Team lineups: Bristol City v West Ham United 17 Apr 2012

 

Bristol City Starting line-ups
22	Dean Gerken
26	Richard Foster
36	Ryan McGivern
33	André Amougou
4	Liam Fontaine
21	Khalifa Cissé
17	Yannick Bolasie
14	Cole Skuse
37	Stephen Pearson
39	Chris Wood
9	Jon Stead
Substitutes
8	Neil Kilkenny
6	Louis Carey
1	David James
27	Albert Adomah
11	Martyn Woolford

WEST HAM Starting line-ups
1	Robert Green
5	James Tomkins
20	Guy Demel
2	Winston Reid
25	Danny Collins
14	Matthew Taylor
4	Kevin Nolan
16	Mark Noble
22	Henri Lansbury
12	Ricardo Vaz Te
8	Nicky Maynard
Substitutes
10	Jack Collison
18	Julien Faubert
21	Papa Bouba Diop
13	Stephen Henderson
11	John Carew

 

No Fear Of Hammers says McInnes

 

Derek McInnes takes his side into battle against high flying West Ham tonight knowing that a win would help them no end in their quest to stay up.

But while being all to aware what West Ham can do if they are allowed to play their game, he says his side have no fear of the promotion chasing Londoners.

The Hammers will be looking to pick up all the points to keep up their challenge for second place in the league which carries with it automatic promotion.

But City are not thinking about that, they have their own battle against relegation to fight and McInnes says that his team are up for it.

McInnes said to the Bristol Evening Post: ‘The game holds no fears for us. There is a real sense of anticipation about the fixture and there is a lot riding on it for both teams.

‘For all of that, the hungriest team will be in my dressing room and we are really looking forward to this fixture.

‘Regardless of whether we are playing a team at the top or bottom of the table, it is our performances that will determine where we finish.

‘The boys are itching to get going and that is always a good indication for any manager.

When you get to this stage of the season, you get a lot of players shying away from those situations.

‘But there is no fear in our squad and it is good to see a hunger and a desire among the players to influence things. The game cannot come quickly enough.’

 

Allardyce says promotion race is back on

Championship, 16:32, April 17, 2012

Sam Allardyce believes West Ham are now back in the hunt for automatic promotion following their 6-0 win over Brighton on Saturday.

The Hammers went into the match having gone seven games without a win at Upton Park but dominated Gus Poyet’s side, with Portuguese winger Ricardo Vaz Te the star of the show as he bagged a hat-trick.
The win means Allardyce’s men are now just three points behind second-placed Southampton and, with three games of the season remaining, the experienced boss is determined to make sure the race for automatic promotion goes to the final day.
“We are in the race still, and we have closed on Southampton’s goal difference which could be a factor,” he said.
“We have to make sure we still have automatic promotion to play for on the last day against Hull.”

 

Dylan doing well

Dylan Tombides will return to the training pitch on Monday as he continues his inspiring comeback

 16.04.2012

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Last July, Dylan Tombides was diagnosed with testicular cancer after a random drug test while representing Australia at the FIFA Under-17 World Cup.

After undergoing chemotherapy and major surgery, the 18-year-old striker is back in training at Chadwell Heath and looking forward to pulling on his boots again next Monday.

Speaking to the matchday programme, the rising star discusses the biggest fight of his life and thanks everyone connected with West Ham United for helping him through it.

So Dylan, two-and-a-half months after your surgery, how are things health-wise?

DT – I haven’t got the all-clear yet. It’s a time-line thing at the moment. I had a blood test the other day and that was my third since my operation. I need to get ten all-clears and that will officially tell me that I am clear of the disease. The doctors have told me that if I am likely to recur, it will be in the first year, and if I don’t then I should be cured for life. I’ve got another eight or so blood tests and other CT scans to go then hopefully I’ll get the all-clear.

How do you look back on the events of the previous eight months?

DT – Mentally it is frustrating because I still ask myself why it happened. Nobody knows why and I don’t think anybody will ever be able to tell me why it happened. It’s just the frustration of not being able to train fully and play games, of going from such an active lifestyle to relying on other people to do things for me. It wasn’t the best experience, but nevertheless it is something that I have gotten through.

