Friday, August 31, 2007

 

Bits & Bobs

My attempt at the year's gayest post title....

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Kyel Reid scored a screamer for the reserves as they went down to Villa. The team also featured John Paintsal and Jimmy Walker.

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Apparently Yossi & Masher were both impressive for the scouse against Toulouse

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McCartney limped off with a calf injury against Bristol Rovers the other day but hopes to be right to play at Reading. Scott Parker also hopes to be involved after ruling himself out of a comeback last week after a training set back. Dyer was to set to pull off a shock return until a scan revealed he has abnormal physiology with a *2nd* bone in his lower leg :)

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We've been linked with Joe Cole after he had a bust up with Mourinho, bs factor approx 9. We still hope to do deals with Barnes & Shorey with Mullins now offered to Reading to sweeten that deal. Reading may even agree to a loan deal.

Adriano deal looks to have died (cue Dave's told ya so).

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Anelka has signed a new deal with Bolton.

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

 

No Reading Coverage at Pig n Whistle this week

Just a note to let you guys know that the Pig n Whistle will not be showing the Reading game this weekend due to functions for Riverfire. We will meet up again at the pig for West Ham vs Middlesborough 15th September.

Also if anybody is interested England's game vs Israel will be shown at the pig on Evening Sept 8th/morning 9th kick off 2 am.

 

Club Confirm Talks With Adri-fucking-ano

Update...from The Independent

West Ham ready to take gamble with £15m Adriano

"West Ham officials were in Milan last night to negotiate the permanent signing of the Brazilian striker Adriano in what could turn out to be the most surprising deal of the summer transfer window.

Talks initially started over a season-long loan for the 25-year-old, who is out-of-favour at Internazionale. However, both he and the Italian champions have made it clear they would prefer a permanent transfer and West Ham have been encouraged to push ahead, although they face competition from Lazio.

The striker's £80,000-a-week wage demands are not regarded as a problem by West Ham, although they were still trying to agree a fee last night, with Inter hoping to receive more than £15m for a player who has fallen dramatically down the pecking order.

West Ham have also lodged a formal £5m bid for England international left-back Nicky Shorey and are hoping to hear later today whether it has been accepted. However, Reading are continuing to indicate they will not sell until they have signed a replacement – even though Shorey has pleaded with them to let him leave and will not sign a new contract."

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http://www.whufc.com/articles/article.php?page_id=9430

"Following speculation in the press West Ham can confirm we are holding talks with Inter Milan over striker Adriano.

The figures that have been quoted in the media are inaccurate as the possible deal is in it's early stages and money has not yet been discussed. The club are investigating the possibiity of a loan deal at this stage."

 

Dyer Broken Leg, No Deano

All over 2-1 but not exactly convincing.

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Bristol have pulled one back with 20 mins to go :(

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2-0 up, Bellamy again on the stroke of half tme. Another great finish. Neill involved.

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Update, Bellamy just smashed in a cracker. 1 nil up.

Lineup: Wright, Neill, Gabbidon, Ferdinand, McCartney, Dyer, Mullins, Bowyer, Boa Morte, Bellamy, Zamora. Subs Green, Etherington, Cole, Noble, Collins. Noble replaced Dyer after his injury.

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Listening to a radio stream and 20 mins in we are under the kosh from Bristol Rovers.

Dyer is suspected to have broken 2 bones in his lower leg and has been taken straight to hospital. Tackle looked innocuous apparently. Fuck me we have some injuries, especially to new players after join us. No wonder we have trouble attracting players. God must be a yid ;-)

In terms of Deano, snipped from the match thread on KUMB

"DEAN Ashton who was expected to start in West Ham's Carling Cup tie at Bristol Rovers tonight, has had to pull out of the match, after his partner went into labour with the couple's first child earlier today. The striker did not travel with his team-mates to the Memorial Ground after it was clear that the newest member of the Ashton family was set to make an appearance and manager Alan Curbishley allowed Dean to stay behind with his partner instead. Dean will be back in the squad for the Hammers' trip to Reading in the Barclays Premier League on Saturday."

Monday, August 27, 2007

 

Deano to Start Cup Match?

