Daily WHUFC News - 3rd March 2013

Collison's delight at 'massive' win
WHUFC.com
West Ham United midfielder thrilled with winning goal at Stoke City on Saturday
03.03.2013

Jack Collison climbed off the bench to land a massive three points for the Hammers on Saturday as they inflicted just a second home defeat of the season on Stoke City. Collison entered the fray early as a substitute for the injured Matt Taylor and made his mark before the break, slotting past Asmir Begovic after being fed by Ricardo Vaz Te. It sealed a first away win of 2013 for the Hammers and got them back to within striking distance of the top ten. A delighted Collison spoke to West Ham TV at the final whistle.He said: "It's a massive three points for us. It's a clean sheet and it pushes us back up the table so we can look forward rather than behind us again. "The boys at the back were magnificent on Saturday. Jussi dealt with everything very well and that gives confidence to the players in front of him to dig in and work hard, because we knew that if we got a chance we'd take it. "Thankfully we did today, it's a great win, a big three points and lots of positives to take. "Obviously we know what Stoke are like, the manager's prepped us on it all week. We had a game plan, we dug in, and kept a clean sheet, which was the main thing because we wanted to come away with something. Thankfully we came away with the three points."

Collison's strike was his second of the season and the 24-year-old Welshman was delighted to play his part. He continued: "It was nice to get on the pitch. Any minutes I get at the moment I'm just enjoying, and trying to do my best to stake a claim in the starting XI. "Hopefully today helped my cause a little bit and put me in the manager's thoughts for the upcoming games between now and the end of the season. "We know what sort of player Vaz is, he does some great stuff at times, and obviously he did magnificently to find me [for the goal]. I managed to turn and find the bottom corner, and the rest is history. "The boys dug in for the second half, kept it tight. We got a 1-0 win and we're buzzing."

The Hammers have only three games in March so Collison felt it was vital to get off to a good start at Stoke. He added: "It's a little bit of a funny month for us, March, with only three games, but we'll be working hard in training with the extra time we have. It also gives us a chance to get a few more bodies back.
"So we'll go into the Chelsea game full of confidence and hopefully with a fully fit squad, but it was massive to get the win on Saturday. "We've struggled a little bit on our travels so it's a big positive for us to get the points on the board and what will be even more pleasing for the manager I'd imagine is the clean sheet."

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Big Sam salutes Stoke success
WHUFC.com
Sam Allardyce was rightly proud of West Ham United's 1-0 Barclays Premier League victory at Stoke City
02.03.2013

Sam Allardyce could not hide his pride after West Ham United secured a morale-boosting 1-0 Barclays Premier League victory at Stoke City. Big Sam's side ended a run of five consecutive away league defeats with a thoroughly deserved win at the Britannia Stadium, with Jack Collison netting the all-important goal on the stroke of half-time. Collison was one of two substitutes - the other being Ricardo Vaz Te - who were introduced after just eleven minutes when Matt Taylor was left concussed and Joe Cole went off with a tight hamstring. Despite the disruption, West Ham regrouped to produce a superb performance on the road. Indeed the only moment of real concern came late on, when Charlie Adam threatened to re-create Gareth Bale's wonder-strike, only for his last-minute volley to cannon back off the crossbar. Speaking exclusively to West Ham TV, the manager said his team had shown the organisation, spirit and determination to secure a vital three-point haul that lifted them two places to 12th in the table. "We all know it is not an easy place to come and the way we mastered Stoke City, from their attacking point of view, was the basis to our success," said Big Sam. "Even having suffered the blow to losing Matt Taylor to severe concussion and Joe Cole to a hamstring injury, it turned out that the two substitutes who came on so early ended up being our main players from an attacking point of view. "Because of that, we got the goal just before half-time. It was a great little pass from Vaz Te to Collison and Jack slides it into the bottom corner.
"We were really very comfortable at that stage and, although we knew Stoke would throw everything at us, we broke out and Jack and Vaz Te should have finished it off. Jack messed it up first and then it went to Vaz and he messed it up as well! I hoped that wouldn't be a big moment and gladly it wasn't.
"The only thing that worried me was when Charlie Adam volleyed that ball and I thought 'Oh, not again! Surely we can't suffer another wonder goal!' but this one hit the bar and we had that little bit of luck that we deserved. "This was a win we deserved and a victory we're very pleased with. It's come when we have been under a lot of pressure recently and this has eased that pressure. "We put in a huge performance last Monday [against Tottenham Hotspur] and got a hugely disappointing result, but this time we got another huge performance and a fantastic win."

Psychologically, the success at Stoke and the resulting climb up the table will give the squad a massive boost ahead of a two-week break before the trip to Chelsea on Sunday 17 March. "We have got ten games to go and three points seems to make so much more of a difference, or appears to at this time of the season. "Everyone comes rushing in looking to see what the other results are and if they have gone our way and made the distance between us and the bottom three greater. It has with the three points we have picked up. "Our third away win of the season came at the right time. We couldn't have asked for it to come at a better time and it takes the pressure off us that we hadn't really deserved. "We put ourselves under pressure by performing well in recent weeks but not picking up enough points. On Saturday, we gained a very valuable three points."