You have been back at Chadwell Heath for a few weeks now working on your fitness. How helpful has that been with regard to getting things back to normal, physically and mentally?

DT – It’s getting back to normal, especially compared to what I’ve had recently. Seeing my mates and all the players and staff every day has been great. Whether or not I’m playing, it certainly beats sitting at home or lying in a hospital bed having cords linked up to me pumping poison through me. When I first came back, everybody was asking me ‘How are you doing?’ and ‘Are you all right?’ but now it’s much more normal conversations. People still ask me how I’m getting on and how I’m feeling and it’s great to know that people care.

How helpful was the support you received from both inside and outside the club in aiding your recovery?

DT – Obviously being on the bench in the Premier League raised my profile at the club and people knew what was going on. When I was ill and having my treatment, I always had club staff with me and people came to visit me after my operation and stuff. It was a good feeling. I got lots of cards from the club with messages from all the players written in them.

Academy physio Jon Urwin will run the London Marathon next week

Academy physiotherapist Jon Urwin has been particularly supportive, hasn’t he?

DT – Jon has been with me every step of the way, to every scan and every meeting I’ve had, making notes and helping me along to get fit again. Jon has kept an eye on me and made sure everything has gone right. He’s a top man. Jon is running the London Marathon for the charity Children with Cancer, which is a very good cause and we’re all very proud of him for doing it. I was the first person to sponsor him! – To sponsor Jon, click here.

What is your daily routine now, then?

DT – I usually go to the gym first and do some swimming, then I’ll go on the stationary bike or the treadmill or the cross-trainer. It’s a variety. Sometimes I’ll do it all in the morning and others I’ll do some in the morning and then the others in the afternoon. Next Monday I’ll get my boots back on and do some running on the pitch, so I’m looking forward to that quite a bit!

Are you feeling more like your old self?

DT – More and more every day, yes. Obviously I lost a lot of muscle when they cut me open through my abdomen, but it’s coming back.

What would your message be to anybody reading this whose lives are currently affected by cancer?

DT – Parts of it are physical but the majority of it is mental strength. It’s all about how much you want to stick in there and beat it. You have just got to want to stay alive and if you get that through your head, you shouldn’t have any trouble at all. If you have support from your family and friends, it helps. People are thinking about you all the time so you cannot let yourself get down in the dumps.

Dylan with Sydney Hammers chairman Robert Byrne

Since you’ve been back, you’ve been involved in plenty of events – meeting Jonjo Heuerman after his Bobby Moore Fund walk, helping the Media team as a pundit and welcoming the Sydney Hammers to the Boleyn Ground – so how have you enjoyed those roles?

DT – I’d do anything for the fans, just like any player would. They come to support us each week so you have got to give something back. They take their time and spend their money on tickets to watch you play and cheer you on. You’ve got to do your bit for them, too.

Your family have been truly fantastic through all of this, haven’t they?

DT – My family have been really good to me all the way through it. My Mum spent a lot of nights in the hospital because she didn’t want to be away from me, which was really nice. I know my Dad and brother (Taylor, who is a schoolboy player within the West Ham Academy) were thinking about me all the time and my family back in Australia were quite worried about me too and I’m grateful for all their support.

Finally, can you now start dreaming of making that Boleyn Ground debut again?

DT – It’s not far away. I can see it on the horizon and I’m looking forward to it!

 

Season Ticket Scandals: Top 10 Costliest Season Tickets

You only have to look at the money Chelsea splashed out on Fernando Torres to realise that football clubs are drastically unaware of the value of money.

Football clubs’ disconnect from reality unsurprisingly leaves football fans up and down the country as the biggest victims. Despite a struggling economy season ticket prices continue to rise every year, further taking the game away from the man in the street in favour of the prawn sandwich brigade.