Reports are suggesting that Dean Ashton will get his first start of the season in tomorrow night's league cup match away to Bristol Rovers. Hopefully he will get himself on the scoresheet and make Curbs realise that he should be starting in the League vs Reading on Saturday.

Good luck Deano.

Sunday, August 26, 2007

 

West Ham 1 Wigan 1

We probably deserved more than a point given our weight of possession but at the end of the day you have to convert it to goals.

In terms of team selection the only change from last game was Neill in for Spector. I am really starting to get pissed off that Alan2 continues to prefer Zamora to Ashton. Bobby, while lively today, squandered chances. His first shot went out for a throw in, he totally fluffed a chance at the far post and failed to turn possession inside the box into shots.

We dominated the 1st half and perhaps should have had a penalty when Noble was held back in the area...it may have been given but after being held back Noble tried to make certain of it and went to ground theatrically which may have turned the ref off.

Bellamy, Dyer & Matty were generally giving their back four nightmares and you just knew we would rue going in at half time still on level terms.

After the break Wigan to their credit sorted their marking at the back out and neither Matty or Dyer showed anything like the threat of the 1st half. The half was pretty 50/50. Eventually on the hour AC caved in to the crowds Deano chants (Ashton that is, not Brishammer McGrath who isn't exactly match fit) and he replaced Zammo. Ashton looked good in his half hour, its amazing how he always gets his head on to balls pumped in high and he does a great job of using his body till he finds someone in space.

Curbs then made a straight swap Bowyer for Mullins and a little later LBM for Bellamy. Both of these were proved to be inspired substitutions with both involved in some promising chances. However Wigan went ahead on 78 mins thanks to a freakish Sharner overhead..at least if we had to concede it was to someone in my fantasy team ;-) .

We responded well and it was only 3 minutes before LBM put through a great little ball that Bowyer finished well into the far corner.

Despite going after a winner it wasn't to be and we had to settle for a point.

I have to say that Wigan made us look good in the 1st half as they were dreadful and we have work to do if we are to trouble quality teams.

Green 7 - not a great deal to do but made a great save in the 2nd half.
McCartney 8 - impressed me and had a couple of shots that belied the fact he has never scored.
Upson 6 - he certainly ain't quick but did just enough
Anton 6 - didn't have to do a great deal
Neill 5 - poor. Gave it away several times and looked like he needs time to get back in the groove.
Matty 7 - starting to get back to his best. His confidence is up.
Mullins 6 - run of the mill Mullins
Noble 7 -lively but not as effective as his motm display last game.
Dyer 8 - scary quick, particularly in the 1st half.
Bellamy 8 - ditto, he will score goals this year and win plenty of pens.
Bobby 6 - effort was ok but finishing was shite.

Ashton 7 - must start now!!
Bowyer 7 - good value and probed away dangerously. Took his goal very well.
LBM 7 - finished last season well and this was also encouraging


Friday, August 24, 2007

 

Brisbane Hammers vs Wigan @ Pig & Whistle

Dave talked to Arj who confirmed they will have our game on at the Pig, however the audio will be turned down for the 1st half due to existing function committments.

If you plan on being there this Sat vs Wigan, let us know in a comment to this thread.

The next official meet ups will be vs Boro Sept 15th & vs Arsenal Sep 29th.

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

 

Derby Accept £7m For Giles Barnes?

No official word yet but it would appear that Derby have accepted our bid of
£7m for midfielder Giles Barnes. He is young (19) and pacey and from what I saw of him last season he is quality and a good pick up. I have heard somewhere he was currently injured.
We do seem to be amassing a stack of midfielders...Parker, Noble, Dyer, Ljungberg, LBM, Matty, Bowyer, Mullins, Quashie and now Barnes.

What we need is fullbacks or at least cover. Neill & Spector on the right but only McCartney on the left. We need a left back sharpish, and there are also plenty who think Spector isn't up to it.

Only a week and a half until the transfer window closes, one left back and one striker please.

