Daily WHUFC News - 30th October 2017

Ladies secure QPR victory at Family Fun Day
WHUFC.com

West Ham United Ladies booked their spot in the next round of the WPL Plate
after a fantastic 3-1 home win against QPR. A Chloe Burr header and an Amber
Stobbs wonder-goal put the Hammers in control at half-time, but QPR were
back in the game just after the break thanks to a low shot. Chenise Austin
secured the win in the second period with a confident penalty. The Hammers
played some excellent football in front of a lively and engaged home support
at Rush Green as just over a thousand fans turned out for a Family Fun Day.
The opening chance of the game came early on as Molly Peters tested the QPR
goalkeeper from distance, before again seeing an effort go over from close
range after a goalmouth scramble. Amber Stobbs looked eager to find the net,
twice hitting the bar from distance, and it was the first of these that led
to the opening goal. After the N010 struck the bar Burr was on hand to head
home the rebound, giving the Irons a deserved lead. Stobbs again came close
when she saw a shot saved at the near post, while Jasmine Auguste stopped
QPR from threatening a leveller not long after Burr's opener when she made a
tremendous tackle in the box. And Stobbs found the net in stunning fashion
on the stroke of half-time, netting a looping effort from distance to put
the Irons in control going into the break. QPR halved the deficit just
moments into the second period as a low shot squeezed under Rowlands, but
seven minutes later West Ham again had a two-goal advantage. There was a
clear foul in the box and Austin confidently stepped up to dink a delightful
penalty kick into the top left corner. Rosie Kmita pulled an effoert just
wide of the far post while Chong attempted a spectacular volleyed effort, as
the Hammers sought to entertain the lively Rush Green home crowd.
Goal-scorer Burr went in goal for the final ten minutes of the match and
substitute Andreya Ezekiel-Meade twice went close, as the Irons held out for
a deserved 3-1 win.

West Ham United Ladies: Rowlands (M Kmita 79;); Mackie, Wheeler, Austin,
Auguste; Chong, Cooper (c), R Kmita (Ezekiel-Meade 75'), Burr, Stobbs
(Georgioiu 84'); Peters
Subs not used: Walker
Goals: Burr 15', Stobbs 45', Austin (p) 56'

QPR Ladies: Kasirye; Peacock, Young, Deluca, Chimbima, Lynch, Petit, Ismael,
Adeyemo, Knell, Netschova
Subs not used: Haridas, Gardiner, Young

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Chenise Austin: I love penalties!
WHUFC.com

Chenise Austin has proclaimed her love for penalties after the defender
netted from the spot in the 3-1 victory against QPR Ladies. Austin netted
West Ham Ladies' third goal of the match on Sunday from 12 yards to book the
Club's place in the next round of the WPL Plate. Chloe Burr and Amber Stobbs
had put the Irons into the lead at half-time but QPR got a goal back just
after half-time at the near post. But Austin's penalty - a delightful dink
into the top left corner - earned the deserved win for the Hammers in front
of over a thousand fans at Rush Green. And the summer signing has revealed
how much she adores getting the chance to score goals from the spot. "It's
one of those I quite enjoy doing," Austin told whufc.com: "It's a funny one.
I don't tend to get up quite often and get the opportunity to score, apart
from corners. I love a good penalty. "Don't tell anybody but I might go the
same place when I take the next one."

The centre-back says that the Ladies are delighted with Sunday's result,
admitting that the team let themselves down last weekend in the loss to
Crystal Palace.
Austin continued: "We're buzzing. We came into this off the back of last
weekend when we didn't have a good first half performance. Based on the
score-sheet we should have won today and we did so I'm happy. "We had a lot
of chances and we could have put away a few more. It was a sloppy goal we
conceded too but that's just the way it goes. It's another win under the
belt. Confidence is growing and the team is getting better. We're showing
what we're about."