So which clubs are the biggest offenders when it comes to over inflated season ticket prices? Here’s the top 10 in the Season ticket shame stakes:

 Arsenal – Unsurprisingly the priceyist of Premiership seats is found in the capital. Arsenal relocated to the Emirates in a bid to increase match day revenue to a level that could see the club continue to challenge on all fronts, and at an average of £1,470 a season ticket the desire to increase income has certainly been achieved. Whats sure to vex Gunners supporters is how little of this new revenue has materialised into new signings.

  Tottenham– Spurs never like to be far behind their North London rivals and their just one place below Arsenal when it comes to the cost of a season ticket. At a wallet busting average price of £1,245 for the right to take a seat for every home game at White Hart Lane, the club more than deserve their lofty position in this guide to England’s greediest clubs.

Chelsea– Continuing the capital theme the men of the King’s road are amongst those demanding a King’s ransom for the pleasure of watching 22 men kick a ball about. Despite their owner being a multi-billionaire seemingly happy to bankroll the blues spending, it would appear his generosity does not extend to the clubs supporters at an average season ticket price of £1,000.

 QPR – Not even a drop in prices after the arrival of Tony Fernandes could stop the Premiership newcomers taking their place in this guide to greed. To take a seat at Loftus road for 19 precious Premiership games will set you back on average £774.

 Liverpool – We finally leave behind London, for the time being at least, and take a trip to Anfield. This juggernaut of English football charge £757.50 a season for those lucky enough to be treated to a year of Downing, Henderson, Adams and co. While the football may not be up to standard this season, the famous Anfield atmosphere is almost worth the cost alone.

Manchester United – United may be lying first in the league table but they lag behind their North West rivals when it comes to average season ticket costs at £741. As the largest club ground in the country the Glazer family can still count on a match day revenue that every other club can only dream of.

Leeds – Incredibly we actually leave England’s top division behind all together when it comes to the 7th place side in this list. The Yorkshire side may still be one of the great names in English football but its becoming an increasingly long time since the club were even in the country’s top division never mind challenging for honours. Unsurprisingly Ken Bates is more than willing to take advantage of the sides loyal fan base with a staggering season ticket cost of £681 to watch second flight football.

Fulham – It will come as no great surprise that a club sharing an owner with an over priced London department store would feature in this list. £659 as an average season ticket price earns the Harrod owner’s club a place in this financial league table that is not dissimilar from the sides league position.

West Ham – We once again drop down a division to visit Upton Park at £638 on average for a years pass to the academy of football. The much maligned of late “West Ham way” may have justified such a price once upon a time but with success a distant memory and Big Sam at the helm it certainly doesn’t any more.

Ipswich – Yes, that’s right Ipswich round up this list. Undoubtedly the biggest surprise of this countdown is that the Tractor Boys, who currently languish in the bottom half of the Championship, charge an average 0f £619 a season ticket.

So Newcastle, Everton, Sunderland and Aston Villa next time your about to have a moan at the cost of next seasons renewal price just remember there’s always somebody worse off than you…

 

Sam challenges his Hammers

Allardyce: Message to Hammers

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West Ham boss Sam Allardyce fears his side’s season will go “down the drain” if they fail to beat play-off chasing Brighton at Upton Park.

Allardyce has labelled the game the most important in the Hammers’ season as they look to close the gap on the Championship automatic promotion places.

The east Londoners can cut the gap behind second-placed Southampton to three points after they lost 3-1 to Reading at St Mary’s on Friday night.

“We are more than capable of winning four games on the trot and it has to start with winning the most important game of the season so far on Saturday against Brighton,” Allardyce said.

“Otherwise we risk throwing a fantastic season down the drain.

“I have no doubt that there will be slip-ups between the top three before the end of the season but they can afford to drop points whereas we no longer have that luxury.”

Allardyce’s side have fallen off the pace following a seven-game winless run at home, six of which have been draws.

“We have slipped up enough in recent weeks by drawing too many matches and that has to stop now,” he said.

 

Brighton Looking For Favours In Unlikely Places.

