Nearly 1,000 players have pulled on a West Ham United shirt since the Club was formed as Thames Ironworks FC in 1895.
In the 123 years since, many have achieved greatness, setting outstanding personal landmarks and inspiring the Hammers to historic victories.
With thousands of goals scored and created and clean sheets kept, hundreds of matches won and a host of trophies held aloft, West Ham’s stars have shone brightly on many occasions – but whose star has shone brightest?
A panel esteemed and knowledgeable supporters, historians and former players have ranked their #50GreatestHammers of all-time, in association with Official Sleeve Partner Basset & Gold, with numbers 50 to eleven being revealed over the coming days and weeks
You, our loyal supporters, will then have the chance to rank the top ten, climaxing in the crowning of the greatest player in the Club’s long and illustrious history. Keep an eye on whufc.com and our official social channels for details of how you can cast your vote.
To continue the #50GreatestHammers countdown, we today reveal the players ranked 48 and 47 on our list – Trevor Sinclair and Clyde Best.
Trevor Sinclair
Years at West Ham United: 1998-2003
Appearances: 206
Goals: 38
Few players have made better starts to their West Ham United career than Trevor Sinclair.
The Dulwich-born winger had already made his mark with a selection of spectacular goals for Queens Park Rangers when he arrived at the Boleyn Ground in January 1998.
Sinclair announced his arrival with two goals on debut at home to Everton, before adding further strikes against Manchester United and Chelsea to help the Hammers to an eighth-place Premier League finish.
The following season, 1998/99, Sinclair added seven more goals, including both in a home win over Tottenham Hotspur, as West Ham finished a record-high fifth.
Summer 1999 saw Sinclair score as Harry Redknapp’s side won the UEFA Intertoto Cup with a memorable victory at French club Metz.
Playing alongside the likes of Academy graduates Joe Cole, Michael Carrick and Frank Lampard Junior, French playmaker Marc Keller, the enigmatic Paolo Di Canio and Frederic Kanoute, Sinclair formed part of one of the most entertaining West Ham teams of the last 25 years – never more so than when his scissor-kick highlighted a 5-0 win over Charlton Athletic on Boxing Day 2000.
A superb 2001/02 season saw Sinclair make his England debut against Sweden in November 2001 and, the following spring, he was included in Sven Goran Eriksson’s squad for the 2002 FIFA World Cup finals.
An injury to Owen Hargreaves saw Sinclair included on the left side of midfield and he flourished as England reached the quarter-finals before being eliminated by Brazil.
Back at West Ham, Sinclair enjoyed his most prolific campaign in Claret and Blue in 2002/03, but his eight goals were not enough to save the Club from relegation from the Premier League.
He was subsequently sold to Manchester City for £2.5 million, but his performances over five-and-a-half seasons in east London will never be forgotten.
Clyde Best
Years at West Ham United: 1969-76
Appearances: 221
Goals: 58
Clyde Best was a ground-breaking figure, becoming the first black centre forward to lead the line for the Hammers, ignoring terrible racist abuse to become a true hero among West Ham supporters.
Having arrived, at the age of 17, from the island of Bermuda in the North Atlantic Ocean in 1968, Best impressed his youth-team manager John Lyall and first-team boss Ron Greenwood sufficiently to earn a professional contract the following year.
A first-team debut arrived against Arsenal in August 1969, in front of nearly 40,000 fans at the Boleyn Ground – the first of 221 appearances in a Claret and Blue shirt. Eight days later, he scored the first of 58 goals for the Club in a League Cup win over Halifax Town.
Best’s best season for the Club came in 1971/72, when he bagged 17 goals in 42 First Division appearances, in addition to four more as West Ham reached the League Cup semi-finals.
A tall, strong player, Best brought more than just goals to the team, however, providing a focal point for the likes of Trevor Brooking, Pat Holland, John Ayris and strike partner Pop Robson to play off.
Best was just 25 when he brought his West Ham career to a close, flying back across the Atlantic Ocean to play in the North American Soccer League before joining Dutch club Feyenoord in 1977.
In retirement, Best has proved to be an inspiration to his fellow countrymen, including West Ham youngster Nathan Trott, and was made an MBE for his services to football and the community in Bermuda in 2006.
Fifty years on from his West Ham debut, Best remains a hero, not just to Hammers, but to football supporters throughout the world.