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Premier League clubs chasing Ecuador winger Jefferson Montero
Last Updated: June 24, 2013 3:09pm
SSN
Ecuador winger Jefferson Montero finally hopes to complete a move to the
Premier League this summer. The Morelia wide-man almost joined Wigan in
January, only for the deal to fall through, but he is now hopeful of sealing
a move to England. It is understood a host of clubs are ready to meet his
buy-out clause of £3.5million, and a number of scouts from English teams
watched him play 90 minute s of Ecuador's World Cup qualifying draw with
Argentina earlier this month. Swansea, West Brom, West Ham and Hull City are
all understood to be keen on the 23-year-old, who has already spent time in
Europe in La Liga.
"Jefferson is ready to move to England," Dan Chapman of Full Contact
confirmed to Sky Sports. "We can confirm a number of clubs are showing an
interest, which is not surprising after his performance against Argentina
last week."
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Karren Brady: 'I love politics, I want to get involved'
By Michael Northcott Monday, 24 June 2013
www.managementtoday.co.uk
Often, you know you're onto a wrong 'un when someone from showbiz thinks
that being a media tart is a reasonable precursor to a political career. But
the latest such case, Karren Brady, could actually have some legs. The
Apprentice star says that she wants to get involved in politics, and is so
determined that she would 'never accept a safe seat'.
She says: 'I would always want a difficult seat: being fast-tracked is not
something that appeals to me.' The self-made millionaire and vice-chairman
of West Ham United FC has often been the subject of speculation about future
Conservative candidates. Some have even suggested that she could one day be
the leader of the party. But for the first time, she has nailed her colours
to the mast, saying: 'I want to get involved.'
Brady's comments come just a week after business secretary Vince Cable
insulted the nation's intelligence by saying that the BBC programme gives 'a
completely false impression about what being an apprentice actually
involves'. If he had watched any episodes of the most recent two series, he
would have learned that the programme doesn't actually feature any type of
apprenticeship whatever. Instead, it is focused on a group of entrepreneurs
pitching for £250,000 of investment from Sugar.
Of course, for the legions of people who were worried that Sugar's weekly
boardroom sackings were representative of life as an actual apprentice, we
feel obliged to point out that it is all theatrics. A geniune apprenticeship
– if you can get one – should be a rewarding and satisfying experience, OK?
Anyway, Brady reckons that the political sphere could do with some more
people with business experience. She said: 'You need people who are right at
the cutting edge. I wish a lot more business people did get into politics.
We'd be in a much better place now.' She's not the only one who thinks that
more politicians ought to have had some 'front-line' experience before going
into the House of Commons and waxing lyrical about the business community.
Vince Cable may be a bit politically whimsy, but he is pretty much the only
front-bencher to have any experience in business prior to politics, having
spent some years at Shell. That must count for something…
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Newcastle table £12m bid for Bony
By Warren Haughton | Monday, June 24, 2013
Talksport
Newcastle are chasing Wilfried Bony but face competition from Everton,
Swansea and Anzhi Makhachkala for the highly-rated Vitesse Arnhem striker.
Alan Pardew is keen to add a top-quality forward to his squad and the
Mapgies have stepped up their interest in Bony, tabling a £12million bid for
the Ivorian.
However, talkSPORT understands Vitesse are holding out for £15 million for
the 24-year-old, who scored 31 goals in the Dutch top-flight last season and
is now keen to test himself in the Premier League. That has opened the door
for Russian side Anzhi, who have big money to spend and could easily meet
Vitesse's valuation, while Everton and Swansea are also monitoring Bony's
situation. West Ham have been heavily linked with a move for the former
Sparta Prague man in the past, but their interest has cooled following the
permanent signing of Andy Carroll from Liverpool.
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Benayoun begins intensive training regime in bid to win contract at West
Brom
By JOHN EDWARDS
PUBLISHED: 10:30, 24 June 2013 | UPDATED: 10:30, 24 June 2013
Daily Mail
Yossi Benayoun has signalled his intent to extend his Barclays Premier
League career by embarking on a week of intensive training with Maccabi
Haifa, ahead of a decision on his future. The Israel midfielder's Premier
League days looked to be over after he was released by Chelsea at the age of
33 and left pondering a possible move to MLS side New York Red Bulls. But
interest from West Brom rekindled his ambition to remain in England and
prove he can still make an impact in the top flight. Eager to convince
Hawthorns boss Steve Clarke that he can cope with the rigours of the Premier
League, the former West Ham, Liverpool and Chelsea winger began a seven-day
conditioning programme with Israeli League runners-up Haifa on Sunday. He
will formulate his plans for next season after that, and after completing
his first session, he admitted he wants to hit the ground running, should he
land one more contract in English football's top division. 'I must work on
my fitness and make sure I am in peak condition, and I am grateful to Haifa
for allowing me to join them for the coming week,' he said. 'I am going to
work hard every day, so that wherever I go when I decide on my future, I
will start the pre-season programme with my new club in good shape. I should
know more next weekend.'
