WEST HAM UNITED v ARSENAL
BARCLAYS PREMIER RESERVE LEAGUE
WOODSIDE PARK, BISHOP'S STORTFORD FC
TUESDAY 1 MARCH 2011
KICK-OFF: 7PM
Full-time score - West Ham United reserves 3-2 Arsenal reserves
94 mins - That's full-time. Another three points for the reserves and a winning start for Steve Lomas as reserve-team manager. Don't forget, exclusive highlights and post-match reaction will appear on whufc.com and West Ham TV soon.
93 mins - Moncur twice gets in important challenges as the Gunners throw men forward. Montano pumps a long clearance forward as we approach the final minute.
92 mins - Arsenal are pushing for a late equaliser. Can West Ham hold on to their lead?
90 mins - We will have at least four added minutes.
89 mins - Lee challenges in the air and Tombides lofts the ball over the top for Montano, but his left-foot effort flies well over the top from the edge of the penalty area.
87 mins - Boffin keeps West Ham in front. Arsenal keep the ball well around the Hammers box before it breaks to Deacon. He shoots from 14 yards but Boffin is there to block before Faubert clears. West Ham counter and Hines cuts inside before stabbing a low shot a couple of yards wide.
85 mins - Montano should make it 4-2 as Faubert's cross falls to him ten yards out. He takes a touch and smashes his left-foot shot a yard over the top as he is challenged.
82 mins - Arsenal make a third and final change, with Aneke going off and Webb coming on.
81 mins - Hines and Edgar do well before the former finds Lee wide on the right, but his cross is cut out and hacked into the stand. West Ham make a final change as Moncur replaces Edgar for the final few minutes.
77 mins - So close to a fourth for the hosts as Faubert crosses low, Tombides lets the ball run and Montano runs in to apply the finish at the far post, only for a defender to make a miraculous block to keep the ball out. The resulting corner flies straight into the side-netting at the near post.
74 mins - The attendance is announced as 857, which is a very decent number on a cold Tuesday night.
71 mins - So nearly a dream start for Lee, who starts a move in midfield by finding Hines. He finds the overlapping Faubert, whose cross is headed back by Montano. Lee has followed up and heads goalwards, but the ball hits a defender and is cleared.
70 mins - Boa Morte has contributed two assists tonight but his race is run as he shakes the hand of referee Matt Stewart before doing likewise with Lee, who takes his place for the final 20 minutes or so.
69 mins - The game has just petered out a bit in recent moments. West Ham are going to bring on Olly Lee shortly.
67 mins - Montano replaces Barrera.
66 mins - We're going to see Cristian Montano introduced shortly. Before he is, Barrera and Ilunga combine before Edgar flashes a right-footed drive wide of the far post.
64 mins - A great chance for Edgar inside the penalty area, but his touch is a little heavy and Shea is out in a flash to dive at his feet and claim the ball.
62 mins - So close to a hat-trick Tombides. Hines runs on to Boa Morte's through ball and crosses. The ball bounces out to Tombides, but Angha flies in with a timely block and the ball spins wide. The corner comes to nothing.
61 mins - Boa Morte collects a throw out from Boffin before beating two men and laying in Hines, but the No11 is offside. He shoots anyway and Shea saves.
58 mins - A loose throw-in from Arsenal's Brislen-Hall falls to Tombides, who lets fly with a low left-foot shot that Shea can only help on to the base of the post. Barrera gets to the loose ball first but he's offside. Moments later Tombides has another shooting chance with his left foot, but Shea is there to pat the ball down before collecting safely.
56 mins - West Ham nearly work something as Hines closes down a clearance and the ball ricochets to Edgar, but his touch lets him down a bit and he concedes a throw.
52 mins - GOAL! The ball is given away in the middle of the pitch and Arsenal break through Aneke. He slots the ball left to Murphy, who impudently clips the ball high over Boffin and it drops into the net. Great finish.
51 mins - Faubert is booked for dissent as Arsenal are awarded a throw down their left flank.
48 mins - Barrera delivers from the left towards Hines and Cruise heads behind. The corner is half-cleared to Boa Morte, whose shot is deflected inches wide of the top corner. The second corner is cleared.
46 mins - Arsenal make a couple of half-time changes, replacing Hajrovic and Boateng with Martin Angha and Josh Rees. The Gunners get the second half up and running...
Half-time score - West Ham United reserves 3-1 Arsenal reserves
48 mins - That's half-time.
47 mins - GOAL! They will definitely have the lead at half-time now as Tombides heads in his second of the night from Boa Morte's in-swinging left-wing cross. It was another confident finish from the Australia-born youngster.
45 mins - It looks likely that West Ham will go into half-time with the lead. We're going to have at least two added minutes, though.
41 mins - Good from Tombides, who collects Spence's ball down the left before holding off Boateng, turning the defender and being hauled to the ground. Barrera takes the free-kick and fizzes it in low, but Shea holds on at the second attempt.
38 mins - The goal came just moments after Lomas had changed Barrera and Hines over flanks, so you could give the manager some credit for that goal, too.
37 mins - GOAL! Hines heads West Ham back into the lead from a peach of a cross from Faubert. The Frenchman whipped the ball in with real pace and Hines nipped in ahead of his marker to head high into the top right-hand corner. Good goal, that.
35 mins - A shooting chance for Hines from Boa Morte's pass, but Cruise is across quickly to block the shot behind for a corner. Barrera takes it short to Edgar before receiving a return pass before crossing low. The delivery is cut out at the near post.
34 mins - Not much in the way of goalmouth action to report, to be honest. Arsenal are playing most of the football inside the West Ham half but the home side look like they could conjure something on the break. Manager Lomas has been out shouting instructions at his players from the edge of the technical area.