Stoke had lost just one of their previous 13 home league matches this season, putting into perspective just how good a result Saturday's victory was. For Big Sam, turning over a team who have been very hard to beat on their own patch was hugely gratifying for everyone of a claret and blue persuasion. "Stoke don't let you play and they stop you playing at their stadium. They do the other side of the game very well - the grafting side - and stop your flair players getting on the ball and playing. "You have to wait to create your opportunities, which we did, but once they tired we got through them and down the side of them and got our flair players on the ball. "I think Gary O'Neil needs a mention because he stepped up to the plate in the holding midfield role and he showed quite considerably in how we wanted to attack. He was the focus of starting our attacks off by being composed on the ball and playing little passes to Mo Diame, Jack and Vaz Te. That's what got us in behind Stoke's midfield and at their back four."

The manager also pointed to the ability to introduce senior players from the bench as a major contributory factor in Saturday's success. "It showed the importance of a strong bench. Going through December and January with eight or nine injuries, I was struggling to get a bench up. We had kids on the bench.
"At Stoke, the substitutes gave us the opportunity to help us win, which was important."

As it has turned out, West Ham now have a two-week break to nurse the likes of Taylor, Cole, Kevin Nolan, Mark Noble, James Tomkins and George McCartney back to fitness. While he recently complained about the lack of fixtures in March, Big Sam is now pleased to have more time to get to work in the treatment room. "A couple of weeks ago I was bragging about how the squad is back together and it's a good thing apart from us not having enough games.
"Two weeks later, we have five injured again, so perhaps missing the Manchester United game next week and having two weeks to get them ready again is a good thing now. "We have got to see how Joe is going to be, but we hope it won't be too long. Kevin, we think won't be too long. Mark Noble we don't know when it will settle down. George should start training very shortly and the two weeks should mean we have more players available. "Saturday showed the importance of having your squad available by the contribution made by Jack Collison and Ricardo Vaz Te."

Finally, Big Sam thanked the Claret and Blue Army for their typically vociferous support at a ground that has become synonymous with its atmosphere in recent seasons. "Our fans were very vocal. They never stop from start to finish, because they saw the players committed and wanting to give them something. "They have travelled away a lot this season without seeing the result they wanted. Too many times we've gone away from home and they've gone home disappointed, but on Saturday they were very happy like we all are."

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Collison goal breaks 2013 away duck
WHUFC.com
Midfielder strikes to give West Ham United a priceless 1-0 win at Stoke City
02.03.2013

Jack Collison struck in first half stoppage time to fire the Hammers to a priceless three points at Stoke City on Saturday. Collison, on as an early substitute for the injured Matt Taylor, finished following a slick pass from his fellow sub Ricardo Vaz Te. The Hammers held Stoke at arm's length for the vast majority of the Britannia Stadium contest and only Charlie Adam's final minute volley, which thudded against the bar, caused them any alarm. It was the Hammers' first away win of 2013 and provided the perfect tonic following the heartbreak of last minute defeat earlier in the week. Having already lost skipper Kevin Nolan to injury in the week, Hammers boss Sam Allardyce was forced into a major reshuffle of his midfield with just 11 minutes played at the Britannia Stadium. Taylor, Nolan's replacement in the starting XI, was forced off with a head injury after receiving a boot to the head when Peter Crouch went for an overhead kick, while Joe Cole limped out of the action after the same phase of play. With 25 minutes on the clock the Hammers were a mere whisker away from taking the lead when Gary O'Neil's left wing corner was only cleared back to him, and his second cross was flicked onto the top of the crossbar by James Collins with Asmir Begovic struggling.

Collison then had a half chance as the away side again picked up the second ball from a set piece, but his right-footed shot from 25 yards was directed straight at Begovic. EIght minutes before the break the best piece of football in the half produced the best chance thus far but Andy Carroll couldn't get the right contact on his header from a Guy Demel cross and the ball dribbled wide. Stoke were barely able to create anything in the first 45 minutes and Michael Kightly's harmless drive from the edge of the box on 43 was the best they could muster. By contrast, the Hammers gave themselves the perfect lift in first half stoppage time when Vaz Te picked up the pieces after Carroll was dragged down on the edge of the box by Ryan Shawcross and fed Collison, who finished unerringly into the bottom left hand corner. Vaz Te was involved again at the start of the second period, collecting a flick-on from Carroll before threading a ball to Matt Jarvis, whose shot was blocked by the legs of Begovic. Stoke broke from the resulting corner and Jussi Jaaskelainen was called into action for the first time, diving to his left to cling onto a Crouch shot.

Stoke looked to their subs Brek Shea, Kenwyne Jones and Adam as they tried to wrestle some attacking impetus, but 12 minutes from time it was the Hammers who had the chance to wrap it up when Vaz Te exchanged passes with Collison and tip-toed around goalkeeper Begovic only for a challenge to come in from a defender to save the day for the hosts. Stoke struggled to attack with any penetration, yet they were still only inches away from levelling up in the final minute when Adam's super 25-yard shot cannonned off the crossbar and away to safety, much to the Hammers' relief. West Ham survived that moment of panic, giving their travelling band of over 2,000 fans a very happy journey home.

