COLCHESTER UNITED XI v WEST HAM UNITED XI
DEVELOPMENT SQUAD MATCH
MONDAY 19 DECEMBER 2011
KICK-OFF: 7PM
Final score - Colchester United XI 1-3 West Ham United XI
91 mins - Colchester win a corner. It's taken short but nothing comes of it as the final whistle is blown. Keep an eye on whufc.com and West Ham TV for exclusive reaction and highlights.
90 mins - Plenty of positives tonight. O'Neil has completed 80 minutes, Three goals. A come-from-behind victory. Welcome pitch-time for the likes of Ruddock and Moncur. Very good.
87 mins - Ladapo gets the better of Sanchez, but when he passes the ball inside, West Ham easily clear their lines.
84 mins - Moncur gets forward at pace and he's sent through on goal. Cousins comes out and makes another smart save. Without him, the Hammers could have scored six or seven goals tonight.
83 mins - Ladapo has replaced Gillespie and now Arnott is replaced too, with Redgrave on in his place.
81 mins - Colchester have also made a change and substitute Ladapo is involved immediately, testing Kurucz from 25 yards. The corner is cleared and West Ham break at speed. Brown overlaps and gets into the penalty area, but his cross-shot flies over the top.
80 mins - O'Neil goes off. He's had a good night. Leo Chambers replaces him and will play in midfield. Another change from the Hammers sees Matt Fry come on for Jordan Brown at left-back
78 mins - O'Neil has gone back to the left of the midfield. Nouble is on the right, with Bunjaku joining Montenegro up front. The new system sees Nouble get in behind on to Driver's pass but his cross just eludes O'Neil.
77 mins - West Ham are playing with some real style now. They are zipping the ball around with confidence and Colchester are hardly getting a kick. One move must have been of at least 30 passes. Quality stuff.
74 mins - That could be 4-1! Driver is fouled by O'Toole and O'Neil nearly catches Cousins out with a viciously swerving effort that the goalkeeper does well to keep out. That was a Ronaldo-style strike from the West Ham midfielder.
72 mins - Bunjaku does well, collecting a pass down the line from Driver before beating his man and being fouled. O'Neil's free-kick is deep but collected by Nouble. He turns, runs and crosses, but it's way too strong.
67 mins - Ruddock ends his night by being booked for a lunging challenge. For a second, it looks like the new boy has been sent-off, but he's actually being replaced by substitute Alban Bunjaku.
64 mins - Driver is a real threat going forward. He cuts inside on to his left foot and shoots from about 20 yards. The ball thuds on to the front of the stand roof. Moments later, Colchester attack and Gillespie has the ball in the net, but he's been flagged offside.
62 mins - I have just spotted what I think is a 'Zumba' class going on in the sports hall next door! Or maybe it's line dancing? I can't quite tell from here! Whatever it is, there are dozens of people dancing from side to side! It's quite a sight! Meanwhile, Turgott is replace by Nouble.
61 mins - Gillespie smashes his free-kick straight into the wall.
59 mins - O'Neil certainly isn't playing like someone who is going to be replaced. He is haring around the pitch and fully involved in the play. Meanwhile, Sanchez is penalised for a push and Colchester have a free-kick 22 yards out. Dangerous.
55 mins - Sanderson's corner is to the near post and gets a flick, but thankfully the ball hits the side-netting. I assume O'Neil will play for 60 minutes tonight, but we shall see. Sanchez is back on again.
54 mins - Colchester finally show through Gillespie. Sanchez gets back in and slides the ball behind for a corner. He might have hurt himself in doing so as the physio is on. It might be his groin.
53 mins - Hendon will be even more delighted with that! West Ham have been dominant since the break, but the coach could never have dreamed of getting two goals inside six minutes!
51 mins - GOAL! They're like London buses! Ruddock does superbly again down the right to win a free-kick. O'Neil takes and whips the ball in with real pace. Wearen has the simple task of heading past Cousins from six yards.
51 mins - Hendon will be delighted with that. West Ham have started on the front foot and been rewarded.
49 mins - GOAL! That is a great goal! Abdulla passes square to Sanchez, who has got forward to halfway. He rolls the ball in for Ruddock, who dummies and allows Montenegro to collect in space. He takes a touch, turns, looks up and plants a low shot past Cousins into the bottom right-hand corner.
