Ward Wants More

ELLIOTT Ward praised the brilliant resiliance of Alan Pardew's squad as the big defender celebrated a wonderful landmark in his young career with the 2-0 win over Ipswich.

Now the 20-year-old centre-back has the Play-off Final at the Millennium Stadium to look forward to and admits he can't wait to get to Cardiff.

"It was brilliant at Ipswich, a fantastic night," he exclaimed. "The tension during the build-up to the second leg was incredible. You could sense how much it meant to all the fans, Ipswich as well as West Ham, and for me it was by far the biggest game I've ever played in.

"It was nerve-wracking for sure, but we stayed really strong on the night and I think that strength was the key to us going through.

"Before the game we were prepared for Ipswich to come at us and they did. We had to really dig deep in the first-half to keep them out. They were throwing crosses into our box and it was important for us to keep our composure, especially when their fans were really getting behind them.

"But we held them off well, especially during the first 20 minutes, and going in at half-time with it 0-0 we felt that we had every chance in the second-half."

Hammers certainly did, and it was left to Bobby Zamora to bag the two goals which sealed West Ham United's place in Cardiff for the second year running. Elliott was as delighted as anyone for the striker.

"Bobby deserved to be the match-winner," he said. "He works really hard in training and it hasn't always gone his way this season. He's really been through it in the last few months, but he showed what a quality player he is with that second goal and all the lads were delighted for him."

The 2-0 win at Portman Road will surely go down as another memorable night in Hammers history, just as last season's victory at Upton Park has done. But Elliott warned against complacency now that a Final place is assured.

"Our job is to reach the Premiership and we're not going to lose our focus now," he said. "We've got through to the Final, which is a great achievement, but it's crucial that we take advantage of this chance and make sure we go one better than last year.

"Everyone remembers how badly that hurt and there's no way anyone wants to go through that again. It means so much to have made the Final again, not just for the players but the fans, staff and everyone connected to the Club.

"We've given ourselves a fantastic chance and against Ipswich I think we showed that this team can handle playing in pressure games. Now we've got to keep our focus and start preparing ourselves for the Final.

"The gaffer let us have a bit of a celebration after the Ipswich game, but now it's back to work and making sure we're ready for Cardiff."