 

Looking at the last four games of the season the importance of the West Ham game is clear. We have to win to keep any sort of Play-off hope alive. Minus the Tuesday night blip against Reading I would still back us to beat any team at home, Birmingham and Watford being no different. And with Barnsley looking as if they will be safe by the time we make the trip to Yorkshire the importance for a win this Saturday is even more crucial.

It would seem that Cardiff are the only team we will realistically catch now. I cannot see Ian Holloway allowing his Blackpool side to drop enough points between now and the rest of the season for us to catch them. Cardiff on the other hand have an interesting run in which sees them play both Leeds and Palace in the last two games. I would now like to take this moment, on behalf of all Brighton fans, to remind Leeds and those Red and Blue people from South Norwood how much we appreciate them.

I mean we even let Palace beat us at the Amex this year, as well as letting The Mighty Leeds United (Champions of Europe I’ll have you know) scrounge a draw. This in mind, I am hoping that both Palace and Leeds can do us a favour in the run in and… and… and win. There you are I said it. I want Crystal Palace Football Club and Leeds United Association Football Club to win. God football is a funny game!

There is one thing that can be guaranteed, Saturday will definitely end one teams dreams for the season. Victory for Brighton would see West Ham fall away from automatic promotion indefinitely, whilst victory for The Irons would see Brighton’s Play-off dreams dashed. Whilst a draw – useless for both sides at this stage in the season.

Who knows, if Brighton were to win on Saturday and the unthinkable was to happen with Palace and Leeds doing us favours it would appear that a trip back to Upton Park would be on the cards. This time in the Play-Offs, what an occasion that would be! Like I said before, football is a funny game and I can only write these blogs on my thoughts. At the moment my thoughts are on the Play-offs, as much as every BHAFC fan probably doesn’t want to admit it, I think we would all be a little bit gutted if we didn’t make it.

I can see the argument that we don’t have the easiest run in but, if we win on Saturday, I am willing to say we will do it. With good memories of Upton Park (mainly that Butters header in 2004) I will be travelling up to London on Saturday with the same confidence I had on my way to Burnley (how well that worked out!) After writing such a ridiculously up beat and optimistic blog, I will also be travelling to the GP in the morning. Something must be wrong!

 

1 September: Benefiet voor Kika en BobbyMooreFund

Za 1 september 2012
Tijd: 15:00 – 3:00
Entree prijs: €10,00

Op deze dag staat het geld in zamelen voor KIKA en de Bobby Moore foundation centraal er treden vanaf 15u allerlei muzikanten en zangers en bands op en s’avonds wordt er afgesloten met een paar lokale dj’s .

Waarom deze dag? Ik ben geïnspireerd door een 10 jarig jongetje uit Engeland en fan van West Ham United genaamd Jonjo Heuermann. Deze kleine held zamelt al een paar jaar geld in voor die stichting voor onderzoek naar kanker. Sinds dat hij zijn oma aan die verschrikkelijke ziekte heeft verloren ,en, ook zijn held en voormalig West Ham Legend Bobby Moore is ook aan deze ziekte overleden .
Jonjo is bijna heel het jaar bezig om geld in te zamelen door het organiseren van sponsorlopen , veilingen ,zelfs tot aan abseilen toe. Mede omdat wij ook te maken hebben met geliefden die we gaan verliezen aan deze ziekte heb ik in overleg met de rest van de organisatie besloten om ook iets te doen !

We hebben dus besloten en ook rekening houdend met mensen die momenteel tegen deze ziekte aan het knokken zijn om geld in te zamelen voor KIKA en de Bobby Moore Foundation. Ik weet zeker dat wij met zijn allen voor een onvergetelijke dag zullen zorgen en dat er een leuk bedrag ingezameld wordt namens mij en de hele organisatie achter deze dag die mee werken.
Bedankt voor de interesse en tot Zaterdag 1 september 2012 in de Bunker in Gemert . Franklin van Dalen, Frank Vogels, Hilco Dijns, Kees Koopen en alle vrijwilligers van de Bunker in Gemert

On this day we going collect money for KIKA and the Bobby Moore foundation center  With 15h variety of musicians and singers and bands and the evening is concluded with a few local DJs.

