West Ham United reserves v Chelsea reserves
Barclays Premier Reserve League
Woodside Park, Bishop's Stortford
Wednesday 24 November 2010
7pm
Referee: Ian Cooper
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Alex Dyer's reserves lose out in a competitive derby but there were many positives to take for the coach, with Zavon Hines in particular getting a strong 70-minute run-out on his first start for eleven months. The No10 had put the home side in front from the penalty spot on eleven minutes but the Blues battled back through Jacob Mellis (25) and Aliu Djalo (36). Even a red card for Mellis on the hour could not help the home side with the visitors standing firm.
Full time - West Ham United 1-2 Chelsea
90min - Last minute now...
90min - Ninety seconds left and Lee flashes a shot over. Off comes Jacopo Sala and on comes George Saville.
90min - We are playing four minutes' added time. Brown is penalised for a foul on Borini. Yellow card for the No3
90min - A second change for the visitors. On comes Ben Sampayo for Deen-Conteh.
89min - Chelsea counter and run down more of the clock. Frustrating for the Hammers, especially as they have had some good chances in the match.
87min - Chelsea look like they will hold on. Defeat will be harsh on the home side, who have certainly given their all.
85min - Twenty seconds later and Boffin gets down to deny Borini.
84min - Two good saves in quick succession from Boffin. Lalkovic would have expected to score from one of his close-range chances.
82min - Can the Hammers find an equaliser? Tombides lashes a centre into the box but it is cleared. Chelsea counterattack but Boffin is ready and sees the threat early.
80min - So near. Lovely play from Nouble to win the ball and then switch the play to Turgott. The England U19 man then crosses just too long for Nouble who had kept on running into the box.
79min - Irish youth international midfielder Eoin Wearen comes on for Abdulla. Chelsea, meanwhile, replace Djalo for Daniel Philliskirk.
78min - Still no way through for the home side. Chelsea are getting plenty of men behind the ball. Turgott nearly got in round the back but the visitors are able to clear for a corner.
76min - Dyer is shouting advice to his players. He has urging them to get back into the game and they are certainly putting in the effort.
74min - Montano is furious. He appeared to be bundled over just as he was about to latch on to Lee's defence-splitting pass.
72min - Nouble is unable to get to a decent cross. The move began with bright play from Lee, who is growing in stature. The extra man might soon count if the Hammers can keep the ball moving.
71min - Barely 30 seconds later, Tombides has his first touch - a great shot at goal. So nearly a dream introduction for the tall forward.
70min - In a minute, Jordan Brown has shown some good footwork going forward and back. Here is the change. Hines is going off after a terrific 70 minutes and on comes Tombides. Spence has the captain's armband.
69min - Dylan Tombides - the weekend match-winner against Arsenal - is about to come on, probably for Hines. The Australian striker has been doing well this season and this will be his reserve-team debut.
67min - This time Borini takes the free-kick. Again the outcome is the same with the wall doing their job.
66min - Boffin comes out of his area for a high lofted ball. He ends up crashing into the on-rushing Lalkovic and leaving him flat-out on the floor.
65min - Nice play from the Hammers but Dyer is calling for sharper passing. The move broke down with Lee just failing to find the killer pass into the strikers.
64min - Lalkovic takes the free-kick but once again the Hammers' wall stands firm.
63min - To their credit, Chelsea are still showing lots of ambition. Hines is penalised for a foul after tracking back to the edge of his own penalty area.
60min - Mellis is shown a red card for kicking out at Abdulla off the ball. Could this swing the game firmly in the Hammers' favour.
57min - Paul Groves is also among the coaching contingent. There are loads of scouts as well, with the Football League loan deadline coming tomorrow until the transfer window.
55min - The Hammers are the stronger side at the moment. Nouble nearly gets on the end of a loose Chelsea back-pass.
54min - Lovely pass from Olly Lee sets Turgott away but he is stopped by a contentious Chelsea challenge. The visitors counter and see a Mellis shot deflected wide for a corner. The referee waves away their handball shouts. Corner to Chelsea.
53min - Two good blocks from Nouble underline his commitment. A third tackle though sees him concede a foul against his former team-mates. He shares a joke with Djalo.
51min - Hines and Nouble are dropping deep to look for the ball. The No10 will value every minute he gets after such a long time out.
50min - Dyer's men are looking determined. The coach has clearly had a few words at half-time.
48min - Spence goes close again with a fine header from an Abdullah corner. Just cleared off the line by Aziz Deen-Conteh. Should be 2-2.
47min - Both teams have had a go this half already. I don't think we have seen the end of the scoring.
46min - We are back under way. Hines and Nouble get things started but how long each plays remains to be seen.
Half-time - West Ham United 1-2 Chelsea
46min - How did that stay out? Right-back Spence does brilliantly to get into the area and eventually to the byline. He cut inside and flashed a low shot that only just eluded two team-mates before only missing the far corner by a whisker.
45min - Lalkovic tries his luck but his shot goes well wide. We are going to have one added minute.
44min - Foul on Hines. He has posed a threat when the ball has been forward but he has had to be patient. Not too many chances for him since his goal.
43min - In fact Chelsea nearly make it three. Djalo jinks into the area evading a couple of tackles before shooting just over. Boffin probably had it covered.