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Record numbers attend open trials day
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 24th June 2013
By: Staff Writer
West Ham United Ladies' junior section attracted a record attendance for
their annual trials day last weekend.
More than 130 aspiring young footballers, all eager to wear the famous
claret and blue colours for the forthcoming 2013/14 season attended the
day's two sessions with many coming from top London clubs, local academies
and schools of excellence.
With the high numbers in attendance, the Club's junior managers were
rewarded with the arduous task of whittling down the numbers to form their
new squads for the coming season with existing players and new triallists
all competing for the same positions.
In other WHULFC news the previously-vacant Under 11 manager's position has
been filled by Greg Regan. Greg comes to the club with a strong background
in youth football having coached several local teams (plus Essex youth
Futsal). "I'm really excited to be taking this young West Ham side on," he
said, "and grateful to be given this opportunity."
Finally, the senior Ladies section is in the process of lining up some
exciting pre-season games against tough opposition. One match already
confirmed is against Arsenal Ladies, arguably the strongest women's side in
the country.
Having recently won the Womans' FA Cup with a convincing 3-0 win against
Bristol Academy, Arsenal will be fielding a string of England internationals
who will provide the Hammers with a stern test. In charge for that game will
be new Hammers manager Mark Saunderson.
The Ladies are looking to entice a healthy support to this pre-season
friendly which will be staged on Wednesday, 24th July at Thurrock FC (Ship
Lane, Aveley RM19 1YN). The match is scheduled for a 7.45pm kick off.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Second Season Syndrome
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 24th June 2013
By: David Hautzig
The minute a newly promoted team survives their first year back in the top
flight of English football, talk of a mystical and deadly disease begins.
The dreaded 'Second Season Syndrome'. And the way it's presented makes it
seem plausible. Even logical.
Teams coming up from the Championship can rely on the fact that 16 of the
clubs they will play know them and their methods about as well as they know
the dietary practices of Inuit Eskimos. (Seal blubber is very important to
them, by the way, which always makes me less nervous when I enjoy a bit of
the fat on my pork chops. That's a discussion for another day. Worth it,
too.) They can use their opponent's lack of familiarity to their advantage.
But once the second season gets going, they can no longer rely on that.
However the statistics suggest otherwise. Actually, that's being polite. The
statistics pretty much shoot the whole idea down in my view. Of the 62 teams
that have been promoted to the Premier League, only eight have been
relegated in their second season at the top. Admittedly, it has happened
more in recent times than in the years following the birth of the EPL.
In the 1990s it only happened once. Middlesbrough finished 12th in their
first year up after winning Division One. But in their sophomore campaign
they were relegated on the last day of the season despite spending bags of
money on players like Fabrizio Ravanelli and Emerson to push onward and
upward. And to add insult to injury, it was a three-point deduction for
postponing a fixture that eventually euthanised their EPL life.
As best as I could muster in between work, kids, mowing the lawn, and
reading Twitter (Admit it. You do it too), here are the statistics for the
so-called Second Season Syndrome. I grabbed it off some article online. It
isn't a research paper needed to receive some degree so I just took it at
face value...
Clubs promoted to the Premier League (1992-2012) – 62
Clubs relegated after first season - 27
Clubs relegated after second season – 8
Middlesbrough
1995/96 12th (43 points)
1996/97 19th (39 points)*
*deducted three points
Bradford
1999/00 17th (36 points)
2000/01 20th (26 points)
Ipswich
2000/01 5th (66 points)
2001/02 18th (36 points)
West Brom
2004/05 17th (34 points)
2005/06 19th (30 points)
Reading
2006/07 8th (55 points)
2007/08 18th (36 points)
Hull
2008/09 17th (35 points)
2009/10 19th (30 points)
Birmingham
2009/10 9th (50 points)
2010/11 18th (39 points)
QPR
2011/12 17th (37 points)
2012/13 20th (25 points)
Not so fab: it sooned turned sour for Ravanelli and Juninho at Middlesbrough
Now I'd like to show you Sam Allardyce's numbers throughout his managerial
career. Sam's time at Bolton is the best way to judge him, in my opinion.
2001-02: 40pts, 16th
2002-03: 44pts, 17th (we went down with 42)
2003-04: 53pts, 8th
2004-05: 56pts, 6th
2005-06: 56pts, 8th
2006-07: 56pts, 7th (Bolton were 5th with two to play when Sam left. Everton
finished on 58pts, Spurs on 60.)
Every year he either matched or exceeded his point total from the previous
year. Add that he has never been relegated as a manager, and second season
syndrome seems more like a convenient bit of superstition used by people who
want to "analyse" us. Facts, however, get in the way. We seem to have a
manager and a board that have a methodical and conservative approach to
moving the club forward.