Stoke City: Begovic; Shotton, Shawcross, Wilson, Wilkinson; Walters (Jones 74), Nzonzi, Whelan (Adam 77), Kightly (Shea 66); Jerome, Crouch
Subs: Sorensen (GK), Cameron, Palacios, Whitehead

West Ham United: Jaaskelainen; Demel, Collins, Reid, O'Brien; O'Neil; J.Cole (Vaz Te 11), Taylor (Collison 11), Jarvis (Pogatetz 83); Carroll
Subs: Spiegel (GK), C.Cole, Maiga, Chamakh

Goal: Collison 45+3

Booked: Collins, Carroll
Referee: Jonathan Moss

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U18s suffer Spurs setback
WHUFC.com
West Ham United slipped to a 3-0 Barclays U18 Premier League Tier One defeat by Tottenham Hotspur
02.03.2013

West Ham United's Barclays U18 Premier League Tier One hopes took another dent as Tottenham Hotspur stormed to a 3-0 victory at the Spurs Training Centre on Saturday. Nathan Oduwa was Spurs' main threat in the first half and gave the home side the lead, before second half goals from Ruben Lameiras and Darren McQueen ended the contest. The game started fairly evenly, with both teams spending long periods in possession on the ball, moving the ball around the pitch with some excellent pass and move football. After 15 minutes, Spurs began to control of the game, using their wide players to put pressure on the Hammers' back four. The hosts took the lead after 23 minutes from a set piece routine. The home side used a short corner to work the ball to Roman Michael-Percil on the corner of the penalty area, who arrowed a cross towards the back post. The cross got a deflection off the head of Hammers right-back Cheye Alexander, with the ball falling to an unmarked Oduwa in the box. He slid the ball past Sam Baxter to put the home side ahead. Oduwa almost doubled Tottenham's lead just minutes later, as the ball found the tricky attacker on the left wing, from where he stepped inside Alexander and curled his shot onto the top of the crossbar, with Baxter beaten in the Hammers goal. Spurs' dominance in the first half continued, with Oduwa at the heart of the majority of Tottenham's attacking moves. With 40 minutes on the clock, Oduwa set up his striking colleague Daniel Akindayini, but the latter couldn't find a way past West Ham's Baxter.

West Ham managed to put together a clear effort on goal in the run up to half time when a low cross from the left found Jerry Amoo in the box, who layed the ball into the path of Marcio Martins, but Spurs' keeper Luke McGee was even to the Hammers striker's effort. Half time bought around a much-needed break for Potts' young Hammers, and his side started the second period well. West Ham came out quick in the second half and pushed on looking for the goal they needed. Marcio Martins almost had an opportunity to break through the Spurs back line, but Moses Makasi just mistimed his attempted through ball and the home side cleared the danger. Within ten minutes of the second half starting, Spurs dominance returned and lasted until the end of the game. Firstly, Michael-Percil broke through the Hammers defence and was bundled over by Emmanuel Onariase, but Spurs couldn't make anything of the resulting set piece.
Then, on 70 minutes, Oduwa cut inside from the left wing and beat Baxter with a shot, only to see his effort cleared off the line by Hammers substitute Moses Makasi. Just a minute later, Tottenham did double their lead. After winning the ball back on the right wing, the ball found its way into the feet of Lameiras, who turned quickly to beat Taylor Miles and struck a low stinging shot past Baxter into the bottom left hand corner of the goal. The pressure got worse for West Ham and Tottenham managed to raise their performance even higher once two in front, with both Nathan Oduwe and Harry Winks testing Baxter. It was finally game over for West Ham on 85 minutes when Spurs substitute McQueen added a third goal, rounding Baxter to finish after left-back Connor Ogilivie reacted quickest to take a free kick on the break.

West Ham welcome Stoke City to Little Heath for their next Barclays U18 Premier League Tier One fixture on Saturday 9 March.

West Ham United U18s: Baxter, Alexander, Burke, Onariase, Page (Makasi), Marlow, Miles (Girdlestone), Amoo, Mavila, Sadlier, Martins (Boakye-Yiadom)
Subs not used: Howes, Homans.

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JJ proud of Dev Squad defending
WHUFC.com
Jerome John saluted a sound defensive display as West Ham United U21s shut out Manchester United
02.03.2013

Academy goalkeeping coach Jerome John was delighted to see the Development Squad keep it clean against Manchester United, as West Ham United defended valiantly to earn a valuable Barclays Under-21 Premier League goalless draw. Returning to action just three days after a fruitless trip to Telford, where they lost 2-1 to Wolverhampton Wanderers, the Hammers had the better of it early on at the Boleyn Ground, as Sebastian Lletget and Wellington Paulista both went close to breaking the deadlock. Though Tuesday's exploits would take their toll in the latter stages, Nick Haycock's resilient youngsters held firm to record an impressive third clean sheet in only six Elite Group outings. John - known as 'JJ' by everyone at the club - was suitably impressed with the shutout, as stopper Jake Larkins was only once called upon to keep the visitors at bay. "The boys in front of Jake have done very well," he told West Ham TV. "He just had the one save to make and he did that well. Overall, the defensive display, including Jake, was very good. "It was a very good game. I thought we played better in the first half, than we did in the second. Because of the game on Tuesday, the boys were a little bit tired for the last 15 minutes. But both sides had their chances and I thought we deserved at least a point. "I think a few of the players learned a few lessons on Tuesday [against Wolverhampton Wanderers] and dealt with the various situations that arose on Friday night. They've done well in front of their home crowd."

