West Ham United reserves 1-1 West Bromwich Albion reserves
A fine Dylan Tombides goal saw a youthful Hammers side earn a draw at home to an equally inexperienced West Bromwich Albion on Wednesday night at Bishop's Stortford.
A solitary strike from Baggies substitute Mani O'Sullivan just before the interval put the visitors in front before Australian youth international Tombides equalised with a fine strike early in the second half. It was a creditable point for the young Hammers, who were guided by Tony Carr with Alex Dyer having departed to become Charlton Athletic's assistant manager.
A huge plus was Manu da Costa getting a solid hour under his belt alongside Jordan Spence in central defence. The Portuguese defender had not played a competitive fixture since suffering an ankle injury against Arsenal on 30 October. Herita Ilunga was the only other recognised first-teamer on view, with the only notable name in the Baggies' ranks being veteran keeper Dean Kiely.
The teams will meet again for another Barclays Premier Reserve League encounter in a week's time at West Brom.
West Ham United: Stech, Modelski, Spence, Da Costa (McNaughton 57), Ilunga (Driver 57), Edgar, Lee, Moncur, Montano, Tombides, Hall
Subs not used: Mehmet, Purdy, Subuola