I would even classify the permanent signing of the giant, flying striker
with the ponytail from up north as conservative. During the weeks of Twitter
madness leading up to his putting pen to paper, my best friend Jon would
remind me that from an on-pitch perspective, Andy Carroll joining us
permanently did not add to the squad. It simply maintained what we had last
season.
So bearing that in mind, our record signing was in fact somewhat
conservative because we had tasted the goods before we brought them home to
make dinner. That would NOT have been the case with Bony, Negredo, Hooper,
Rhodes, or any other name that we were linked with to help avoid this Second
Season Syndrome that really doesn't exist.
There is an old cliche that anybody that has ever bought some lumber in the
hope they could build whatever it is they need or want.
Measure twice. Cut once.
As I follow the happenings at our beloved club, I can almost see Sam, Karen,
and the two Davids in their offices with that little squared-off pencil that
every carpenter uses. They measure things out, grab their ruler or square,
and draw the line. Then they do it again. And then they bring it to each
other to have another look. Finally, they cut. It's boring. It's a bit
tedious. But it's also unlikely the framing of the house will crack and
either need serious repair or just collapse one day in the middle of
breakfast.
I am a VERY nervous supporter. There are times I can barely watch our games.
During the playoff final against Blackpool the guy sitting next to me at a
bar was genuinely concerned about me because I was shivering from fear and
worry. And I will almost certainly go through that for large parts of the
upcoming season. But I won't fret because it's our second season back. I
will have regular panic attacks because we are who we are.
West Ham United.
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That Was The Season That Was 2012/13 - Part Four
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 24th June 2013
By: Gordon Thrower
Will we get sucked into a relegation scrap? Will we get a refereeing
decision in our favour at Anfield? And will Reading suppoters ever get over
their strange infatuation with inflatable toys? These and other questions
are answered in the concluding part of Gordon Thrower's review of the
2012/13 season, which covers the months of May, February, April and March
2013. Just not in that order though.....
February
David Sullivan starts the month off with an interview in which he reveals
that the transfer deadline came with threats of violence from an unnamed
agent who wanted part of a particular deal. The thought occurs to us that,
that over the years in his chosen profession, Mr Sullivan is likely to have
made acquaintance with a number of very large gentlemen happy to look after
him and, as a result, the agent concerned is either very brave or very
stupid.
England beat Brazil 2-1 at Wembley with goals from Rooney and Lampard. A
double blow or fat power then. The unlikely name of Fred is on the
scoresheet for the Brazilians, who also see Joe Hart save a penalty. Ashley
Cole gets his 100th cap. No comment.
On the pitch we return to winning ways with a 1-0 victory over Swansea at
the Boleyn. We are a lot more dominant than the score suggests, though JJ is
required to make a couple of late saves to keep all three points where they
belong leaving us back in 11th spot on 30 points with 13 matches left to
play. Andy Carroll is on target in his first start since November, prompting
thoughts of what might have been had his season not been so blighted by
injury.
The club announces a new shirt sponsorship deal for 2013/14 with Alpari. Not
having been paying attention when they blagged the naming rights to what I
still think of as the West Stand, I am surprised to discover that the
company is, in fact, a foreign exchange trading business, rather than the
manufacturer of the sort of breakfast cereal made from the stuff found at
the bottom of budgie cages.
Some of that sponsorship money will come in handy at Allardyce Towers
following an FA fine of £8,000 for pointing out that Man Utd get more than
favourable treatment from referees. Allardyce's comments are deemed to bring
the game into disrepute whilst the bias and generally dreadful standards of
refereeing in this country are not. Messenger shot. Again. The FA goes on to
charge Galileo with heresy for suggesting that the Earth orbits the Sun and
not vice-versa only to find that the Catholic church got their first.
Our perennial propensity to travel sickness continues as a struggling Villa
side beat us 2-1 at Villa Park. An og is our only reward as our tendency to
not win games away from the Boleyn reaches worrying proportions. Sam
maintains that we deserved something out of the game, even though our only
consolation in the match comes through an own goal.
For what seems like the tenth month in a row, we are promised a decision on
the Olympic Stadium "within a week" meaning that there will be at least
another week of us having to dodge stupid press statements from Barry Hearn.
One person who won't be about should we move up the road is Freddie
Piquionne. Admit it you thought he'd gone ages ago didn't you?! He's off to
the states where Portland Timbers snap up his services.
The 20th anniversary of the passing of Bobby Moore arrives. Kumb radio,
having survived a dodgy choice of opening night guest, produces what can
only be described as a masterpiece grabbing interviews from such luminaries
as Sir Trevor, Bran Dear, Harry Redknapp and many many more, all of whom
give their time to reminisce about the great man. If you haven't heard the
podcast you really are missing out. It's on something called "iTunes" if you
look hard enough apparently. Kudos once more to messrs. Scull and Longman.
Our old chum Paolo Di Canio is in the news as he walks out of Swindon
following the transfer of a player without his authorisation. Just about
everyone else walks out with him leaving the physio and the kit man as the
only backroom staff available to the club. Di Canio memorably sneaks back
into the club offices in the middle of the night to pick up his personal
belongings.