Goalkeeping coach John was also glad to see Blair Turgott and Paul McCallum back in claret and blue, after their respective loan spells at Bradford City and AFC Wimbledon. Though neither were able to conjure up a winner on this occasion, JJ expects them to have a significant say in the Hammers' fortunes from hereon in. "It's good to have them back," he continued. "Blair did very well, considering he hasn't played 90 minutes in over five or six weeks, he's just had 15 or 20 minute spells. So he did great just to last the game. With Paul coming back from his adventure at AFC Wimbledon, it was good to get him back on the pitch as well and hopefully they'll contribute even more to the games coming up."

After an early-season postponement, West Ham's next trip sees them travel to Altrincham on Wednesday to take on Manchester United for a second time in just six days. It's a trip, however, that holds little fear for JJ, who sees no reason why West Ham cannot go there and claim all three points this time.
"Manchester United have quite a few players, so they can rotate and freshen things up, whereas generally, we will be looking to use the same group.
"The pitch at Altrincham doesn't look in the best condition at the moment. Obviously, not like Upton Park, so it's going to be a different game. But, having played at Rush Green, we're used to the smaller non-league grounds. So hopefully we shouldn't need to adjust too much. Hopefully we can go one better on Wednesday and can get a win. "We're still pushing to try and get second or third place, because Tottenham seem to be running away with it at the moment. But with our squad, our very young squad, they're doing very well, and the players are responding well."

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Setford looks for Lewes victory
WHUFC.com
West Ham United Ladies manager Julia Setford is targeting a valuable home win on Sunday
02.03.2013

West Ham United Ladies manager Julia Setford is targeting a valuable home FA Women's Premier League Southern Division win over Lewes on Sunday. The Hammers welcome their opponents to Thurrock FC's Ship Lane ground this weekend, just seven days after the reverse fixture in Sussex was postponed due to a frozen pitch. Setford will be without star striker Hannah Gowland, who has been ruled out for the remainder of the season after suffering a fractured tibia and torn ankle ligaments in the recent Essex FA County Cup semi-final defeat by Colchester United. However, the Ladies manager has urged her players to make up for Gowland's absence by scoring the goals needed to help the Hammers to climb the table. "Hannah had hurt one of her ankles in training the week before the Colchester game, but she passed a fitness test and we strapped her up," said Setford. "Unfortunately, she was tackled by one of the Colchester players and went over on her other ankle. "She was taken to hospital and scans revealed that she had torn three of her ankle ligaments and also fractured her fibia, so she is out for the season. It's rubbish news for Hannah, obviously, and also for us as a club because we had got the prolific striker we needed when we signed her from Colchester in November. "We are going to have a look at a couple of the young girls who have been in the reserves this week, while Zoe Lipley-Hinton has worked really hard and Sam Rowland will also be given an opportunity to impress. It's up to them all to take their chances."

Gowland, who had scored seven goals in six appearances prior to her injury, is the second important forward to suffer a serious injury this season. In September, Kelley Blanchflower suffered a broken collarbone that required surgery and ruled her out until the New Year. Despite those setbacks and a succession of recent postponements, West Ham remain in with a chance of making up ground on the leaders and winning the Southern Division title. However, the postponements mean Setford may be without some players when those matches are re-arranged later this season. "Last Sunday's match at Lewes being called-off means we will now have a midweek game if any of our other matches are postponed because there are no free weekends left between now and the end of the season in May. "We have ten league games to go and, if any more are postponed, we'll have to play on Tuesday or Wednesday evenings, when some of the girls might not be available due to work commitments. "On the flip side, we would still have matches to play when the other teams have finished, so we can make up ground and hopefully overtake them in the table."

The Ladies welcome Lewes to Ship Lane for a 2pm kick-off this Sunday. It is the first of three consecutive home league matches, with second-place Millwall Lionesses and local rivals Colchester visiting on Sunday 10 March and Sunday 17 March respectively.

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Stoke 0 West Ham 1
2 March 2013
Last updated at 17:34
By Mandeep Sanghera
BBC Sport

Jack Collison fired West Ham to their first Premier League away win since November to stun Stoke and lift them nine points clear of the drop zone. Substitute Collison latched on to a Ricardo Vaz Te pass before angling the winner past home keeper Asmir Begovic. Begovic kept out a Matt Jarvis strike, while Stoke went close through a long-range Peter Crouch effort. Charlie Adam almost equalised with a 22-yard shot which hit the crossbar for a labouring Stoke. An injury-time Gareth Bale goal had inflicted a painful defeat for the Hammers against Tottenham on Monday but, to their credit, they resolutely held on at the Britannia Stadium, albeit with the help of the woodwork. Stoke suffered only a second home defeat of the season and, despite manager Tony Pulis throwing on plenty of his attacking players in search of a goal, they were constantly repelled by the visitors. The victory moved West Ham level on points with Stoke who have now lost six out of their last eight league matches. The Hammers had been forced into some early readjustments, with midfielder Matt Taylor and playmaker Joe Cole having to go off injured in the first 11 minutes. "What a way to end a run of five away defeats in the league. West Ham boss Sam Allardyce must be so proud of his players. After having to make two early substitutions, the Hammers inflicted a only a second home defeat in the league for Stoke this season."

