A 2-1 score line doesn't tell the whole story, as Tony Carr - who took the side in the absence of Roger Cross, who was ill - says:
"They scored from a penalty after Izzie miscontrolled the ball, went to get it back, and swears he did not catch the man, but he went down, and the referee blew.
"We also had a goal disallowed when a corner was headed clear, and Michael Ferrante knocked a good chip over Ed De Goey.
"But he had gone down injured, and, although I thought the ref was blowing for a goal, it was actually for him to get treatment and re-start with a bounce ball - he certainly wasn't fouled."
West Ham actually took the lead against a side containing a galaxy of stars - including Zola, who scored what Tony Carr describes as a free kick of "pure quality."
Chelsea also had Zenden, Terry, Bogarde, Morris, and Dalla Bona in their side, while in contrast, the Hammers fielded debutant Billy Mehmet, who scored the opening goal.
"He equipped himself very well," says Tony, "and overall it was a good performance - we played well and worked very hard.
"In the scheme of things, I'd say we were very unlucky not to get something from the game."
TEAM: Forde, Potts, Iriekpen, Soma, Minto, Britton, Ferrante [Johnson 85], Byrne, Courtois, Riza, Mehmet [Allen 75].