There's more commemoration of Bobby as we play Spurs. Or rather Gareth Bale
as they have rightly become known. Bale is on target twice and a Sigurdsson
scramble give Spurs a largely undeserved 3-2 win, Bale's winner coming in
stoppage time to give Spurs a win in their cup final.
The League Cup Final is contested between Swansea and League Two (Division 4
in old money) Bradford City. Contested is probably the wrong word as for
Bradford, who have eliminated Wigan (tee hee), Arsenal (tee hee) and Villa
(meh), it proves to be a match too far as the Taffs romp home 5-0 winners.
Bradford eventually return to Wembley where they are promoted via the
playoffs.
The shortest month ends with us a place lower in 14th spot with 30 points
from 27 games. Still ten required for the magic number. Don't panic just
yet…..
March
It's a quiet month on the pitch as a combination of international breaks and
our not being in the Cup means that we only get to play three games.
Someone at the club has discovered the "Quells" as we finally shake off the
travel sickness. We claim a victory for football as well as we shake off the
need to make two early substitutions and win 1-0 at the Britannia Stadium.
Jack Collison is on target as Stoke's already tawdry reputation is dragged
further through the mud by a succession of blatant but unsuccessful dives in
an attempt to win penalties.
The club announces that it will be making a "Lifetime Achievement Award" to
Billy Bonds MBE at the end of the season. If Alou Diarra is reading this, we
suggest that you needn't wait by the phone for someone to announce yours.
Another Olympic announcement is made. This updates the previous announcement
and confirms that another announcement announcing the imminent announcement
of a decision on the Stadium, is imminent. Or at least it will be soon.
Probably.
Barry Hearn announces that his legal team, none of whom have any interest in
unnecessarily prolonging the whole process thus increasing their fees,
honest, have told him that he has a case for judicial review should the
Stadium be given to West Ham. The announcement can only just be heard over
the sound of lawyers' cash registers all going "kerchinggg".
We return to losing ways on the road again as Chelsea - aided by another
dreadful refereeing decision - beat us 2-0. Andy Carroll's effort is ruled
out for a non-existent foul by another referee whose conduct can be said to
bring the game into disrepute far more than anyone who complains about the
standard of refereeing in this country.
Finally, after another announcement promising an announcement about the
future of the Olympic statement, an announcement is made. The stadium will
be rented out to West Ham from 2016 once alterations have been made. Barry
Hearn's lawyers stick in their request for judicial review, barely
suppressing laughter as they order new yachts on the strength of Hearn's
cash.
The details of the deal are revealed: the club will cough up £25m towards
the conversion costs with LDDC and Newham chipping in the balance of the
reported £175m cost of turning the place into a stadium fit for football.
These costs will include some form of retractable seating to cover the
running track, thus enabling the spectators to actually see the match. The
track will remain in place for athletics in the summer and the stadium will
also be used for concerts, though if anyone who performed at the closing
ceremony of the games (except the Who) is reading this, you've had your go –
go and play at Brisbane Road instead.
The club will also pay an index-linked £2m a year in rental costs. Profits
from the operation of the stadium will be split between the club and the
taxpayer and the owners agree to split any profits from the sale of the club
with the taxpayer in the event of any sale occurring within a set period of
our moving in.
The club commit a PR own goal. In amongst all the Olympic stuff about having
a "commitment to affordable football" the club sends a letter to all
disabled supporters informing them of what appears to be an effective
doubling of ticket prices for the 2013/14 season. The club later denies that
a figure has been decided – merely that tickets will be linked to a
particular price band, though on 2012/13 prices this would seem to double
the cost. Eventually there is a bit of climb down and the increase is
eventually reduced but the whole affair leaves a nasty taste in the mouth.
The whole thing has the air of a governmental announcement. You know the
sort of thing, wanting to increase a particular tax by 25p they announce a
50p rise and then reduce it to 25p after the inevitable furore, leaving us
all to feel really grateful while getting what they wanted all along.
Cynical? Us? You bet.
England's World Cup campaign continues to cough and splutter. An 8-0 win
over San Marino is welcome, if expected. Two from Defoe and one each from
Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lampard, Young, Rooney, Sturridge and an OG improve the
goal-difference against a team that probably contains a postman or two if I
could be bothered to research its composition. However, a few days later a
1-1 draw with Montenegro, a country with the same population as a village in
Wiltshire, is less satisfying. Rooney gives us the lead but the
Montenegrans' second-half equaliser from Damjanovic is no more than they
deserve. Roy Hodgson stops just short of saying that there are no easy games
in international football, presumably the trip to San Marino being to fresh
in everyone's minds for him to be allowed to get away with that one.
The double header is overshadowed by a(nother) row over the selection of Rio
Ferdinand. Disappointingly, having been selected for the squad Ferdinand
withdraws due to a clash with his personal treatment and training regime.