Taylor was helped off in a daze after being caught flush in the face by Crouch's foot when the striker was attempting an overhead kick while Joe Cole's involvement was ended by a hamstring problem. Collison and Vaz Te replaced the stricken Hammers duo. West Ham showed the greater endeavour and energy, with defender James Collins going close when his glancing header from Gary O'Neil's cross grazed the top of the crossbar. Stoke have relied on their home form for all but nine of their 33 points this season but they posed little threat and might have conceded a penalty for Ryan Shotton's clumsy challenge on Mohamed Diame. West Ham won it when their two early substitutes combined. Vaz Te was the provider, playing in Collison after his initial pass came back to him off Stoke defender Ryan Shawcross, who had fallen to the ground as he tussled with Andy Carroll.

The Potters showed more urgency after the break but their appeals for a penalty were correctly ignored by referee Jon Moss after Cameron Jerome went down under a challenge by Joey O'Brien with the West Ham defender appearing to get a toe to the ball. Hammers winger Matt Jarvis had a left-foot shot saved by Begovic and, at the other end, Crouch had a long-range effort kept out by visiting keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen. Vaz Te could have given West Ham some breathing space but he dallied too long when given a sight of goal from Collison's pass. Stoke again felt they should have had a penalty but Hammers defender Guy Demel survived a handball shout before Adam hit a powerful shot which crashed back off the crossbar.

West Ham's goal was only their ninth away league strike of the season. Only hosts Stoke (8) have scored fewer on the road. West Ham held out for a crucial win to give them some breathing space ahead of the trip to Chelsea in a fortnight while Stoke will wonder why their season has faded away since Christmas.

Stoke boss Tony Pulis: "We are disappointed with their goal because Andy Carroll drags Ryan Shawcross in the build up and I thought we should have got a free-kick. "I thought we huffed and puffed and didn't get enough quality into the box. People will criticise the forwards for not scoring goals but they need the service. "We have gone a bit flat. We missed Matthew Etherington and Robert Huth. We need them back, we need our best players."

West Ham manager Sam Allardyce: "We had to overcome the blow to losing Matt Taylor and Joe Cole early on. "It is a fantastic and we deserved victory for us. "When I saw Charlie Adam's shot - because of the number of wonder goals that have gone in against us - I thought not again but we got a bit of luck and the win."

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Stoke City 0-1 West Ham Utd
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 2nd March 2013
By: Staff Writer

It may have been a case of 'winning ugly', but Jack Collison's first half goal was enough to secure West Ham's first win away from home since last November.

The Britannia Stadium has never been a venue of choice for football purists thanks to Stoke's tactical and mental approach - and there would have been few disappointed to miss today's game, which United edged thanks to the Welsh international's goal in first half injury time.

West Ham, who have traditionally crumbled at such venues are however made of different stuff these days and whilst there may not have been too much free-flowing football on display, Allardyce's side were more than a match for their opponents physically and fully deserved the three points - United's first win on the road since last November.

Despite the hosts resorting to their usual array of off-the-ball fouls and wanton acts of blatant cheating - as exemplified by Peter Crouch's atrocious dive and subsequent penalty appeal early on in the second half - West Ham were not to be undone as they were in the corresponding fixture earlier this season.

Fortunately the Hammers had an ally today in referee Jon Moss who wasn't going to be hoodwinked into giving a penalty, despite City's blatant attempts to buy one. Four times the Potters appealed in the second half, of which only one was potentially contentious.

Moss was also alert enough to allow play to continue when Andy Carroll was felled on the edge of the box in the fourth minute of added-on time at the end of the first half - and it was from the same attack that West Ham scored the only goal of the game.

Having seen James Collins go close with a header earlier in the half that had clipped the crossbar - and Andy Carroll subsequently fail to find the target despite having a free header just ten yards from goal - it was no surprise when United eventually took the lead, even if they had to wait until the fourth minute of first half added-on time to score it.

An attack through the centre was allowed to continue after Carroll was brought down by Ryan Shawcross and substitute Ricardo Vaz Te collected the resulting ball before finding Collison, lurking on the edge of the box, with a clever reverse pass.

The Welsh international had time to compose himself before firing into the bottom corner, to give United a lead that they were to hold onto until the final whistle.

Until that point the first half had been a slight disappointment for West Ham due in no small part to the loss of both Matt Taylor and Joe Cole, who were withdrawn with suspected concussion and a hamstring pull respectively inside the opening ten minutes of the game.

However replacements Vaz Te and Collison proved to be the eventual match winners; was this finally evidence of the luck that the Hammers had been missing in recent weeks?

Despite huffing and puffing after the break, a woeful Stoke - who had been beaten just once at home this season prior to today - failed to test Jussi Jaaskelainen until the 93rd minutes of the game when Charlie Adam's looping volley beat the Fin, but not his crossbar.