Last weekend's defeat to Palace eliminated West Ham from the County Cups
which, according to Austin, makes this win against QPR all the more
important as the team pursues a run in the WPL Plate this campaign. "The
league is our bread and butter but you've got nothing to lose in a Cup game.
We are out of one already so we want to take this one as far as we can, just
like we try to in the league."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Manning: It's been an outstanding October
WHUFC.com

West Ham United U23s assistant manager Liam Manning was full of praise for
the Hammers' young professionals after they completed an outstanding October
in Premier League 2 Division 1 with a thrilling 2-1 victory over Manchester
City. Goals from Nathan Holland and Toni Martinez and a determined defensive
effort saw West Ham follow up victory over Manchester United and a draw at
Chelsea with a deserved win. After seeing his team rise to third in the
table, Manning discussed Saturday's success, the exciting football being
played by the U23s and Tuesday's Checkatrade Trophy tie at Bristol Rovers.

Our pressing paid off

I thought it was very exciting from the start, both teams attacked really
well and there were loads of chances and if the score had been 4-4 at
half-time, that would have been a fair reflection on the game. It was a
really exciting game and obviously we're really delighted to come out with
the 2-1 win and the three points. We spoke before the game and said there
was a big emphasis on getting after the ball and pressing them as we knew
they'd play out from the back in a way similar to their first team, and the
way Pep Guardiola plays. We wanted to put pressure on them high up the pitch
and we adjusted a couple of things at half-time, pushing Josh Pask further
up the pitch and had our full-backs Rosaire Longelo and Ben Johnson
(pictured, below) watching the wide lads slightly more closely and I think
it worked in the second half. We regained the ball in the middle third quite
a bit and set up a lot of attacks from there.

Our attackers carry a real threat

To give the players credit, we look a real threat going forward. It was
similar at Chelsea last week, where we drew 0-0 and obviously didn't score,
but the number of chances we created was probably enough to win two games.
Domingos Quina was a lot sharper in what was his second game back from
injury and our front lads carried a constant threat, as they have done all
season. Toni Martinez has got an absolute hammer of a right foot and it
doesn't surprise me that he scored another goal like that. Nathan Trott
(pictured, below) made numerous saves to keep us in the game and with his
feet as well, his distribution was excellent and helped us play out from the
back. He's doing well at the minute.

An outstanding October

We looked at the Premier League 2 Division 1 fixtures for October and knew
we had a really hard month, starting with Manchester United, then going to
Chelsea and hosting Manchester City, so picking up seven points from those
games was a real achievement from the boys and staff involved. We're really
pleased with that because it's a tough league and we're moving up.

We're ready for a different type of test

We were obviously delighted with Saturday's win, but now our focus turns to
Tuesday night and a Checkatrade Trophy tie against a senior League Two team
in Bristol Rovers. That's what is brilliant about the games programme this
season - we play against one of the best young teams in the country and now
we'll be playing against seasoned professionals who know all the little
tricks needed to win them games. It's a completely different challenge and
playing these games outside the international windows is a big difference
from last season, which helps us massively. Hopefully we'll go to Bristol
Rovers and get the win, because that'll put us through to the next round.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
'Bitterly disappointed' Joe Hart impresses again in Palace draw
WHUFC.com

West Ham United's Joe Hart was "bitterly disappointed" his side could not
hold out for a win against Crystal Palace despite a sensational showing by
the goalkeeper. Finishes from Chicharito and Andre Ayew put the Hammers in
control at half-time but a penalty from Luka Milivojevic and a late Wilfried
Zaha effort earned the Eagles a 2-2 draw. Zaha's 97th minute leveller was
particularly harsh on Hart, who had put on a brilliant showing to deny
Palace a number of opportunities. The 30-year-old made an amazing double
save in the first period to deny James Tomkins and then Zaha in very quick
succession, and also fantastically tipped away a Yohan Cabaye free-kick in
the second-half. Unfortunately, despite Hart's best efforts, it wasn't
enough to earn the Irons a first away league win of the campaign. "I can't
believe we've done that," Hart said after the game: "I can't believe we've
fought all the way to the end and then been so unprofessional at the end.
"It's a little bit speechless in the dressing room. No one does things on
purpose in this team but it's two points dropped - as simple as that. I
hadn't switched off but it was a good finish by Zaha, through legs, and I'm
bitterly disappointed."