Sunday, August 19, 2007

 

One Nil To The Cockney Boys

We opened our account for the season with a 1-0 win away to Birmingham thanks to a Mark Noble penalty. It could easily have been more and certainly should have been 2 with on debut Dyer not putting away a gilt edged chance in the last few minutes.

Our line-up was Green, McCartney, Ferdinand, Upson, Spector, Etherington, Noble, Mullins, Dyer, Zamora, Bellamy. When Gabbidon came on for Spector later on it gave us an all British line-up.

I won't give full ratings but I thought Noble was superb. Mullins & Upson were both guilty of turning it over at times. As was Dyer tho he was quite lively on debut. Green was super safe when called upon.

Somehow the fantasy league bonus 3-2-1 votes went to Ridgewell , O'Connor (what an ugly bogan he is) and all we managed to sneak in was Green for 1 pt. If Noble wasn't best on ground, I'm not here!

The penalty to me looked clear cut. Bellamy got a touch of the ball, the keeper didn't and brought Bellamy down. Doesn't matter where in the box it occurred, that's a penalty all day long. We are now a team with loads of speed and I'm sure this won't be our last penalty for the season.

During the interviews afterwards, Bruce did nothing but complain. He bitched and moaned about the penalty. He bitched and moaned about us not playing during the week when they had to. Tosser.

Seperated at Birth?



In other news ex-hammer Jeroen Boere has found dead in his house in Spain overnight. Cause of death not yet known.

Saturday, August 18, 2007

 

Brum vs West Ham this Saturday (Brisbane Hammers)

With Foxsports active it seems that almost every game is going to be available live for us to watch. I don't think it is realistic that we have official meets every week as many of us have families & finances to juggle.

As such I think our next official Brisbane Hammers game should be vs Boro on September 15th & then Arsenal on 29th.

However I encourage you to go along to the pig n whistle and watch the games if you wish to - you are more than welcome to go along this weekend and watch the Birmingham game. If you are going to be there for either the Brum or Wigan games feel free to let people know in the comments of this thread.

As most of you know a few of us (including myself) danced on the line with regards to the pig n whistle's hospitality last weekend. As far as I'm concerned the business with the Spurs fans should end here and we should put the whole thing down to a bit of excitement & over exuberance from both parties with new season getting underway and a few of us (again from both parties including myself) drinking more than we should.

Having spoken to the manager there are a couple of things they are not happy with that are a threat to future attendances. It has been identified that one or two people persistently spit in the pub. The pub management know who you are (they have it on video), you know who you are and if it continues the pub will ban individuals concerned. Please refrain from spitting in the pub grounds - I have been told there will be zero tolerance on this matter and if it happens again just once it will result in a ban.

Thursday, August 16, 2007

 

Dyer deal done?

Apparently this is back on after a fee was agreed late last night for 7M.

Alot of money yes but could prove a good signing if he stays injury free. We definately need fresh faces so it's a welcome one for me.

 

Who asked micky to play for his church league side?

Someone on Saturday asked Micky to play in their football team but he doesn't know their name. Micky says he is available this week so please could you email him on palmerinoz@iinet.net.au to tee this up.

Sunday, August 12, 2007

 

West Ham 0-2 Man City

We're off to a disappointing start to the season thanks to a couple of goals from Man City new boys. Despite plenty of possession and some flair West Ham could just not create any decent chances - every time a good move was on something would happen to intervene. Still, some positives to take from the game.

Player ratings (these might be out of whack because I haven't seen any kind of game for a few months!)

Green 5 - It pains me to say it but he was pretty ordinary. Couldn't have done too much more about the goals but just unconvincing throughout.
Ringo 6 - Awful start but put in a very respectable performance once he got into the game. Some good work with his teammates.
Upson 6 - Horrible, and costly error for the first goal but other than that I thought he did pretty well.
Ferdinand 5 - Prone to the odd mistake. Didn't look like he cared too much.
Spector 6 - Good, but lacked control. Tired towards the end.
LBM 6 - Promising. I hadn't expected much but he did all right down the left and put in the odd strong tackle.
Noble 8 - Excellent performance, hard working, some really classy passes and footwork. I've had a look at a couple of player ratings sites and he's not getting any decent ratings - maybe I was watching a different game but I thought he was very good.
Freddie Mercury 6 - We had high hopes and he didn't disappoint. Room for improvement, knowing what he can do, but some good signs. Glad he's with us.
Bowyer 5 - No impact.
Zamora 6 - A frustrating game for the angry young man. Plenty of ball but always seemed to make the wrong decision, misplace a pass, or get caught offside. Wasn't helped by somewhat picky linesmen and ref.
Bellamy 6 - Showed what he can do at times but drifted aimlessly.