42min - Doesn't look like we will get an equaliser before half-time. The Hammers working hard which will please Dyer.
41min - Kevin Keen and Tony Carr are watching proceedings. Keen will be particularly interested in Hines' progress.
38min - Chelsea have dominated since they equalised. The Hammers need to get back to the bright form they showed in the opening stages. Plenty of time left, however.
36min - GOAL! - A quick counterattack from Chelsea finishes with Djalo bursting through the middle and giving Boffin no chance.
35min - Abdulla takes a free-kick wide on the left. He lofts it into the area for Spence. The No2 rises well but cannot direct the header on target.
34min - Hines nearly gets free but great defending from Archange Nkumu stops him entering the area.
32min - It isn't getting any warmer. Wrap up well if you are going to the Wigan game this Saturday.
30min - By the way, we are playing in a 4-4-2 formation with Turgott and Montano wide right and left. Lee is at the point of the diamond with Abdulla holding. The latter loses possession in midfield and only good work from Eyjolfsson sorts out the danger.
29min - Things have calmed down a little. Montano won a free-kick with a rare burst forward but the play has been mostly in the middle third. It isn't getting any warmer.
27min - Chelsea are looking dangerous with Borini - having played in the UEFA Champions League against MSK Zilina this season - looking a particular menace.
25min - GOAL! - Mellis equalises with a low shot from 20 yards. Boffin got there but could not keep what was a firm strike out of the net.
24min - Borini lofts one into the area with pace but Boffin is equal to it. Good take.
23min - Holmar Orn Eyjolfsson does well to recover after a mistake. He has been pretty solid otherwise.
22min - Chelsea are on top at the moment. They are putting together some good passes and Ruud Boffin has had to come and claim a couple of high crosses.
20min - Questionable free-kick to the visitors. Turgott was harshly adjudged to have fouled Lalkovic on the edge of the penalty area. Lalkovic himself takes it but crashes the free-kick straight into the wall.
19min - Sergio Sanchez does well to clear Chelsea danger. From the resulting corner, Nouble heads away.
17min - Booking for Milan Lalkovic. Olly Lee took a free-kick and he had not retreated far enough.
16min - Play restarts with a new ball after the previous one went soaring somewhere towards the M11 from a Chelsea shot. Hines then beats three men in midfield before being fouled. Great footwork.
14min - What a pass from Hines. The No10 dropped deep and switched play superbly with a 40-yard ball. Montano then picked out Nouble but the No9 missed with his header. Turgott kept the move alive with another fine cross but a defender got there just before Nouble.
13min - The Hammers have just about deserved that. They have been the better of the sides in what is a compelling contest. Chelsea have plenty about them to do well tonight.
11min - GOAL! - Cool as you like, Hines scores with a firm finish to the keeper's left. That will do his confidence the world of good.
10min - Penalty to West Ham. Billy Clifford handball. Hines is going to take it.
9min - Aliu Djalo has a shot for Chelsea. It is deflected wide for their first corner. Fabio Borini takes and it eventually falls to Jacob Mellis. The No8 strikes the ball cleanly but it fizzes well wide.
8min - Good touch from Hines to kill the ball in the area. He feeds Nouble but his shot is comfortably saved by Sebek.
7min - What a pass from Turgott. He splits the Chelsea defence and Cristian Montano runs through from the left. His shot looks goalbound before a last-ditch leg clears the danger. From the resulting corner, Jan Sebek is able to claim in the Blues goal.
6min - Neither side has found their feet in truth. The surface is fantastic though and a good match is in prospect.
4min - Nouble is back defending. Alex Dyer's men are all up for the fight tonight.
3min - Well done Spence to stop Gokhan Tore. The Chelsea No11 tried to jink his way into the box but the right-back was alert.
2min - All eyes on a chilly night in Essex are on Hines but Frank Nouble is the first to show real attacking intent. He drives into the box but the visitors snuff out the danger.
1min - Zavon Hines is the captain tonight and he won the toss. Chelsea are going to get us under way. They do so and instantly the Hammers win possession with Blair Turgott making ground on the right.
Welcome to Woodside Park for tonight's return to Barclays Premier Reserve League action against Chelsea. The most notable name on Alex Dyer's team-sheet is Zavon Hines, back for his first start in eleven months. It has been a busy day for the Hammers with the confirmation of Wally Downes working with the club as a defensive coach.
West Ham United: Ruud Boffin, Jordan Spence, Jordan Brown, Ahmed Abdulla, Holmar Orn Eyjolfsson, Sergio Sanchez, Blair Turgott, Olly Lee, Frank Nouble, Zavon Hines, Cristian Montano
Subs: Deniz Mehmet, Callum McNaughton, Dylan Tombides, Eoin Wearen, George Moncur
Chelsea: Jan Sebek, Billy Clifford, Nathaniel Chalobah, Archange Nkumu, Aziz Deen-Conteh, Jacopo Sala, Aliu Djalo, Jacob Mellis, Milan Lalkovic, Fabio Borini, Gokhan Tore
Subs: Sam Walker, Daniel Philliskirk, Ben Sampayo, George Saville, Anton Rodgers