Hart made seven saves for West Ham in the draw at Palace, easily a league
high, with Jonas Lossl of Huddersfield Town closest to the England
international with four. Four of those saves by Hart were diving, with the
shot-stopper making some great efforts to keep out Palace in the contest.
Furthermore, Hart claimed the ball a massive seven times, each without fail,
in the contest, showing just how dominant in his area the goalkeeper can be.
The West Ham goalkeeper has given credit to Palace for their effort in
fighting back but has called on the team to learn from their errors in time
for the next match, against Liverpool. He said: "Football's a funny game. I
thought Zaha and Sako played well and, in giving credit to them, I thought
we played well. You've got to keep the ball in the corner, it's that simple,
and you can't let people keep running through you and getting chances.
"Today counts for a point but that's about it. We learn simple things. We
obviously shouldn't have given away a penalty so early in the second half.
Mark Noble said at half-time that on Wednesday we were 2-0 down, and the
game was by no means over. "Palace fought well and we're disappointed. But
we've got to learn from it. The beautiful thing about football is it gives
us another chance next week to play at home, against Liverpool, and we have
to iron out the negatives and take the positives, and move on."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Ayew - We'll learn from our mistakes
WHUFC.com

Andre Ayew says West Ham United will learn from their mistakes after letting
a two-goal lead slip through their grasp at Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Ayew's superb 20-yard strike doubled the visitors' advantage at Selhurst
Park after Chicharito had opened the scoring, with West Ham seemingly on
their way to a second win in four days. But Luka Milivojevic's penalty five
minutes afrer the restart gave the Eagles hope, eventually leading to
Wilfried Zaha's heartbreaking leveller seven minutes into stoppage time.
Ayew admitted that conclusion to the contest left the 2-2 draw feeling like
a defeat, although he said it is important that they don't dwell on the
disappointment with another crucial game aganst Liverpool to come next
weekend. "It felt like a defeat," he said. "We're disappointed. It was a
tough game, and it's always difficult to hold to the end when you come out
after half-time and concede a goal inside the first five minutes. "They had
opportunities, but we're disappointed that it ended 2-2. We need to forget
about the disappointment and correct what we did badly in the second half
when we play Liverpool next week. "We didn't hold the ball as well as we did
in the first half and that put our defenders under pressure the whole time.
We'll learn from that. "The response to Brighton has been not bad, because
of the victory we had at Wembley, but to be honest we should have left
Crystal Palace with three points and had two wins in a row."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
LONDON STADIUM ARTICLE-APOLOGY!
AUTHOR: EXWHUEMPLOYEE. PUBLISHED: 29 OCTOBER 2017 AT 7:27PM
TheWestHamWay.co.uk

We would like to issue an apology for an article that was written by one of
our writers about the London Stadium. It included incorrect facts about the
financial situation of the stadium operators. We would like to apologise
for any misunderstanding that has occurred and the facts should have been
checked before we reported them.

Our articled stated that the operator of London Stadium is close to
bankruptcy. VINCI, are the operators of London Stadium. E20 are the owners
of London Stadium. We re-reported other reports of financial distress at
E20, the stadium owners, without verifying the facts of the matter. For
clarity, E20 is owned by LLDC and the London Borough of Newham. They in turn
awarded a 25-year contract to VINCI to operate the stadium. E20 are not the
operators and have no shareholding in VINCI. Similarly, VINCI has no
shareholding in E20.

There is no financial distress at VINCI and this should have been made clear
in the article.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
JAMES COLLINS- ONE MORE YEAR?
AUTHOR: EXWHUEMPLOYEE. PUBLISHED: 29 OCTOBER 2017 AT 5:56PM
TheWesTHamWay.co.uk
Written by Andy Phipps @andyjphipps

I'm writing this in the aftermath of the 2-2 draw with Palace and whilst the
subject may seem a little premature, I can't help but look to the future
right now. In the words of the band D:Ream, things can only get better.
Considering we'd most probably take Fulham's Tim Ream over the excuses of
centre halves that we've got at the moment, I make no apologies in creating
a discussion about tying down one of our better club assets. For another
year at least.