31 mins - Arsenal are on top here. Cruise delivers and Boa Morte heads behind for a corner. Cruise takes and Kovac heads clear.
27 mins - Spence brings the ball forward and when West Ham lose it, Arsenal have a four-on-three break and Aneke drops his shoulder and beats one before finding Ebecilio, but he is crowded out by Reid.
26 mins - GOAL! That was a tad fortunate. The free-kick is played low into the box and not cleared far enough. Hajrovic's shot hits a defender and loops over Boffin and into the net.
25 mins - Ebecilio runs at the West Ham defence and tries to roll in Murphy, but Reid blocks the pass with his arm. Free-kick in a shooting position for Arsenal.
23 mins - Hines goes up for a header and receives a thump in the face from Cruise for his troubles. Free-kick to West Ham wide on the left about 30 yards from goal. Boa Morte delivers and the ball spins high into the air. Kovac volleys but the effort is wayward and Shea collects.
20 mins - The corner is worked back along the touchline before a cross comes in, but Kovac is there to volley the ball behind. The second corner is headed clear by Ilunga before Edgar leads the break. Tombides tries to play in Hines, but the striker is offside.
19 mins - The young Gunners are working really hard and pressing high up the pitch, winning first a throw from Reid and then a corner off the same player.
16 mins - There is a very good crowd in at Woodside Park tonight, despite the low temperature and the lure of Chelsea v Manchester United on television.
14 mins - Having gone behind, Arsenal are now enjoying their best spell of the game in terms of possession, but the Hammers are working hard and closing down the space. As a result, the visitors are unable to fashion an opening.
11 mins - GOAL! Dylan Tombides volleys in neatly from Boa Morte's right-wing cross. Kovac played an important role in that goal, taking a quick free-kick to release the Portuguese while Arsenal's defence was sleeping. It was a very good finish from Tombides on his weaker left foot.
9 mins - Edgar releases Hines down the left. He draws a defender before releasing the overlapping Ilunga, but the left-back's cross is cut out and Ebecilio clears his lines.
7 mins - Tombides releases Barrera with a neat touch but the Mexican's cross is blocked before he is fouled by Boateng. Faubert's free-kick hits a defender and Edgar lashes the loose ball over the stand and out of the stadium from 25 yards.
5 mins - The Hammers build down the right and Barrera gets in a low cross that eludes the defence and finds Boa Morte on the edge of the box. It's a tough chance and the Portuguese can only drag his shot wide of the left-hand post.
4 mins - West Ham have recovered from their very early scare and are on top. Hines is actually playing on the left of a front three, with Barrera on the right. Boa Morte, Kovac and Edgar are in midfield.
2 mins - Ilunga heads down for Hines, who bursts down the left and is impeded by Aneke. Ilunga takes it short to Boa Morte, whose cross is too high but is worked to Faubert. His cross is high and Hines attempts a scissor-kick, but completely misses the ball. It bounces up for Boa Morte to volley a couple of yards wide of the angle of post and crossbar.
10 seconds - Arsenal win possession and almost take the lead within ten seconds as Ebecilio gets in behind Reid and shoots low. Boffin blocks with his legs for a corner. The delivery is too high and West Ham clear.
7.01pm - Tombides and Hines get things underway...
6.58pm - Here come the two teams. It's a bitterly cold night here on the Essex/Herts border, but West Ham have the players to warm the hearts of the Hammers fans who have made the trip up the M11. West Ham will kick-off...
6.55pm - A few changes to both sides from the advertised team sheets. Goalkeeper Jake Larkins and George Moncur are drafted in for Deniz Mehmet and Ahmed Abdulla. Arsenal have made three changes, with Sead Hajrovic, Oguzhan Ozyakup and Chuks Aneke all starting.
Good evening and welcome to Woodside Park for West Ham United's Barclays Premier Reserve League fixture against Arsenal.
The Hammers will be taken for the first time by new reserve-team manager Steve Lomas, who took charge of the second-string on Monday. The former West Ham midfielder spent eight-and-a-half years at the club as a player and is relishing the opportunity to hone his coaching skills.
Lomas will have an experienced side at his disposal tonight, with no fewer than ten players with first-team experience in the West Ham starting lineup - six of the full internationals.
Ruud Boffin will be handed a start in goal, while Julien Faubert, Herita Ilunga, Jordan Spence and Winston Reid making up the back-four. Anthony Edgar and Pablo Barrera will play on the wings, with Radoslav Kovac and Luis Boa Morte forming an experienced central midfield pairing, while Zavon Hines will partner scholar Dylan Tombides in attack.
Arsenal, in contrast, contested the Carling Cup final on Sunday and will be in FA Cup action on Wednesday. With those fixtures in mind and a number of promising young players out on loan, Neil Banfield has an inexperienced squad at his disposal.
The reverse fixture, contested at the Gunners' London Colney training ground on 19 October, ended in a 4-1 victory for Arsenal. Ahmed Abdulla was on target for West Ham, while Julien Faubert was sent-off as Jay Emmanuel-Thomas bagged a hat-trick for the hosts.
West Ham United reserves: Boffin, Faubert, Spence, Reid, Ilunga, Edgar (Moncur 81), Kovac, Boa Morte (Lee 70), Barrera (Montano 67), Tombides, Hines
Subs not used: Larkins, McNaughton
Arsenal reserves: Shea, Hajrovic (Angha 46), Boateng (Rees 46), Cruise, Brislen-Hall, Deacon, Ebecilio, Ozyakyup, Freeman, Aneke (Webb 82), Murphy
Subs not used: McDermott, Ansah