James Collins is getting closer to his first-team return after coming through a tough reserve-team outing in midweek.
The Wales defender was captain for the 4-3 win against West Bromwich Albion on Tuesday in his first competitive game since a knee injury suffered back in January and both he and Calum Davenport performed particularly well at the back. Although the visitors scored three times - either side of a spectacular long-range effort, the first and third goals were a freak deflection and harshly-awarded penalty - Collins was a sturdy presence and weighed in with some timely tackles.
The man who played a key role in the 2006/07 survival fight, said: "Everything's fine. I'm just happy to have got some more minutes under my belt. I felt a bit stiff and a bit tired towards the end so I came off as a bit of a precaution. It's what I need. It's just nice to be back on the pitch. I can build on that now. It's my first 70 minutes in eight months so now I can just look forward to the next game."
Being named skipper for the night was an added bonus. "It was strange being captain in my first game back but before the game [coach] Alex Dyer came up to me and asked me. It's always nice to captain West Ham so I'll take it at any level."
Gianfranco Zola was an interested observer for Tuesday night's contest and the 25-year-old Collins has enjoyed working for the new manager. He said: "It's brilliant. Since the first day he came in it gave all the boys such a lift. You can see that the football we're playing at the minute is like football we've never played before. The boys have risen to the challenge. We've got two wins in the Premier League already under him and long may that continue."
Although called up by Wales for the forthcoming World Cup qualifiers at home to Liechtenstein on Saturday week and then away to Germany the following Wednesday, it remains to be seen if Collins will first take part in another West Ham United reserve game away to Fulham on Tuesday night. "Because I've been out for so long I don't want to come straight back in and start steaming into things."
He recognises that he faces a battle to get back into the first-team with Matthew Upson, Lucas Neill and Davenport all impressing this season, James Tomkins is back in full training and Danny Gabbidon is making good progress again with his long-standing abdominal problem. "It's always good to have competition for places," Collins said. "It keeps everyone on their toes.
"Training is really sharp at the moment so everyone has got to be on the top of their game to get in the team," he added. "That can only be healthy for West Ham." Collins revealed he never doubted that he would be able to make a return, claiming: "The surgeon who did my knee is top drawer. A couple of years before, Jimmy Walker did his knee in the play-off final a lot worse than mine and the same surgeon did his operation and he's come back. I knew I had the best surgeon around doing my operation and I'm feeling fitter and stronger than ever."
Collins is only focused on the future. "I signed a new contract last summer so I can see myself at West Ham for a long time," he said. "I've always said it's a great club and they've been great to me since me and Danny both came from Cardiff City. I've always enjoyed it here, I love living in London and it's a great football club to be at at the moment. Hopefully it will continue for a long time."