Noble - It will feel very strange against Tonks

 

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Having played alongside one of his best mates in football for over 15 years, Mark Noble says it will be a weird feeling when he lines up against James Tomkins for the first time in a competitive game.

Both players progressed through the West Ham Academy and became close friends as they made their way into the first-team and became a key part of the squad.

The duo experienced a number of memorable moments together including the victory at Wembley over Blackpool back in 2012 which helped the Hammers gain promotion back into the Premier League.

Tomkins made a big decision during the summer to leave the east London Club as he was not guaranteed first-team football and made the switch across London to join up with former manager Alan Pardew at Crystal Palace.

The Hammers skipper says it will be an emotional day coming up against his former team-mate, but says he has to earn the bragging rights as Tomkins still lives down the road and bumps into him all the time.

Noble said: “It will feel very strange on Saturday having played alongside James for so many years.

“I say playing but looking after him for so many years!

“I got him out of a number of situations on the pitch but I would like to put him in trouble on Saturday!

“It is a shame he had to move on but that is football and it is very common for things to happen like that.

“He is 27 and wanted to play regular first-team football. It is a big loss for us because it is not just how good he is on the pitch, but the impact he has around the training ground. We have to move on now and good luck to him.

“He lives down the same road as me so we see each other a lot. But when we are on the pitch the main focus for me is getting the three points.

“He is a great lad and we get on so well. But you have to accept these things and we need to get the win on Saturday.”

Noble admits he would love to repeat the impressive 3-1 win over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park last season, but says he would welcome any kind of victory as the team look to move away from the bottom three.

Noble added: “It doesn't matter who scores or what the score is, we just want the three points.

“There is always a great atmosphere at Selhurst Park with a small intense crowd. I played under Pards and Kevin Keen is now one of the coaches so it will be a good game.

“It is not ideal for us to be in the bottom three but we will try our best to push up the table and get our season going.”