Okay, I accept that if there was a fountain of youth then we'd throw the
Ginger Pele straight into the deep end for a good few hours, regardless of
whether he had hair to wash or not. Time is against him now. Having turned
thirty four when we played Cheltenham, it would mean that he would be as
good as thirty five when we kicked off next year. As you'd expect, some of
his pace and movement has gone even if his positional sense and ability to
read a game is still top notch. Those who remember the James Collins of
2005-2009 will fondly recall his marauding ability to make a perfectly timed
slide tackle that most full backs would be proud of, let alone a six foot
four centre back with tank like tendencies. Again, this is part of his game
that has disappeared with the wear and tear of injuries and the passing
years.

Now, if you've ever seen an episode of Top Gear, you'll know the formula
that's followed whenever Jeremy Clarkson reviews a car. If he hates it, he
starts off praising it to the ground and then wrinkles his nose and says
that he doesn't 'want one' and how you can get something else for a much
cheaper price. Predictably, the opposite is true when he does like the car.
The inside panel is made of plastic, it's 0-60 is way over ten seconds but
it makes him feel like he's twenty again and all he wants to do is put the
pedal down and drive somewhere. Anywhere, it doesn't matter. That's exactly
how I feel about James Collins.

The thing about James Collins is that, like Mark Noble, he embodies the old
school West Ham spirit of putting in a shift and having respect for the
fans. Not only does he put his head through anything that dares to be
floated in front of him on the pitch, he will regularly go and talk to fans
afterwards and give his shirt away to a youngster. I remember a game, a few
years ago, when he received an injury that looked like it might lead him to
being stretchered off. After a good while, Collins was brought to his feet
and he seemed to 'run off' whatever had been inflicted upon him. Whilst we
don't want players to exacerbate an injury by displaying unnecessary
bravado, it was certainly a sight to behold. In the dressing room, it has
been commented that he has a huge amount of influence on the team. A man of
few words, one can imagine that he doesn't suffer fools gladly but drives
everyone to do their best, much like Zabaleta does. This was evident at the
end of last season when Sam Byram had a cracker of game against Swansea and
Nobes and Collins were slapping him on the back and rubbing his hair.
Judging by Sam's reaction, this meant a lot.

We all know West Ham fans love a bit of passion and nostalgia, let's be
honest it's our cat nip, but it's still clear that he has something to
offer. When Collin's gets fit again, there will be few that wouldn't put him
straight in our team. Yes, he will make the odd mistake but it won't be for
the want of trying- unlike many others we could name. Even next year when
one prays that we make some signings (we've got enough dead wood to have a
bonfire on the fifth, he makes for a handy back up player. In spite of some
niggling injuries, he also looks after himself well and stated himself that
he follows Teddy Sheringham's advice of not reducing your training intensity
just because you're older. With Fonte lacking the kind of cool head and
composure that he had playing for Southampton and Ogbonna showing that
scoring a last minute goal against Liverpool doesn't make you a world class
defender (Yes, I'm looking at you fans who seemed to think so), he's still a
great option.

So yeah, for me, give him an extra year. I don't think it's too early to do
this. The reward of a new contract will galvanise him and show that he's
wanted at the club, allowing him to focus on his game and hopefully salvage
something from an all too familiar shockingly bad season. Whether we are in
the Prem or (dare I say it) taking a cold trip to Barnsley on a Tuesday
night, he'll perform admirably for us. I remember when we went down in 2003.
Even at the tender age of thirteen, I thought that a thirty six year old
John 'the Maggot' Moncur would be a real asset for us for our promotion push
with his grit and determination. Sadly, Glenn Roeder released him and
brought in the injury prone Rob Lee whose spirit was willing but flesh was
weak at the eye watering age of thirty seven. A good player? Reasonably, but
just not on his game anymore. Collins would provide what we need wherever we
end up. With a change of manager looking more and more likely, whatever
happens, I think he'd be a real asset to anybody coming in. So to me it
makes sense. Sign him up.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Why Burnley's Sean Dyche would be an excellent appointment at West Ham
HITC
Antony Martin