And although the home side may feel hard done by that, City simply hadn't done enough to deserve a share of the spoils in a game in which their attacking threat has been nullified by West Ham's defence, superbly marshalled by stand-in captain Winston Reid.

The win takes West Ham's Premier League tally to 33 points but, most importantly, increases the distance from the relegation zone to nine points.

And with only ten games of the season left to play, two more wins will almost certainly be enough to allow Sam Allardyce and his squad to begin contemplating a second successive season in the Premier League.

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Jack Collison scored West Ham's winner at Stoke
Last Updated: March 2, 2013 6:19pm
SSN

Jack Collison came off the bench to score the winner as West Ham beat Stoke 1-0 at the Britannia. Collison was a tenth minute replacement for Matt Taylor after he had been caught by Peter Crouch attempting a scissor-kick in the box. He scored deep into first-half injury time after being found by fellow substitute Ricardo Vaz Te, who had come on for the injured Joe Cole in the 11th minute. Soon after the break, Cameron Jerome had a penalty shout turned down after a challenge by Joey O'Brien in the box.

Best of the match

Man of the match: Ricardo Vaz Te. Came off the bench to provide the goal assist and was a constant threat
Shot of the match: Charlie Adam hit a great volley late on but it crashed off the crossbar
Save of the match: Asmir Begovic saved low from close range from Matt Jarvis
Talking point: Stoke were denied a penalty late on when the ball hit Guy Demel's hand in the box

Vaz Te then found Matt Jarvis to the left side of the box whose shot at goal from close range saw Asmir Begovic save. At the other end, Peter Crouch shot from just outside the area but Jussi Jaaskelainen saved low down. Collison saw a shot from the edge of the box blocked by Marc Wilson and Stoke then cleared after Vaz Te had run onto the loose ball. Charlie Adam came on for Glenn Whelan and almost earned the Potters a point when he chested a ball down and then volleyed at goal, but his shot from 25 yards hit the crossbar and West Ham scrambled away. Then deep into injury time, substitute Brek Shea thought he had won a penalty when the ball hit Guy Demel on the hand in the box but his appeals were waved away by referee Jonathan Moss as West Ham held on for the win. The victory halted a run of five successive league away defeats and lifts the Hammers onto 33 points and further clear of the drop zone. The result - only the second home league loss for Stoke this season - saw West Ham move up to 12th, level on points with the Staffordshire side, who are now 11th.

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Sam Allardyce hails West Ham's win over Stoke in the Premier League
Last Updated: March 2, 2013 8:12pm
SSN

Sam Allardyce hailed his side's 'biggest win' of the season after West Ham beat Stoke 1-0 at the Britannia. Jack Collison came off the bench to score the winner deep into first-half injury time after being found by fellow substitute Ricardo Vaz Te. The victory halted a run of five successive away league defeats and lifted the Hammers onto 33 points and further away from the drop zone. Allardyce told Sky Sports: "It was the biggest one (victory in the season) without a doubt.
"I think we've played well enough the last few away games but not got any points and certainly the disappointment on Monday night having played so well against Tottenham and being in the lead and not getting anything out of that was a big pressure on us today and we've come up trumps." Allardyce added it was a well deserved victory by his side, who limited Stoke to just a few chances. He said: "It puts us back in the middle of the pack in the middle of the table again. "(We are on) 33 points, ever closer to that big 40 that we all look for, but especially the first year (back) in (the Premier League)."

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Three Points, But Will the Lack of Games in March Be a Worry?
By S J Chandos
West Ham Till I Die

Well, we did it! A win at the Potteries is always an achievement and it needed discipline, physical strength, application and a crucial dash of skill to deliver it. The result means that we are on 33 points, and in 12th position, with 10 matches still to play. We should now have no trouble accruing the c.7 points, necessary for safety, over the remainder of the season. If results pick up, from this point, then we could even resurrect our former ambitions of a top 10 PL finish.

However, I would have preferred to have had a match next weekend to maintain the winning momentum, arising from this important and timely away victory. Unfortunately, we now only have two matches over the rest of March. The counter argument is, of course, is that the next sheduled match was Man Utd at home (a tough challenge with an injury depleted squad) and that the forhcoming, enforced 2 week break will give the club's fitness and medical teams the time to get Joe Cole, Mark Noble, etc, fit before the Chelsea match. Its remarkable that we returned from Dubai with virtually a fully fit squad and we have since lost the likes of James Tomkins, Mark Noble, Kevin Nolan and Joe Cole. Still, that's the fortunes of war (as the French say) and the reason why we must strive for strength in-depth in our first team squad!

We should now target a minimum of three points from the two matches in March. In all probability the priority will be to take three points against WBA at home and any points secured, away to Chelsea, will be a nice, added bonus. If we can take a minimum of another three points in March 2013, that will put us on 36 points, and on the cusp of securing our top tier status, in this vital first season back in the PL.