48 mins - No sign of any changes from Hendon, so O'Neil plays longer than 45 minutes for the first time since his return.s
46 mins - The second half is underway and West Ham immediately go on the offensive. Hendon won't want his side to start the second half slowly.
Half-time score - Colchester United XI 1-1 West Ham United XI
45 mins - Turgott is caught offside again from Sanchez's diagonal pass but before the free-kick can be taken, the half-time whistle is blown.
42 mins - Colchester have another corner as Sanchez does superbly to cut out a low cross from right-back White. The No2 had got in behind Brown from a nicely-weighted pass from Olufemi.
39 mins - West Ham lose the ball in midfield and Colchester threaten through Coker. Corner. Wearen clears before Ruddock shows his pace to make about 40 yards down the middle of the pitch. Just when it looks like he might go coast to coast, he is taken out inside the centre circle. Great pace from the No9.
37 mins - The Hammers are really threatening now. Ruddock crosses and Baldwin's header is up into the air. Montenegro sets himself and tries the overhead kick. The ball flies wide of the post with Cousins a spectator. Unlucky.
36 mins - West Ham have markedly improved since O'Neil went to right and they should lead. Montenegro's touch sends Turgott through and he's in on goal. He is inside the box when he shoots, but Cousins is out quickly to make the save.
34 mins - Controversy! A bouncing ball seems to be easy for Kurucz, but Gillespie thinks he's handled outside the box. Loud appeals but nothing given by assistant referee or the man in the middle. Moments later, Olufemi lets fly from all of 30 yards but his shot flies harmlessly over the crossbar and into the car park.
33 mins - Montenegro always makes things happen. Now he's rushing a defender into making a poor back pass and then he's charging down Cousins' clearance and forcing a throw. Brown collects the ball but his low cross is cut out.
31 mins - GOAL! West Ham equalise from the penalty spot through skipper Moncur. The initial corner had been cleared, but when the second cross came over, Montenegro went up to win the ball and could only head wide. I can only assume he was pushed as the referee pointed to the spot and nobody appeared to complain! Moncur stepped up and sent Cousins the wrong way with a well-struck spot-kick high into the top left-hand corner.
29 mins - Brown's cross causes havoc and Baldwin can only clear as far as O'Neil 20 yards out. The midfielder strikes with venom but Cousins tips over superbly.
27 mins - Ruddock is felled from behind about 30 yards out. O'Neil curls the ball across and Ruddock has a free header. He elects to try to nod back into the middle rather than go for goal, but can only pick out a blue and white shirt.
25 mins - Patient build-up nearly leads to an equaliser. Wearen's raking pass is made a mess of by two defenders and O'Neil benefits. He runs across the face of the penalty area before picking out the unmarked Turgott on the corner of the box. Turgott shoots first time and tries to curl the ball into the far top corner, but Cousins acrobatically tips the ball away to safety.
24 mins - Arnott is back on. I'd say there are a couple of hundred people here watching this evening.
22 mins - Turgott and O'Neil have switched flanks but Turgott's run is ended by the experienced Baldwin. Moments later, the same West Ham player collides with Arnott and the Colchester man needs the physio on.
19 mins - It could so easily be 2-0 as Arnott crosses from the right and Driver rushes in to put the ball behind for a corner. It is cleared.
18 mins - GOAL! The home side lead through Gillespie, who gets past Sanchez and drives a low left-foot shot past Kurucz. He hit that well and the net billows. Colchester go ahead.
17 mins - Turgott collects a pass from O'Neil and crosses but neither Montenegro nor Ruddock can get a touch.
16 mins - Better from West Ham. Moncur makes a good run and O'Neil feeds the ball through. While Moncur is held up, the Hammers sweep the ball across the field through Abdulla and Sanchez before Driver wins a throw.
15 mins - Montenegro and O'Neil, in particular, are running hard out there. Both have won the ball back in recent moments and put pressure on home goalkeeper Cousins. So far, the U's No1 has been up to the task and his kicking has been superb. O'Neil is playing on the left of the front three, with Turgott to the right.