Mullins 6 - Adequate.
Etherington 7 - Threatening.
Ashton 6 - Clearly rusty, and has had a visit to Advanced Hair I think because his crown seems to be a lot less shiny. High hopes for him this season though.

Curbs 6 - We needed somebody in the box who can head a ball, which is where Ashton might have come in handy from the start, with Zamora used as an impact player which I think is best for him. Kind of pointless substitution with Mullins as it brought Ljungberg out of the game and put more pressure on Spector, who was getting tired.

Saturday, August 11, 2007

 

West Ham vs Man City Live on Foxtel - Brisbane Hammers to the Pig n Whistle once again!

***Sticky post - please scroll down for more recent articles***

Our opening fixture of the 2007/08 season at home to Man City 11th August is live on Fox Sports - midnight kick off EST.

The Brisbane Hammers will be out in force @ the Pig n Whistle as they were for our run in last season - usual 10pm meeting time.

Be there or be square!



There will I'm sure be comings and goings in the West Ham squad between now & then but hopefully this will not deter our preparations for the big kick off. It is imperative we get off to a good start and avoid the struggles of last season.


Pig n Whistle
123 Eagle St
Brisbane

 

Canberra Hammers @ The City Club

Posted on behalf of Danny. I'll be there and a few others should be showing up too.

CANBERRA HAMMERS

WHU v Man City - 11 Aug 07
11.45 pm kick off

Match Live at "The City Club"
Lower Level, Garema centre
Garema Place, Civic
Ph. 6248 8917


Page 'Danny Brosnan' at reception and I will sign you in.

Any probs or questions please Call Danny Brosnan on (02)6127 7203 at work or 0416 053135 after hours or Email at Work: daniel.brosnan@defence.gov.au

hope to see you there....

C'MON U IRONS !!!

dB

 

Perth Hammers - West Ham -v- Manchester City

West Ham -v- Manchester City

Saturday August 11, 2007
10 pm kick off

Floreat Athena Football Club, Litis Stadium, Britannia Road, Mt Hawthorn. Free admission - families welcome. {Game will start straight after Sunderland-v-Spurs [7:45pm]}

 

Adelaide Hammers @ The Rosemont Hotel

msg from Westham5096 (Paul)

we here in Adelaide would like to get together at the Rosemont Hotel in Hindley St, for the first game against Man City. We will be there from about 9pm onwards and would really like to see all the crowd that we had for the end of last season attend so we can get things up and running for the new season.

Thanks from Paul and Kaye here in Adelaide.

Friday, August 10, 2007

 

Every game live on Foxtel

I can confirm that as of tomorrow foxsports active will allow you to watch any 3pm kickoff game by pressing the red button and selecting which match you want to watch. Tomorrow there is a choice of 5 live games.

This is awesome! So we will now have every hammers match live in Australia!

Wednesday, August 08, 2007

 

Neill & Parker - Update

"Lucas unfortunately twisted his knee when blocking a shot in training, and at first we feared that he may have suffered significant damage to his medial ligament," head of physiotherapy George Cooper told the club's official website.

"However, the scan results are far better than predicted and show that there is more damage to the muscles around the knee than the actual medial ligament itself, which has actually sustained only very, very minor damage.

"He has already made fantastic progress since sustaining the injury and will definitely be back in action inside a month.

"He is now working hard alongside Scotty Parker, who is also making excellent progress from his knee injury, and the two of them are really pushing each other, so I'm certain we will see them back in action very soon."


Tuesday, August 07, 2007

 

FOXTEL INTERACTIVE (Choose your Live game) coming soon to OZ???

