In an exciting encounter at Upton Park, the powerful striker
fired a blistering opener inside the opening five minutes and then
added a second just 10 minutes later to leave the Hammers in poll
position and heading for their first victory of the season.
However, Villa dragged themselves back into the game with a goal
just minutes before the break and netted twice in the space of nine
second half minutes to complete a stunning comeback and leave the
hosts facing a fourth successive defeat in the Barclaycard
Premiership Reserve League South.
In his last official match in charge of the reserves before taking
on his new role as Alan Pardew's First Team Coach, Kevin Keen
was able to field a strong side, as Harewood partnered Carlton Cole
up front, with England goalkeeper Robert Green continuing his
progress between the sticks after injury.
Adding further experience in front of Green were defenders John
Pantsil and Tyrone Mears, making their comebacks from knee and calf
injuries respectively, while Northern Ireland international
left-back George McCartney appeared in a Hammers shirt for the
first time after recovering from a knee ligament injury sustained
while with Sunderland last season.
Christian Dailly was the senior figure in midfield, with youngsters
Tony Stokes, Kyel Reid and Hogan Ephraim adding youthful
enthusiasm, although Stokes gave a sign of his potential by
continuing to captain the side after his impressive performance
against Arsenal's second string last week.
And it was Stokes who had the first goalscoring chance of the
evening, as Cole's clipped cross from the left was nodded down
by Ephraim into the six-yard box, where the skipper was on hand to
toe-poke an effort goalbound. Goalkeeper Robert Olejnik only
managed to palm the ball out to Harewood, who then saw his fierce
effort from 12 yards out somehow blocked by a defender.
Just moments later, though, Harewood was celebrating his
long-awaited first goal of the season, and in stunning style, as
his 25-yard screamer flew past Olejnik into the top left hand
corner of the net at the Centenary Stand end.
Three minutes later, Marlon should have made it two, but failed to
connect with Reid's inch-perfect cross from just six yards out.
However, on 16 minutes, he did double his tally, as a corner from
the right was only cleared out to the edge of the penalty area and
Mears fired in a low effort that was hooked into the net from close
range by the Hammers striker.
Seconds later, Harewood almost completed a stunning quick-fire
hat-trick with a clever flick from Reid's cross that sailed
just past the post and, with Hammers surging forward at every
opportunity, it appeared only a matter of time before a third goal
would arrive.
However, after somehow managing to escape the opening half an hour
with just the two goals conceded, it was Villa who hit back against
the run of play, just two minutes before half-time, when a curling
cross from the right caught the Hammers back-line flat-footed and
striker Christian Kabeya ghosted in to nod the ball past Green.
The strike out of the blue clearly had a galvanising affect on
Villa, who began the second half in determined mood and thought
they had claimed an equaliser just seven minutes in, when striker
Chris Sutton, recently signed from Celtic, climbed above Mears to
head a free-kick past Green. Thankfully, though, referee Stretton
spotted that the former England star had fouled his marker.
On 61 minutes, the impressive McCartney made way for youth team
defender Lorcan Fitzgerald, while Villa replaced their scorer
Kabeya with Adam McGurk and, just moments later, the two
substitutes were involved in the incident that led to the visitors
drawing level.
Fitzgerald was adjudged to have tripped McGurk just inside the box,
and midfielder Craig Gardner sent Green the wrong way with his spot
kick.
Further changes were then made, as Jack Collison came on for John
Pantsil, and with the game opening up following the departure of
our two full-backs, Villa took full advantage to net what turned
out to be the winner.
Another of Martin O'Neill's former Celtic stars, Didier
Agathe, gained possession on the right and sent over a deep cross
that McGurk forced home at the far post to make it 3-2 and earn the
plaudits as a genuine super-sub.
Harewood was denied the chance to rescue a point with a hat-trick
goal after being replaced by Junior Stanislas on 79 minutes -
perhaps with an eye on Sunday's mouth-watering trip to White
Hart Lane.
