West Ham United Under-18s 2-0 Millwall Under-18s
Freddie Sears was the hero with two goals in the space of five second-half minutes to give the Academy side a deserved home win against Millwall on Saturday.
The striker - who hit a hat-trick in the 7-3 away win against the same opponents back in October - is firmly back to his best after suffering a broken foot towards the end of 2007. His first at Little Heath came in the 70th minute when he pounced on a weak defensive clearance to tuck a shot into the corner of the net. With a quarter-of-an hour to play he doubled the Hammers' advantage. Fellow forward Ben Hunt was unlucky not to score with a high shot that struck the woodwork, and again Sears was in the right place at the right time.
According to youth academy director Tony Carr, Sears is not too far off gaining the attention of first-team manager Alan Curbishley. "I think Freddie has got what it takes to do what Jack [Collison] has done and force himself into reckoning with the first team. You can never determine these things for sure, nothing is guaranteed, but on Freddie's goals and performances, hopefully he will have caught the eye. The manager is aware of his talents and has seen him in games and in training."
West Ham United: Stech, O'Neill, Brown, Ashman, Spence, Kearns, Edgar, Lee (Barrett 60), Sears, Payne (Okus 78), Fry
Subs not used: Loveday, Harvey, Hunt