Academy v. Fulham

Don't know how I missed this earlier in the week... From the Official Site

21/08/2007 09:00

West Ham's Under-18's narrowly lost out to their London rivals Fulham on Saturday in a game which saw them unlucky not to have taken all three points themselves.

A goal 12 minutes from time by the West London side broke the deadlock but on another day more deadly finishing from the young Hammers would have seen them through.

Yet heads were not down after the game, as West Ham's Director of Youth Academy, Tony Carr, explained.

"We just needed to be a bit more clinical in front of goal, he said. "We had chances and I thought overall we played well. So, while it was disappointing to lose, I was pleased with the attitude and the way went about the game.

"If we played poorly and lost, I would have been more worried, it was simply not being able to get the ball over the line."

Hammers started well creating chances and penned in the visitors for much of the first half but it remained at 0-0 at half-time.

After the break, Hammers again had the most of the opportunities to go ahead and Ben Hunt thought he had scored only to see his effort ruled out for off-side.
Freddie Sears saw a chance parried by the Fulham keeper and Jack Collison agonisingly hit the post with another good effort.

Anthony Edgar got away well on the left but just could not lift it over the keeper and several other chances followed, all scrambled off the line by Fulham.

It was a counter-attack that caught Hammers and resulted in the visitors taking home the points.

West Ham face an away trip to play Portsmouth this Saturday and Tony said there is a lot to take into this match.

"The result didn't go our way but we have a lot to build on. We will work on making sure we are more clinical in front of goal but can go into the Portsmouth game with a lot of confidence."

West Ham United: Street, O'Neill, Miller, N'Gala, Blackwell, Stanislas, Collison, Harvey, Edgar, Hunt, Sears
Subs: Payne, Lee, Fry, Ashman, Kearns