The unfortunate Hammers reserves may have trudged off the pitch
disappointed after failing to secure their first win of the
campaign, but Alan Pardew will have headed away from Upton Park
boosted by the possibility that last season's top goalscorer
may well have received the confidence boost in front of goal that
will hopefully transmit to the Premiership this weekend…
Teams:
Hammers: Green; Pantsil (Collison 76), Mears, Ngala, McCartney
(Fitzgerald 61); Ephraim, Stokes, Dailly, Reid; Harewood (Stanislas
79), Cole. Unused: Blackmore, Jeffery.
Villa: Oleknik; Green, Cahill, Bouma, Bridges; Agathe, Osbourne,
Gardner, Berger (Stieber 81); Kabeya (McGurk 64), Sutton (Lund 74).
Unused: Henderson.
SEE MARLON'S GOALS AND HIGHLIGHTS OF THE MATCH TOMORROW, EXCLUSIVELY ON WHUTV...
Minute-by-minute:
3 - Cole races down the left and sends in a deep cross to the far
post that is nodded down by Ephraim to Stokes, whose toe-poke is
blocked by the goalkeeper, with the follow up effort from Harewood
somehow cleared by a defender.
4 - GOAL! Harewood cracks a stunning strike from 25 yards into top
left-hand corner of the net. West Ham United 1 Aston Villa 0.
7 - Reid cuts free on the left and delivers an inch-perfect cross
that shaves the head of Harewood on the edge of the six yard box
and flies out for a goal-kick.
13 - Berger's shot from the edge of the penalty area flies just
wide of the post.
16 - GOAL! A corner from the right is met by Dailly, whose header
is cleared off the line to the edge of the box, where Mears fires
in a shot that is flicked home by Harewood. West Ham United 2 Aston
Villa 0.
17 - Reid's cross from the left is met by Harewood, whose
clever flick flies just wide.
23 - Pantsil's pass into the channel finds Harewood, who fires
a first time shot just wide of the target.
31 - Sutton breaks clear in the penalty area but drags a cross-shot
wide of the target.
39 - Sutton almost releases Kabeya in the box but Pantsil gets
across to clear.
43 - GOAL. Villa pull one back as Paul Green's cross drops
behind the defence and the unmarked Kabeya nods past Robert Green
from six yards out. West Ham United 1 Aston Villa 1.
Half-time: West Ham United 2 Aston Villa 1
Second Half:
52 - Sutton heads a deep free-kick past Green from six yards out
but the goal is ruled out after the striker is adjudged to have
fouled Mears.
55 - McCartney's cross from the left is only cleared to the
edge of the box, from where Stokes sends a dipping volley just
inches wide of the post.
56 - Osbourne booked for a foul on Ephraim.
61 - Substitution for West Ham United, Fitzgerald on for McCartney.
64 - Substitution for Aston Villa, McGurk on for Kabeya.
65 - GOAL. After Fitzgerald's foul on fellow substitute McGurk,
referee Stretton points to the spot and Gardner steps up to convert
the penalty and level the scores. West Ham United 2 Aston Villa 2.
66 - Substitution for West Ham United, Collison on for Pantsil.
72 - Robert Green does well to hold on to a deflected 25-yard shot
from Cahill.
74 - GOAL. Villa turn the match on its head as a deep cross to the
far post is stabbed home by substitute McGurk. West Ham United 2
Aston Villa 3.
74 - Substitution for Aston Villa, Lund on for Sutton.
79 - Substitution for West Ham United, Stanislas on for Harewood.
81 - Substitution for Aston Villa, Stieber on for Berger.
82 - Ephraim's cross from the right is headed just wide by
Stokes from eight yards out.
89 - Stokes fires high over the bar from 20 yards out as Hammers
search desperately for an equaliser.
90 - Green gets down to superbly tip a low effort from Gardner
round the post for a corner.
90 - Green comes to the rescue again with a stunning full-length
save to keep out Stieber's snapshot volley.
Full-time: West Ham United 2 Aston Villa 3.