Why this day? I am inspired by a 10 year old boy from England and West Ham United fan called Jonjo Heuermann. This little hero collects a few years for that foundation money for cancer research. Since his grandmother has lost that terrible disease, and even his hero and former West Ham Legend Bobby Moore is also deceased from this disease.
Jonjo is almost all year trying to raise money by organizing a sponsored walk, auctions, even to allow rappelling. Partly because we are dealing with loved ones that we’re going to lose to this disease I have, in consultation with the rest of the organization decided to do something!

We have therefore decided and also taking into account people who are currently in the fight against this disease to raise money for KIKA and the Bobby Moore Foundation. I’m sure all of us for an unforgettable day and will ensure that there is a nice amount collected on behalf of myself and the entire organization behind this day that it works.
Thanks for your interest and Saturday, September 1, 2012 in the Bunker in Gemert. Franklin van Dalen, Frank Bird, Hilco Dijns, Kees and buy all the volunteers of the Bunker in Gemert

 

West Ham vs Brighton

Albion travel to fellow promotion contenders West Ham on Saturday in search of an unlikely victory that could help put their play-off push back on track.

Consecutive defeats have left the Seagulls on the brink of the play-offs, 2 points adrift of Cardiff in 6th. A win here would be a much needed boost approaching the season’s climax. Poyet’s men will, however, have to improve on their recent away form if they’re to achieve a result.

Allardyce’s West Ham have been under intense scrutiny this season, with many expecting them to have stormed the division given the players at their disposal. They still have a slim chance of auto-promotion, but the play-offs would appear their most likely route out of the division.

Vital Quotes:

Gus Poyet is looking for a reaction from his side in-front of a sizable Upton Park crowd. He told seagulls.co.uk..

‘I absolutely loved playing at West Ham. Ninety-nine per cent of the time the stadium is full, there is always plenty of noise and most footballers enjoy playing in that environment.

‘There is always something special about playing there because it’s a magnificent place to play football. The pitch is always perfect and that’s what you play football for.

‘I’m looking forward to seeing how this set of players react to playing at West Ham. It will be a great test and a chance to learn for the future of this club.’ ___________________________________________________________

Sam Allardyce is anticipating a different contest to the one against Birmingham on Monday. Speaking to their official site, he explained..

‘Brighton will want to come and express themselves more than Birmingham did so I think we will have to use a different method and different tactics to make sure that we don’t allow them to get in their flow and then we must pick off their weaknesses which we know they have.

‘What matters is what happens in both penalty areas; we need to make sure they don’t get in our box and when we get in theirs we must make sure we take our chances and win the game on Saturday.’

West Ham United Team News:

West Ham team news to be confirmed..

Player to watch: Ricardo Vaz Te

Signed from Barnsley in January, where he hit a goal every other game – Vaz Te has continued that scoring form for the Hammers. Full of pace and trickery, Albion will do well to keep the Portuguese live-wire at bay.

Brighton & Hove Albion Team News:

Liam Bridcutt looks likely to return to the heart of Albion’s midfield, having completed his 2-match suspension.

Craig Noone’s fitness is being monitored, whilst Joe Mattock should return to training on Friday – after missing out against Reading.

Tommy Elphick (achilles) remains on the sidelines with long-term injury.

Player to watch: Vicente Rodriguez

Vicente continues to exert his influence for the Seagulls, in an advanced playmaker role. The Spaniard has chipped in with a number of crucial assists in recent months, and will be hoping for more of the same at Upton Park.

Match Facts & Stats

Kevin Nolan pounced on a Liam Bridcutt error to score the only goal in a narrow Hammers victory at the Amex earlier in the season. Albion dominated possession, but were unable to break down their stubborn opponents.

The last two meetings at Upton Park brought contrasting fortunes for the Seagulls. In the 06/07 season, with two divisions separating the sides, Albion were on the end of a convincing 3-0 defeat in an FA Cup tie.