A guy on West Ham Online (johnyoz) has stated that FOXTEL are soon going to announce the facility to choose which Saturday 3pm kick off game you want to watch via the interactive feature like they do for Rugby currently.

This would be awesome if true - we'll be able to watch every single hammers game live. Watch this space. :-)

Monday, August 06, 2007

 

Fat Sam: Dickhead Extraordinaire

So Sam Allardyce has been flapping that enormous gob of his again, and strike me pink if it isn't another load of wank.

"In the end we decided he was under-valued and escalated it and West Ham didn't want to roll with us over what we thought was realistic. So he is back with us - a top player with a squad that is growing. It's life isn't it? He has got a contract. You can go back and get on with it. It is not a hard life is it? It is pressurised, but it is not a hard life. He will come back and do his best and go forward. If anything happens in terms of West Ham increasing their offer then great, but if they don't, they clearly don't value him as highly as we do. They're not as upset as we are with West Ham. That is private and confidential, but if Curbs started it then we are more upset than they are and that is a fact."

 

Schwarzer in Brisbane Hammers Hat! The elusive photo!



Finally I found a photo of Mark Schwarzer with that Brisbane Hammers hat I put on his head at the pig n whistle. I got it off the book launch official photographer's site (hence the watermark). Anyway was good for a laugh - he took it well! :-)

 

Hammers 2 - 1 Roma

Yes you did read it right - unless you read it that we lost cos we didn't we won! Second half goals from Dean Ashton & Linda McCartney turned around a first half deficit after Guily opened the scoring in the 13th Minute.

Can't say too much about the game as I haven't seen it but quite a result and a confidence booster going into the new season.


West Ham United V Roma 04.08.07 SSN Match report
Uploaded by fredFiftyFour


West Ham United: Green (Wright 46); Neill, Ferdinand (Gabbidon 86), Upson, McCartney; Ljungberg (Pantsil 74), Bowyer (Cole 86), Noble, Boa Morte (Etherington 28); Zamora (Ashton 46), Bellamy (Mullins 78). Subs unused: Spector, Collins, Walker, Davenport, Reid.

AS Roma: Curci, Panucci, Mexes, Aquilani (Vucinic 70), Totti (Nonda 77), Taddei (Alvarez 77), Giuly (Pit 84), De Rossi (Barusso 77), Esposito (Brighi 56), Tonetto, Kuffour (Cassetti 46, Rosi 60). Subs unused: Bertagnoli, Andreolli.

Att: 26,425

Sunday, August 05, 2007

 

Tevez Move A Reality

I'm sure everyone knows but for the sake of completeness I thought I'd better post it.

We have agreed to transfer Carlos Tevez's registration for a fee of 2m.

It has been a long roller coaster saga since it began on transfer deadline day last August and I'm sure everyone is happy that the uncertaintly is now over and we can get back to focusing on the start of the season.

However I'd like to say that I loved watching Carlitos play and admired the 110% he put in during every single minute he was on the pitch. He provided some magic moments not least of which was his drought breaking goal against the yids and his celebration after. It had me running around my living room like a nut job with tears in my eyes

cheers Carlos.

Thursday, August 02, 2007

 

Seasons Expectations

After the dramas of last season and given the current team what are your expectations for this season?

For me I think the teams shaping up ok. Still think we need another striker, a creative midfielder and a LB. However, whether we get any other new players or not I'd still expect us to be pretty competitive this season.

Seems to me that Curbs is trying to develop a solid side and something to build on in the future, which I'm happy with.

Given the current team I'd be happy with a mid-table to top half finish and TBH I think anything less would not be good. Any thoughts?

Wednesday, August 01, 2007

 

Norwich vs West Ham - Live on Setanta Wed 1st August

The Norwich friendly this week is live on setanta sports.

4:30am is a little early for the pig n whistle but the game is replayed at 15:45pm so make your excuses to get off work early (I'm "going to the doctor") and join me for a beer at the pig n whistle. I'm going to stay away from the score and watch it as live - Look forward to seeing anybody who wishes to join me :-)


Pig n Whistle
123 Eagle St
Brisbane