Ian Ridley, chief Football writer of the Sports Mail, referred to the Stoke Vs West Ham fixture as the 'Battle of the Brutes.' an absolutely absurd formulation. Especially when you consider the neat passing movements West Ham executed in and around the box in this match. Collison scored the winning goal, running on to a slide rule forward pass in the box and firing past the keeper, from an angle. West Ham should have had a second when Vaz Te played a similar ball forward for Jarvis, only for him to fire directly at the Stoke City keeper. Collins clipped the cross bar with a looping header from an O'Neill Cross and Collison played in Vaz Te, only for the Portugese striker to delay his shot too long and waste the goal scoring opportunity. Stoke City could have scored a late, undeserved equalizer, when Adams fired against the cross bar, but that just proved that 'lightening does not strike twice' after Bale's last minute pile driver in the 90th minute, on Monday evening.

There were three penalty claims (one for West Ham and two for Stoke City) but the referee did well to wave them away. So, well done to the official for a change. We criticize them soon enough when they are inconsistent or make glaring mistakes, so it was good to see the oficial get the key decisions 100% right! This was largely a dour and hard fought affair, in which the two teams cancelled each other out. It was the two West Ham substitutes, Vaz Te and Collison, who brought the stand out, and ultimately decisive, moments of guile in the match. As Sam Allardyce admitted, post-match, the misfortune of losing Cole and Taylor to injury led to the good fortune of bringing this talented duo in to the game.

Man Utd's continued involvement in the FA Cup means that we have no fixture next weekend and a international break follows that. So, while the emphasis will be upon getting the injured players back, surely Vaz Te and Collison have done themselves a power of good, in terms of their first team selection opportunities. Vaz Te has natural ability, that is undeniable. The issue is whether he has the work rate and application to bring it to bear in the PL? While Collison has the making of a good goal scoring midfielder and, in a 4-3-3, could be well deployed in the Kevin Nolan role. As stated, the duo certainly created the main examples of quality in the match and, as such, deserve their places vs Chelsea.

Are West Ham really 'Brutes' ? When will people stop deploying these crude and lazy stereotypical assertions about the way that we play. Were we 'brutes' against Spurs, when we passed the ball very well over the whole 90 minutes? Is that a fair discription of touch players Collison, Vaz Te, Cole and Jarvis? Were our smart passing movements in and around the box, brutish? Piffle, in my opinion. But as they say, 'give a dog a bad name' and 'mud' invariably sticks!

Still, onwards and upwards. I look forward to achieving 40 points as soon as possible, so that Sam Allardyce relax his selection policy a bit and give the youngsters and players like Paulista and Maiga first team chances. I would like to see young players like Potts, Spence, Chambers, Famino, Turgott, Hall and Lee get into the first team frame before the end of the season, results and the points tally allowing. Where Paulista is concerned, I think that there is a case for putting him on the bench at Stamford Bridge. While, why not give either Spence or Potts a run out in that fixture?

Can we put another one over Rafa Benitez's Chelsea? No one gives us much of a chance, so try something different and see if we can confound the odds to land another victory! If not, we must give a good account of ourselves, and move, full speed ahead to the contest against WBA. That definitely is winnable, although Steve Clarke's WBA will undoubtedly present a stiff challenge, so we must be at our best to ensure that we secure another absolutely vital win.

SJ.Chandos.

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Stoke 0 West Ham 1
The Sun
By GRAEME BRYCE
Published: 02nd March 2013

BENCH-BUDDIES Jack Collison and Ricardo Vaz Te combined to sink Stoke — as they proved to be far from sub-standard. The West Ham pair were not first-picks at 3pm. But by half-time they had teamed up to inspire the Hammers' first away win since November 11. The homesick Irons had only taken one point from a possible 24 on the road when they arrived at the Britannia. But they joined Chelsea to become only the second side to win here in the league this season as they edged ever closer to the 36 points that boss Allardyce has targeted for Premier safety. Apart from a few frantic penalty claims and a late scare when Charlie Adam's stunning volley crashed off the crossbar, the Hammers rarely looked like losing this one.

Big Sam said: "It's a very big victory for us. Our misfortune ended up being our good fortune. "Our misfortune was Matt Taylor going off with concussion and then straight after that Joe Cole coming off with a hamstring. "But obviously the winning goal was scored by one of our subs after Vaz Te's through ball to Collison. They came on and helped us to win the game."

Allardyce was put through the ringer early on as Jussi Jaaskelainen gifted Stoke a cheap corner within 90 seconds, allowing a backpass to bobble off his foot.
The Hammers then switched off completely as Glenn Whelan rolled a short corner to Mark Walters — but the Republic of Ireland striker slashed his effort wide of the target.

Allardyce's problems really piled up following a sickening clash between Peter Crouch and Matty Taylor after 10 minutes. Crouch attempted a spectacular overhead kick and his swinging boot caught poor Matty Taylor flush in the face. The midfielder had to be led groggily off, suffering from concussion and it turned into a double whammy for West Ham as Joe Cole signalled to the bench that he had a hamstring problem. Allardyce said: "We were a little desperate after five minutes when you see two players coming off injured. But it shows you the strength in depth of our squad." Gatecrashers Collison and Vaz Te went on to exert a huge influence on the game and James Collins came within inches of breaking the deadlock after 25 minutes when he got his head to Gary O'Neil's inswinging cross. But with keeper Asmir Begovic scrambling, the defender's attempt flew over from 12 yards. Then Andy Carroll fluffed a free header when Ryan Shawcross slipped tying to clear a cross.