11 mins - Abdulla tries an audacious crossfield ball following neat footwork from Ruddock on halfway. Unfortunately, he overhits it and the ball thuds into the corrugated fence at the side of the pitch. A big night for Ruddock, who was of course playing Conference South football for Boreham Wood until a few weeks ago.
8 mins - The conditions aren't easy but at least it is not windy. West Ham are slowly settling into their passing rhythm and appear to have weathered the early Colchester storm.
5 mins - West Ham's first real attack is snuffed out quickly as Baldwin challenges Montenegro near the corner flag. Colchester break and Gillespie runs into Wearen. He wants a free-kick, but nothing is given.
4 mins - A fair few families have braved the cold and rain and they nearly have an opening goal to celebrate - if they are Colchester fans. First, Gillespie sees his shot deflect just wide off Sanchez. From the resulting corner, the ball drops to a blue and white shirt and Kurucz has to be out lightning-fast to block the low shot from close-range. Good save from the Hungarian.
2 mins - After a period of possession on the left flank, the U's work the ball across to their right. It looks like O'Neil will clear, but Arnott wins the ball back and shoots from 25 yards. He scuffs his left-foot effort low and well wide of the near post.
7pm - Colchester get us under way...
6.59pm - West Ham are being captained by George Moncur this evening. He has favoured the short sleeve shirt, while a number of players are wearing gloves.
6.55pm - The two teams emerge through the gloom from the tunnel. Colchester's numbers are really hard to read when the weather is fine - red numbering on blue and white stripes - so tonight is going to present a real challenge! I'll try my best, though.
6.50pm - It is still drizzling here in Maldon. The pitch looks in good nick, though, to be fair to the Maldon and Tiptree groundstaff. The host club have a home game tomorrow evening, so they must be confident that the surface is up to scratch.
6.45pm - Colchester's lineup is fairly strong. Goalkeeper Mark Cousins has made nine League One appearances this season, while John White, Tom Eastman, Pat Baldwin, John O'Toole, Steven Gillespie and Ben Coker have all featured in the npower Football League this term.
6.20pm - Here are the two starting lineups and substitutes...
Colchester United XI: Cousins, White, Eastman, Baldwin, Griffiths, O'Toole, Gillespie, Coker, Arnott, Sanderson, Olufemi
Subs: Phillips, Ladapo, Hamilton, Redgrave
West Ham United XI: Kurucz, Driver, Brown, Wearen, Sanchez, Moncur, Abdulla, O'Neil, Turgott, Ruddock, Montenegro
Subs: Baxter, Chambers, K.Lee, Fry, Bunjaku, Nouble
6.10pm - It is decidedly wet down here in Maldon! It's been raining for most of the afternoon in Essex and I'm afraid the weather has not relented this evening. That said, the pitch will be nice and slick. The team news will be announced soon, but I can tell you that Gary O'Neil will make his first start since returning from the ankle injury he suffered in April. Meanwhile, Matt Fry is also in the squad for the first time since undergoing surgery on both calves.
Good evening and welcome to a cold Wallace Binder Ground for tonight's development squad match between Colchester United and West Ham United.
Ian Hendon's squad make their second visit to the home of Maldon and Tiptree FC this season, having taken on the U's at the same venue on 17 August. That game finished in a 2-2 draw.
This evening's match will see Gary O'Neil make his third appearance as he continues his comeback from a long-term ankle injury. Joining O'Neil in the squad will be Frank Nouble, who has returned from a loan spell at League Two side Gillingham, and Paraguay U20 forward Brian Montenegro.
Callum Driver will be involved after being called-in as a last-minute substitute for the first team on Saturday, while Peter Kurucz, Jordan Brown and Ahmed Abdulla also have senior experience. At the lower end of the age-scale, Academy scholars Blair Turgott, Kenzer Lee, Leo Chambers and new signing Pelly Ruddock will also be involved.
Two players not involved are Dan Potts, who excelled in the 1-0 npower Championship victory over Barnsley on Saturday, and Sebastian Lletget, who is at an eight-day training United States U23 training camp in Lakewood Ranch, Florida.
Kick-off is at 7pm, with whufc.com providing live text updates.