Another sad reflection of the malevolent influence his employers have had
upon the game.
We return to league action as former assistant boss Steve Clarke's West Brom
are sent packing 3-1 at the Boleyn. Carroll nets a brace, the second of
which is a peach of a volley from a pass dropping over his shoulder. A Goal
Of The Season candidate. In between the Geordie striker's pair, Gary O'Neil
dispatches a volley that is itself no mean finish. Much humour is derived
from the second half introduction of Peter Odemwinge, "he drove to QPR. They
left him in his car" and "what a waste of petrol" chants greeting his
arrival.
The only down side of the win is the reappearance of George McCartney. Well
not Linda's reappearance as such, more his almost immediate departure with a
recurrence of the knee ligament injury that has kept him on the sidelines
all season. It's confirmed that the injury has effectively ended his season.
After a winless streak lasting 8 games Sunderland sack Martin O'Neill and
replace him with Paolo Di Canio. In a spot of hypocrisy and cant that is
amazing, even for a failed politician David Milliband stirs up some
publicity for himself by announcing his resignation from the board of the
Wearside club over Di Canio's alleged political sympathies. Strangely,
nobody picks up on Milliband's earlier eulogy of deceased historian Eric
Hobsbaum, whose views on the deaths of 20 million Soviet citizens could mark
him down as an apologist for genocide. The fact that Milliband's new job as
the head of a charity in New York would probably have meant his quitting
Sunderland anyway also eludes the papers, for whom Di Canio makes a much
better story.
The two wins in March have effectively steadied the ship a bit, not that it
was ever rocking at all, honest. We end the month in 11th spot with 36
points from 30 games – a game in hand over just about everyone else in the
league as well. Nearly safe then…..
April
The month commences with the traditional kumb.com April 1st story suggesting
that Barry Hearn will be fundraising for his increasingly pointless legal
costs by releasing a revamped version of "Snooker Loopy". A fair number of
people fall for it, suggesting that, where Hearn is concerned, his past
record of stupidity is so well established that nothing is too daft to be
considered implausible where he is concerned. We decide not to include the
England Supporters Band in the list of participants on the proposed record
as we reckon nobody would believe that they've actually learnt to play a
fifth tune.
Rumours that Jimmy Tarbuck has been arrested are confirmed. Though hopes
that Cilla Black, Ken Dodd, Stan Boardman and Tom O'Connor might also be
rounded up for crimes against comedy are sadly wide of the mark as it
transpires that the Tarbuck arrest is part of Operation Yewtree rather than
a general clampdown against unfunny scousers.
Whilst we're on the subject of legal shenanigans, the three investigators
who were in no way employed by Tottenham Hotspur to spy on anyone, appear in
court on charges of fraud by false representation. All three plead "not
guilty" and are remanded to appear in court in January 2014. Rumours that
the three had had cyanide capsules stamped "THFC" confiscated from them when
arrested are, of course, totally made up.
Operation Yewtree notches up a conviction as Stuart Hall pleads guilty to 14
counts of indecent assault during the height of his "It's A Knockout" fame.
Hall is eventually sentenced to a remarkably light sentence of 15 months,
which should see him out inside a year. Or possibly six months if he plays
his joker.
The winless streak at Anfield extends into its 51st year as we draw 0-0. Yet
again we are on the wrong end of a scouse-friendly refereeing decision as
Tomkins is kicked up in the air in the box. Strangely, ref Taylor, who was
so ready to issue a red card to Carlton Cole for something that wasn't a
foul in the Everton match, when presented with a clear and obvious penalty
decision to give chooses not to. Taylor's inaction continues the tradition
of many a year as bent refereeing assists the Anfield side once more.
Collison has a late effort cleared off the line, though the suspicion
remains that unless the ball actually breaks the net up there we won't be
awarded anything. And even then it'll probably be a throw-in.
The draw at Anfield is followed by another as we pick up our fourth point of
the season from Southampton. Carroll equalises with a free kick.
Southampton's supporters add to their already poor reputation for football
knowledge by shouting "hoof" at every pass over two feet whilst forgetting
to do the same at all the 60 yard clearances their own defenders make. The
suspicion that the media are just too lazy to watch games properly is
confirmed by the tv commentary which states something like "West Ham's long
ball game will mean that the home side will have dominated possession this
half" just as the graphic appears on screen: "Possession Southampton 45%
West Ham 55%" Still best not to let the truth get in the way eh lads?
And talking of the truth Man Utd come to the Boleyn and get a point, yes,
you've guessed it, totally thanks to another friendly refereeing decision.
Vaz Te opens the scoring with a header, a goal which is cancelled out by
Valencia's close range effort fifteen minutes before the break. Diame gives
us a deserved lead ten minutes into the second half with a wonder goal that
puts one in mind of his strike against Arsenal earlier in the season – only
much, much better. Where do you think you're going with that Goal Of The
Season trophy Andy?