The Hammers finally broke the deadlock two minutes into first-half injury time with a quality move Allardyce's team were not supposed to be capable of!
Vaz Te broke at speed and, although his initial pass was blocked by Shawcross, he persevered to pick out Collison with a sublime reverse pass. With the Stoke defence wrong-footed, the midfielder drilled his shot beyond Begovic. Potters boss Tony Pulis said: "Their goal was hard to take.Andy Carroll pulled Ryan Shawcross down in the build-up." It was not his only gripe as his side were denied what appeared to be a clear penalty four minutes after the restart. Cameron Jerome was sandwiched by Collins and Joey O'Brien, who appeared to trip him as he attempted to shoot. But, not for the first time, referee Jonathan Moss refused to be influenced by a furious home crowd.

Stoke: Begovic, Shotton, Shawcross, Wilson, Wilkinson, Walters (Jones 74), Whelan (Adam 77), Nzonzi, Kightly (Shea 66), Jerome, Crouch Subs Not Used: Sorensen, Cameron, Palacios, Whitehead.
Booked: Nzonzi.
West Ham: Jaaskelainen, Demel, Collins, Reid, O'Brien, Jarvis (Pogatetz 83), Joe Cole (Vaz Te 11), O'Neil, Diame, Taylor (Collison 10), Carroll Subs Not Used: Spiegel, Carlton Cole, Maiga, Chamakh.
Booked: Collins, Carroll.
Goals: Collison 45.
Att: 22,690
Ref: Jon Moss (W Yorkshire).

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Sam wants to Iron out a deal
Stoke 0 West Ham 1
The Sun
By GRAEME BRYCE
Published: 02nd March 2013

WEST HAM boss Sam Allardyce hammered out a defiant message to the Irons' fans and powerbrokers after a vital 1-0 win at Stoke. Big Sam — who has had an uneasy relationship with supporters — gave a crossed-arms Hammers salute to the away end after seeing his side move nine points clear of the drop zone.
And he then made it clear to co-owners David Gold and David Sullivan that his future should be at Upton Park. Allardyce, whose contract runs out in the summer, has been told talks on his future are on hold until West Ham's top-flight status is secured. He said: "Staying in the Premier League is EVERYTHING about my future. "I think that's all I've had to say over the last few weeks. "It's the best league in the world. It's where I want to be, it's where I want to ply the skills of my trade. "If you're plying your trade in the best domestic league in the world then that's what you want to do." West Ham are on 33 points after Jack Collison's goal KO'd Stoke — and Allardyce believes they are close to safety. He said: "Our great start to the season has kept us away from real problems."

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Stoke 0-1 West Ham: Collison finds perfect cure for Hammers' travel sickness
The Mirror
2 Mar 2013 20:14

West Ham are three points closer to the day when they have to confront the great Big Sam debate. Manager Sam Allardyce is out of contract in the ­summer and owners David Sullivan and David Gold have said they won't discuss a new one until the club's Premier League survival is secured. But Jack Collison's winner has opened up a gap of nine points to the drop zone and decision day is coming. There are two camps of Hammers fans. The first see a manager who will pretty much guarantee them top flight survival. Then there are the others – and you suspect Gold is among them – who don't like his style of football and have never quite forgiven Big Sam for suggesting that anybody who thought Upton Park had a tradition for passing football was "deluded". This game backed up the arguments of the ­pragmatists who say Premier League football is a must for a move to the Olympic Stadium in two years' time. It wasn't ­especially pretty. It leaned heavily on the physical strength of James Collins at the heart of a defence that stood up bravely to Stoke's aerial assaults. But ultimately it delivered the first away win after eight previous outings that had brought only one point. Allardyce said: "It was a very big victory for us. Our ­disappointment recently has been not so much the ­performances as that we've ended up with ­nothing. It was good to come here and really get everything right tactically.
"We frustrated Stoke in terms of how they wanted to play, then played round and through them and down the sides."

But things could hardly have started worse for Hammers. In 10 minutes they saw Matt Taylor laid out when he got smacked in the face as Peter Crouch ­attempted an overhead kick, and then Joe Cole pulled a hamstring. But the two quick changes actually helped Allardyce as his side took control, Collins putting a header on top of the bar and Collison volleying straight at Asmir Begovic. Andy Carroll was troubling a Stoke defence missing their ­suspended giant Robert Huth, and he helped create the goal in first-half injury time. He and Ryan Shawcross clashed on the edge of the area and Ricardo Vaz Te reacted quickest to feed a pass through to Collison, who ­slotted it into the far corner. Stoke's Charlie Adam hit the bar with a 90th-minute volley and referee Moss turned down a penalty appeal when the ball hit Guy Demel's hand. Potters boss Tony Pulis said: "The ball definitely hit his hand, and inside the box, but there is a lot of debate about what is deliberate or not. "I'd have just liked that or another possible penalty ­decision to have gone our way. "It was disappointing ­because after a bright start, we petered out and didn't create enough."

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