The Burnley manager has been linked with West Ham United over this past
week. Slaven Bilic is an extremely popular figure amongst Hammers fans,
mostly because of his strong affiliation with the club as a player way back
in the mid 90's. Irrespective of how popular he is in east London though, he
must start to string together a strong run of results, if he is to remain in
charge at West Ham. Clarets boss Sean Dyche is a man who has been heavily
linked with the job at the London Stadium, and it is little wonder,
following the excellent job that he has done during his time at Turf Moor.
The Daily Mail go as far as claiming that the Hammers are already preparing
a financial package to lure him away from Lancashire. So would the
46-year-old be a good appointment at West Ham, if Bilic does of course lose
his job? The clear and obvious answer is absolutely yes. Most notably
because first and foremost, Dyche knows how to organise a team defensively
and tactically, something that Bilic seems rather unable to do. The
46-year-old has a fantastic understanding of how to get his players working
together as a unit, and defend as a team, with nobody having a so-called
'free role' in his side. And whilst Hammers fans love to see open, expansive
football played, their shambolic defending of late must be infuriating to
watch to say the very least. Dyche is also a superb motivator and
man-manager - two attributes that the Hammers desperately need in their
manager, with the amount of overpaid prima donnas currently at the club.
Most importantly, however, Dyche has a clear philosophy of how to play the
game, and with his growing reputation in football, he will undoubtedly be an
absolute coup for whichever club manages to secure his services.
And one thing is for sure, West Ham could do a lot worse than the
46-year-old Burnley boss.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Slaven Bilic press conference: Every word from the West Ham boss on Palace
draw & Antonio error
The Hammers boss wasn't in the best of moods in his press conference after
the Eagles' late goal
Football London
Sam Inkersole
18:35, 29 OCT 2017

What happened there?

You saw. Nobody can say they [Palace] didn't deserve a point. It was a good
performance in the second half and got that first goal very early. We were
under pressure, we knew we would be but hoped that we would exploit the
space we had towards the end of the game. We had, I don't know how many
situations to keep the ball or punish them. They had scored before from set
pieces or Zaha and Townsend before but to concede the goal in that manner is
very frustrating. All we had to do was keep the ball five seconds in that
position. But, the last couple of minutes we made a couple of, lets say
wrong decisions, once. We didn't keep the ball in the last seconds, we
wanted to make a cross to score instead. They made a good move after that
but we gave them opportunity but we shouldn't have done that. We should have
killed the game off, we didn't and we should have kept it, we didn't, it was
very fustrating. Two mistakes for the goals, does that make it even more
frustrating Yes.
We had some players who played on Wednesday night and they were tired as the
game went on. Unfortunately we had to make a couple of subs we didn't want
because of the injuries. We maybe wanted to put one extra man in midfield in
the second half because those three played 90 minutes a few days ago but we
couldn't do it because of those substitutions. But anyway, it's more
frustrating because we gave them the opportunities to create and put us
under pressure. We had Joe Hart who was excellent in goal so what I am
saying is everything was there for us to take three points and it is
frustrating to give it away like that.

Have you spoken to Michail Antonio?

Of course, he knows that now. He knows that he is the one that can keep the
ball one v one on the line forever, you know? But unfortunately he opted for
a cross.

Do you expect more from experienced players?

Of course but it is a team game, you know.

It is unusual for Mark Noble to get involved in a skirmish like that at the
end?

I didn't see it so I can't comment

But it is out of character for him?

I didn't see it.

At the end, you were so close, you looked very emotional.

I was, of course I was. We knew how important this game was after Brighton
and after Spurs game, we knew it was going to be hard when 2-0 up thanks to
great goals. We took the ball out of them in great spaces, the first goal
was a brilliant move and then we went 2-0 up and we thought three points,
but we gave that penalty too early for them to get back in the game. We
resisted but to concede like that is a killer. It feels like a defeat but it
isn't and wasn't a defeat at this point.
The players gave everything again. They ran, defended, some of them played
90 minuets three days ago, I saw them struggling with energy but wanted to
close them down and we were doing that. That goal [Zaha's] has nothing to do
with attitude or being sloppy or anything, not in my position. It was just a
bad decision that shouldn't happen at this level of football. Nothing to do
with the atittude.

Could you sense it coming?