Van Persie's late late equaliser comes from him being offside. Not a little
bit offside mind, a good couple of yards. Predictably the dishonest Ferguson
tries to deflect attention from yet another point cheated out of a match by
suggesting that Andy Carroll should have been sent off – presumably for
potentially damaging Vidic's elbow with his head.
Having already swelled the FA coffers for pointing out that Ferguson owes a
hellofa lot in his career to mysteriously beneficial decisions from
officials, Sam is a bit more careful in his words this time round.
Meanwhile, the rest of us wonder which division of the Salford and District
Sunday League Fergie's whingers would be in had referees had done their job
over the years.
Journalistic standards plumb new depths in the form of one Patrick Collins
who turns out a piece that has "I'm scared of Fergie" stamped all through
it. Repeating the "long-ball" myth the "journalist" does a hatchet job on
Andy Carroll that has "I'm writing this to avoid being banned from Old
Trafford" shining through like a watermark. At least I hope that's his
excuse – I'd be horrified to think someone could be so stupid to have
written that without being commissioned to do so.
Collins' effort contains comments to the effect that those nice foreign
players play the game in a much nicer way to us nasty old English. Not quite
sure of what he made of one of those nice guys, Luis Suarez then. Racist
diver and serial cheat Suarez adds a new chapter to his already sordid book
by biting Chelsea's Ivanovic. Not something I can imagine Carroll doing, Mr
Collins.
Suarez gets a ten match ban and, having defended the player throughout his
racist diving days I suppose it's sadly inevitable that his employers go
straight into victim mode and express shock at the length of the ban.
Meanwhile, attempts to respond to Collins' article in an infinitely more
measured and sensible manner than it really deserves are stymied by the
Mail's website, as anything that shows even the mildest criticism is
blocked. How strange that the paper that backed the Nazis in the 1930's
should end up mimicking news agencies from Soviet-era USSR.
Not that there were any, but any lingering doubts as to relegation are
dispelled as we beat Wigan 2-0. It's a repeat of the opening game of the
season against Villa as the visitors have a load of possession and do the
square root of damn all with it. Jarvis' cross eludes everyone to give us
the lead and Nolan's late effort seals all three points, giving him his
100th career goal in the process. The win has the added bonus of pushing
Wigan nearer to the drop – not long now Whelan….
Reigning Hackett Of The Year Barry Hearn gets some bad news from m'learned
friends as he is told that there are no grounds to have the decision to
lease the Olympic Stadium to West Ham subjected to judicial review. The
summing up reads: "whilst we have every sympathy with the legal profession's
desire to relieve Barry Hearn of every last penny he has, there comes a time
when one should stop milking it. Trebles all round then". Or something like
that.
We go down 2-1 at Man City – hey guess what. Yup a clear penalty is turned
down by Howard Webb who, presumably, is too confused by the Manchester bit
of the home team's name to do his job properly. Mind you it's been years
since he did his job properly anyway. Carroll is on target deep into
stoppage time as Joe Hart makes a complete hash of things to give us a
consolation comedy goal.
Reading supporters, some of whom had been convinced that a European spot was
on the cards this time last year if the customers of a certain hostelry in
north Hampshire are anything to go by, are confused by their end of season
plans. Having been relegated along with QPR by the end of the month their
supporters desperately try to find an excuse to avoid having to watch their
team's last game of the season at the Boleyn. They hit upon the idea of
pretending that they are boycotting the match on the grounds that the
tickets are a few quid more expensive than the amount they charged us.
Others are worried that this will affect the sole reason many of them go to
football matches, namely their end of season inflatable party. "If it's not
organised there'll be less inflatables" warns one really worried
correspondent, whose use of grammar promotes speculation that he may have
been the spotty Herbert responsible for printing off all those "Judus" pages
all those years ago.
With QPR and Reading taking their hoops back to the second tier there is
only one relegation place left to avoid as we end the month well out of it
all in 10th place with 42 points from 35 games. Never in doubt. Now can we
hold on to 10th……
May
The Geordies are in town for a match that has "end of season" all over it as
it finishes 0-0. This still leaves them still not quite clear of the drop
and some of us get a bit concerned that Whelan might somehow manage to
scrape his way out of it yet again.
The "Hammer of The Year" awards night takes place up west. Winston Reid gets
both the supporters' and the players' version of the award. Tickets for the
glittering event cost something like the same amount as the Greek national
debt. We write to the German government to see if they'd like to finance
something more worthwhile for a change by buying us a couple of tickets. I
expect that their letter is still in the post.
Sky clear their schedules to brown nose Man Utd yet again as their manager
announces his retirement. Journalists write eulogies that wax lyrical about
the miserable git, somehow managing to omit the fact that he's a liar, a
cheat and a thuggish bully whose team would be plying its trade in the
Salford And District Sunday League but for his systematic intimidation of
referees. In fact the media are so far up the backside of the ignorant oaf,
fifty journalists are offered life memberships by the Institute Of
Proctology.