A few years prior to that, Guy Butters headed home to clinch a famous ‘backs to the wall’ 1-0 victory in a Championship clash.
Read more: http://www.bha.vitalfootball.co.uk/matchprere.asp?a=528727#ixzz1rr4403HR

 

Big Sam on: Brighton and Hove Albion

Sam Allardyce says Saturday’s visit of the Seagulls is a make-or-break fixture

 12.04.2012

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West Ham United manager Sam Allardyce has said his side are prepared for their biggest game of the season so far when Gus Poyet brings his Brighton and Hove Albion teamto Boleyn Ground on Saturday.

Speaking at his pre-match press conference, Big Sam made it clear that his side need four wins out of four in order to keep the pressure on the top two. Allardyce explained that the players are ready to put in the effort in order to keep up their challenge for automatic promotion.

With Southampton and Reading facing each other on Friday evening, West Ham could have the opportunity to close the gap on the top two when they face Brighton on Saturday afternoon.

With regards to Brighton they are still chasing a play-off place, what sort of game are you expecting on Saturday with both teams having so much to play for?

SA – I expect different tactics from Gus’s team from those Birmingham showed. Brighton will want to come and express themselves more than Birmingham did so I think we will have to use a different method and different tactics to make sure that we don’t allow them to get in their flow and then we must pick off their weaknesses which we know they have.

We need to exploit their weaknesses and make sure we win the game. What matters is what happens in both penalty areas; we need to make sure they don’t get in our box and when we get in theirs we must make sure we take our chances and win the game on Saturday.

Looking ahead to the next few weeks do you think there could be a major twist in the Championship before the end of the season?

SA – There could be yes. All we can do is make sure we win all our games and see what happens. We have slipped up enough in recent weeks by drawing too many matches and that has to stop now. We are more than capable of winning four games on the trot and it has to start with winning the most important game of the season so far on Saturday against Brighton. Otherwise we risk throwing a fantastic season down the drain.

I have no doubt that there will be slip ups between the top three before the end of the season but they can afford to drop points whereas we no longer have that luxury.We just need to make sure we win our four games starting with Brighton.

There could be a chance you could get automatic promotion then?

SA – If we win our four games we get 88 points. Last season 88 points won the championship so if we win them we will be very close to achieving automatic promotion. The players still believe that too. If anything in recent weeks the players have tried too hard to put things right. Sometimes when you try to hard you start to make more mistakes and I think that is what happened. At the end of the day we haven’t been losing but the run of five home draws was our Achilles heel.

Do you think this season’s title race has been one of the most exciting in recent years?

SA – Last year was pretty good with Norwich coming from where Reading have this season and they actually won the title. Reading have done it much earlier than Norwich did. We have to continue living with the pressure that West Ham brings and deliver the performances that will put West Ham where we need to be.

The team scored goals seven in two games over Easter. It is important that they have started scoring again isn’t it?

SA – It is very important yes. We scored two goals against Reading, four goals against Barnsley and three goals against Birmingham. Prior to Reading you would never have imagined this West Ham team conceding three or four goals which makes it even more frustrating. After our run of five draws we thought we had cracked it by scoring more. But as soon as our front men started putting the ball in the back of the net our defensive side went under and that surprised me a great deal that we allowed ourselves to let that happen.

We got ourselves in some fantastic positions during those games – especially Reading – but then to lose that game was shocking because our defensive game was so poor. Then, for the same thing to happen against Birmingham was just crazy. We have to be as good in possession and as good out of possession. If either part doesn’t work then you won’t win a game of football. The best teams in the country are the best teams at keeping the football; no-one ever talks about it because it always seems to be about attacking. But to attack you need the ball and that’s why these teams are the best.

In the second half against Birmingham the team came out fighting. Could that be a catalyst for the final games in turning one point into three?

SA – Hopefully yes. I’m concerned that the fact we haven’t won at home will still play on the minds of the players. But all we can do is continue to do the right things for the whole 90 minutes on Saturday and make sure we take our chances. If we do that we will win the game and if we don’t Brighton know that if we start making those errors again then they can capitalise on it. They’ve watched videos of us when we have performed well at home and not won because we have made too many mistakes.