No because we went there, Mikey he went there with no ideas of going towards
the goal, for a few seconds he was keeping the ball there. Then we had a
player in the box, I think it was Lanzini and they didn't run back, it
looked like although it was very far from the bench that he was going to
keep it a few more seconds.
But we can talk about it now, he should have kept it. Very frustrating, it
[the three points] was there.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Javier Hernandez admits all of his West Ham goals have disappointed him so
far
West Ham fans have immediately welcomed Javier Hernandez to east London
Football London
Kevin Beirne
17:00, 29 OCT 2017

Javier Hernandez has admitted that although he loves scoring goals, he is
left disappointed each time he scores for West Ham because they have not won
his team any games. The Mexican striker arrived in east London to high
expectations and much fanfare as his signing was heralded as a sign of the
club's ambition to push on and challenge to so-called big clubs. But so far
in his brief Hammers career, things have not been quite so simple for
Chicharito. The 29-year-old has scored four goals so far this season and was
on target again yesterday as West Ham were held to a 2-2 draw by Crystal
Palace. Hernandez's goal had given his side the lead before Andre Ayew
doubled the Hammers' advantage over their London rivals but the home side
would fight back and earn a point in stoppage time with the last kick of the
game. Speaking after the game, Chicharito says he would swap his goals for
points if he could as the Hammers have picked up just one point from the
three games in which he has scored. "It's nice and it gives you lot of
confidence," he told the club website. "I'm a striker and goals give you
that but the goals I have so far for the team haven't got us points or a
victory so far, so I'm a little disappointed also. "I always say I'd prefer
to win matches and change those goals to points. But yeah it was good
feeling for Andre Ayew and me. We are both strikers and we scored one goal
each."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
'I can't believe we've done that' - Joe Hart brands West Ham's Crystal
Palace capitulation as 'unprofessional'
By talkSPORT - @talkSPORT
Sunday, October 29, 2017

Joe Hart branded West Ham's late capitulation at Crystal Palace
"unprofessional" and said it left his team-mates lost for words. Hart was
unable to stop Wilfried Zaha scoring a 97th-minute equaliser at Selhurst
Park to complete a dramatic comeback and deny West Ham a morale-boosting
victory. Javier Hernandez and Andre Ayew had put the Hammers two up at
half-time, but Luka Milivojevic converted a penalty early in the second
period before Zaha's stoppage-time strike earned Palace a 2-2 draw. Hart was
unfortunate not to finish a victor. The England goalkeeper pulled off a
string of excellent saves, including one with his finger-tips to keep out a
James Tomkins header late on. "I can't believe we've done that," Hart told
the official club website. "I can't believe we've fought all the way to the
end and then been so unprofessional at the end. "It's a little bit
speechless in the dressing room. No one does things on purpose in this team,
but it's two points dropped - as simple as that. "I hadn't switched off, but
it was a good finish by Zaha, through legs, and I'm bitterly disappointed."

West Ham came under sustained pressure in the last 10 minutes, but they were
naive too at the end. "You've got to keep the ball in the corner, it's that
simple, and you can't let people keep running through you and getting
chances," Hart said. "Today counts for a point, but that's about it. We
learn simple things."

Zaha admitted Hart looked unbeatable, but his shot into the far corner
ensured Palace avoided defeat for only the second time this season. They
remain bottom of the table, however, with West Ham just five points better
off. "It was beginning to look impossible to beat him," Zaha told the
official club website. "We did in the end though and managed to get a very
important point for us."

Zaha's goal was his second in three games as he continues to enjoy the new
role further forward given to him by manager Roy Hodgson. The 24-year-old
says he also feels the extra weight of responsibility playing up front. "I
do at times feel that pressure from the stands and get nervous at times as
maybe people expect too much from me," Zaha said. "But I don't mind that and
I take it on and do what I have to do for the team. In my current position
in the team I know I don't make the normal striker runs, but it's been a bit
easier because it gives you a bit more of a free role. "It allows me to pick
the ball up deeper from the midfielders and take on the centre-back and if I
go past them it is just the goalkeeper and I have enjoyed it so far."

Palace visit Tottenham next weekend, while West Ham host to Liverpool.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

http://vyperz.blogspot.com