Sam causes a spot of mild consternation amongst TV executives by uttering a
slightly rude word on Sky. Referring to his missing out on a player whilst
Bolton manager due to an administrative snafu, he suggests that the guilty
party might have received a "bollocking". Sky presenters fall over
themselves to apologise to those watching because, like, us football
supporters never usually encounter bad language like that and we're really,
really likely to be shocked. I myself have an attack of the vapours and have
to lie down in a darkened room for a few days at the sheer horror of it all.
Sky's nauseating coverage of Ferguson's retirement is, of course, far more
offensive but we're still waiting for the apology for that one.
David Moyes is announced as the new manager in Salford, meaning that our
forthcoming trip to Goodison will coincide with his last home game in charge
there. A hiding to nothing then and, predictably, we go down 2-0 as everyone
says their goodbyes.
Rio Ferdinand announces his retirement from international football. "I've
checked the fixture list and I'm at the hairdressers for the Ireland match
and the manicurist is coming over for the Brazil trip. I think the World Cup
qualifyers clash with my pottery classes as well" his statement probably
doesn't read.
Strangely, for an organisation that is celebrating its 150th anniversary,
the FA seems to lack any sense of the fact that it really ought to be the
guardian of the game's traditions as the FA Cup is once more shoved to
teatime on the penultimate Saturday of the season. This gives supporters of
Man City and Wigan about ten minutes after the final whistle to get to
Euston after the game to catch the last train back to the northwest. The
train companies eventually sort something out, laying on a few extra trains
to Manchester for the City fans, and one of those push-pull trolley things
they had on the Great St Trinian's Train Robbery for the Wigan fans.
Wigan's chairman happens to mention that he once broke his leg in a Cup
Final. In every interview. "Nice day Dave" his postman opines. "Yes postie.
Did you know I once broke my leg in a Cup Final?" replies the dodgy one. The
postman rolls his eyes and replies "yeah I think you mentioned it once".
Whelan leads his team out at Wembley, though we reckon a few of the kids
employed as slave labour to enable him to make his millions might have been
a more apt choice of mascot.
The match itself is a disaster for City who blow it as Wigan notch a late
winner. Bizarre stats of the match include the fact that it's the first Cup
Final between teams managed by managers with the same first name since 1963
(Matts Busby & Gilles), and the fact that the Cup Final has now been won for
the third consecutive time by a manager called Roberto. Deed Poll Sam, is
what we're saying. It's the way forward.
The Sun ties itself into knots over the Man City manager role. Having
earlier quoted a Spanish source as confirming "100%" that Pep Guardiola
would be taking over in the summer, only to see the ex-Barca boss go to
Bayern, they now confirm that Mancini will stay at the Etihad "even if they
lose the Cup Final". City lose the Cup Final and Mancini gets sacked. Still
they had a 50-50 chance of getting it right I suppose.
The footballing gods return from their day off a few days later and a 4-1
defeat at Arsenal relegates Whelan's mob to the second tier. Relegation
enables Whelan to return to his default setting of trying to cash in on
Roberto Martinez. In a rather obvious attempt to increase the compensation
levels Whelan suggests that Everton might not be big enough a club for
Martinez, adding "I broke my leg in an FA Cup Final once you know".
Reading are the visitors to the Boleyn for the last game of the season,
their supporters managing the neat trick of somehow being outnumbered by
their inflatables. We go 2-0 up through Nolan and Vaz Te. Whilst we're
looking at the holiday brochures in the changing room they start the second
half before us and level the scores before a late brace from the skipper
completes his hat-trick and gives us a 4-2 victory.
The muppet quota in the Premier League for 2013/14 is maintained as Crystal
Palace (basically they're what Reading would be if they were based in
Croydon) are promoted via the playoffs joining Cardiff and Hull in the top
flight.
Palace beat Watford 1-0 in the final, spurred on by their manager Ian
Holloway's criticism of Watford's extensive, but quite legal use of the loan
system. Nobody seems to want to point out that the main player responsible
for Palace's pogress through the playoffs is Wilfried Zaha, a player who
signed for Man Utd in January only to be loaned back immediately to Crystal
Palace. Meanwhile, Cardiff's arrival means that they will join Swansea and
Gareth Bale as the Welsh teams in the top flight.
Karma, already hard at work in the relegation of Wigan (whose chairman once
broke his leg in a Cup Final) puts in a spot of overtime as Sheffield United
are knocked out of the League 1 (Division Three in real money) playoffs by
Yeovil Town, for whom ex-Hammer Marek Stech features in goal. Some of us
muse on the fact that Lord Griffiths was satisfied that Carlos Tevez was the
sole reason for Sheffield United's relegation in 2007. Given their
subsequent relegation and failure to return to the top flight, that theory
is pretty much knackered then. Any chance of our money back Lord G?
Tony Pulis arrives at a board meeting at Stoke clutching an 800-page
dossier. "This is my vision for the club's future covering everything from
the Academy to the first team" he proudly announces. Chairman Coates is not
to be outdone. "Here's my own dossier" he announces. "It's only one page
long – take it with you on your way out" he continues, handing Pulis his
P45. Mark Hughes is announced as Pulis' replacement.
Benitez's long reign as boss comes to an end as Chelsea win the Europa
League by beating Benfica 2-1 in Amsterdam. Now we all know John Terry is
stupid. However you'd have thought that he'd have sussed out that there is
no need to prove it by now. Nope. Yet again he strips down to his playing
kit to collect the trophy from a match he didn't play in. This prompts
another rash of photo-shopped efforts on the web showing him picking up
various accolades, including the Eurovision Song Contest trophy. An attempt
to show him picking up the Mastermind fruitbowl fails as the processing
power required for such a suspension of disbelief exceeds that available in
total on the planet.
Meanwhile Chelsea fans bid farewell to the manager they've been abusing all
season with a banner proclaiming "We Forgive You." Quite for what Benitez is
being forgiven we can't quite work out – not being Roberto Di Matteo
presumably.
For a few days Chelsea hold both the Europa and Champions League titles.
This means that during 2012/13 we've beaten The European Champions, Europa
Cup winners, FA Cup Winners and League Cup winners. Also, but for some
dubious refereeing we'd also have beaten both previous and current Premier
League title holders. We've also been beaten by two of the three relegated
teams. All of which means something deep and meaningful I expect.
Chelsea's reign as European Champions comes to an end as the all-German
so-called Champions League final at Wembley is won by Bayern who beat
Borussia Dortmund 2-1. Insert your own beach towel joke here.
We get down to the serious business of preparing for 2013/14 by confirming
the arrival of Razven Rat, whilst an almost tearful Carlton Cole is released
– he goes with our best wishes for the future. Unlike Marouane Chamakh and
Emanuel Pogatetz, who simply go after uninspiring loan spells.
We agree a fee with Liverpool for Andy Carroll, who goes on holiday to muse
over the club's offer having picked up a heel injury that keeps him out of
the England squad for the post-season friendlies with the Republic Of
Ireland and Brazil.
We are linked with a chap called Ludovic Sane who we are praying joins us if
only for the gift that his surname presents to those of us who write match
reports.
Oop north Dave Whelan announces that he has had talks with Roberto Martinez
and that he is confident that his most valuable asset, er, I mean prized
colleague and manager will stay at the club, which is owned by a chairman
who once broke his leg in a Cup Final. Apparently. This announcement is
followed by an announcement that Martinez wants to go and talks open with
Everton.
Dodgy Dave starts bigging his asset up. "Martinez is a must for Everton" he
spouts. When it's pointed out that he had previously been of the opinion
that Everton were not a big enough club for Martinez, Whelan changes the
subject: "Have I ever shown you my scar? There's a funny story about how I
got it" he starts as journos stampede for the exit.
Martinez eventually signs for Everton whose owner Bill Kenwright, has his
own memories "I used to be in Coronation Street you know" he informs
everyone, though with the current climate being what it is, boasting of
having appeared in a soap opera only seems to interest those running
Operation Yewtree.
More fun at Liverpool where Suarez claims that it'd be difficult for him to
stay on Merseyside if Real Madrid came in for him. This is followed by a
statement from the player's agent to the effect that he has no desire to
leave. This, in turn, is followed by a self-pitying statement from the
player that, actually, he does want to leave because of the nasty English
press, who aren't judging him on his undoubted talents as a player. We feel
sorry for Suarez – I mean racially abuse someone, dive, cheat and bite
someone and those horrid journos label you as a racist, diving, biting,
cheat. So unfair. Liverpool claim he's not for sale which means that by the
time I write the opening month of next season's review I expect he'll be
gone.
England draw an uninspiring match with the Republic Of Ireland 1-1 at
Wembley. Having not given him the honour of leading out the side on his
actual 100th cap, England make Ashley Cole captain for the match. Well,
they've given it to John Terry and Steven Gerrard in the past so what's
another ignorant thug amongst so many. We fully expect future England
captains to be selected from a list provided by those involved in Operation
Yewtree, though even the FA would presumably draw the line at Jim Davidson.
After all he is of Scottish extraction.
So that's about it, No trophy to finish up with this term but there again no
depressing thoughts of spending the following 12 months in a lower division
either. It was a creditable top ten finish including some fine performances
from the players, who, in stark contrast to our last season in the top
flight, have spent the season looking like a team.
This review also ends with us on the verge of signing Britain's most
expensive player, though you'll have to wait until next season's review to
see how that one pans out.
Given a top ten finish it seems churlish to have a moan but next time round,
if I had a magic wand I'd ask for us to be a little more adventurous away
from the Boleyn - after all who knows we might win a few more games that
way. A cup run would be nice as well – I sort of miss Wembley. The deed poll
forms are in the post Sam – Roberto Allardyce has a decent ring to it!
Have a good summer (if/when it finally comes).
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
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