Barclays Premier Reserve League South
Fulham v West Ham United
Motspur Park
Tuesday 3 November 2009
7pm
Full time. It is all over at Motspur Park and that late goal will make the result feel all the more satisfying for West Ham. It was nothing less than they deserved after an energetic 90 minutes against a vastly more experienced Fulham side.
93 min - The Hammers are running right until the end here and some good pressing from Abdulla so nearly forces Stockdale into a mistake. Luckily for the home side Kearns cannot quite get it under control.
92 min - Stech does well to come and claim it and the danger is cleared.
91 min - As good as that goal was, Fulham are not finished yet and they have forced a late corner. We will have three minutes of added time.
90 min - GOAL! But they do not take it. Instead a brilliant break away sees Abdulla play in Montano down the right. He looks up and plays a perfect cross straight onto the head of the on-rushing Ferrari, who powers it into the top corner. Brilliant goal!
89 min - Fulham win a free-kick 30 yards out. Eyjolfsson goes into the book for the challenge and the home side have a chance to put the game to bed.
85 min - A brilliant move from the visitors puts Montano in one-on-one with Stockdale but the Fulham goalkeeper makes himself big and blocks the ball out.
84 min - Final change for the Hammers sees Tony Brookes come on for Dixon, who has had some real moments of class tonight. Brookes slots in at right back, with Ferrari moving to the left of midfield.
80 min - Great defending from Brown as he tracks back to get a last-ditch tackle in on Johnson, just as he was about to pull the trigger.
77 min - Fulham head clear but the ball is straight back with West Ham. Can they turn this dominance into a goal?
76 min - It is all West Ham at the moment and a good run and shot from Montano is deflected just wide.
75 min - He cannot and Abdulla comes on to replace him.
74 min - We have a break in play now as Nouble is down and receiving treatment. It does not look like he can carry on.
70 min - Kearns takes it but once again it is a Fulham head that clears the ball. Then, as Fulham break away, Edgar catches Briggs from behind and is booked.
69 min - Superb crossfield pass from Wearen to pick out Montano on the left. His cross is blocked and West Ham win a corner.
66 min - Montano has gone straight over to the left-hand side so it looks like it is a straight swap.
65 min - It will be a change and Grasser comes off for Montano.
64 min - It looks like Dyer will follow suit as Montano is getting stripped and ready.
63 min - The home side make the game's first change as goalscorer Davies makes way for Luca Moscatiello.
62 min - The Hammers look to make their extra man count straight away and Edgar's cross is just cut out before it reaches Dixon.
61 min - It is getting a bit tasty on the pitch as Kearns is booked for a late tackle on Joe Anderson.
59 min - Some good news for West Ham as Saunders is sent off for a dangerous tackle on Grasser.
57 min - Fulham have started really well this half, though, and Eyjolfsson and Daprela combine to make a vital tackle on Johnson.
55 min - That goal is hard on the Hammers, who had looked really bright first half. Nouble has just chased down a weak backpass and very nearly gets his reward, only for Stockdale just get there first.
53 min - Fantastic save from Stech as he dives to his left to keep out a header from Kallio. It actually would not have counted anyway as the assistant on the far side had his flag up.
51 min - GOAL! The home side take the lead with the first chance of the half. After a shot from the right-hand side of the area had forced Stech into a diving save, the ball fell to Davies eight yards out and he drilled it into an empty net.
49 min - Not much to report so far from this half yet so I'll tell you about the crowd here. There are certainly a few Hammers among the two or three hundred inside Motspur Park. Ludo Miklosko is also here watching tonight, which is good to see.
47 min - No changes from either team it looks like at the break so it is as you were.
46 min - Dixon and Nouble get the second period underway.
Half time - Good half from the Hammers as the two teams go in all square.
45 min - We will have one minute of added time at the end of the half.
43 min - Well they must still be careful at the back as Johnson flashes a shot inches wide. That was so close I think Stech had given up trying to reach it.
41 min - Good pressing from first Kearns and the Nouble and Dixon force Marsh-Brown into giving away a throw-in deep in his own half. West Ham are really up for this tonight.
39 min - After losing their last two games, Dyer may have been worried when he saw the Fulham team but his youngsters have done themselves proud this half and have looked the brighter. He should be a happy man in the dressing room if it stays like this for the next six minutes.
38 min - Good pressure from the Hammers here as they win two quick corners. Kearns takes the second one and after a flick on at the near post the ball somehow eludes everyone.
36 min - But the cards do not stay in his pocket for long as a neat move forward from the Hammers forces Marsh-Brown to bring down Edgar in full flow. He is booked, Kearns flights the free-kick in but Fulham clear.
34 min - Our referee tonight, Mr Davies, has a word with Eyjolfsson after he catches Ki-Hyeon in the centre circle. He opts to keep his cards in his pocket for now though.
33 min - Dyer has sent his subs out to warm up. Andrea Zola, Cristian Montano and Ahmed Abdulla are doing their stretching.
29 min - Fulham win a corner off Ferrari and nearly take the lead as Matthew Briggs climbs higher than anyone. Thankfully the central defender puts his effort well over.
26 min - Johnson goes close again as he turns Eyjolfsson and curls a shot inches wide of the far post. That was close.
24 min - Well just to prove my point they have another effort from the edge of the area but, once again, it is straight at Stech. West Ham do need to be careful as sooner or later someone will connect with one of these.
23 min - Alex Dyer is out of his seat and shouting out some orders to his team. There is not too much wrong out there at the moment as they have limited the home to just long-range shots thus far.
17 min - Safe hands from Marek Stech as Matthew Saunders has a shot from 25 yards. It was straight at the 'keeper but he had to keep his eyes on that.
16 min - Superb play from Dixon as he chips a ball in for Nouble. The 18-year-old goes round the goalkeeper but cannot quite get his angles right as the ball goes wide. This has been a good start from the Hammers.
15 min - More good defending from Daprela as he out-paces Johnson and clears the ball to safety.
13 min - West Ham have their first shot on goal as Davide Ferrari tries his luck from distance. The ball goes bout five yards wide of the target, though.
12 min - Nice link up play between Nouble and Dixon puts the latter away. He tries a backheel back to his strike partner but a Fulham foot just gets in the way.
9 min - The Hammers are enjoying a good spell of pressure now and certainly do not seem to be overawed by their more experienced opponents. Edgar does well to sidestep his marker there.
8 min - Lovely ball from Grasser sends Dixon racing into space. He does well to force a corner off his marker. Grasser takes it but Kallio heads clear.
5 min - The game has set off at quite a tempo with Fulham pushing from the start. Daprela and Jordan Brown have both had to be on their toes to keep the home side at bay in the opening five minutes.
3 min - Dyer usually tries to mirror the first team's tactics to give his players the right experience and tonight looks no different. It appears they have set out with a 4-4-2 diamond formation with Wearen holding, Georg Grasser on the left, Danny Kearns on the right and Edgar at the point.
2 min - I think you can tell we are in November now as there is a certain chill in the air. Some of the players have opted for gloves to try to counter it.
1 min - Off we go at Motspur Park.
6.59pm - This will be Dixon's first competitive start for West Ham since joining. The striker scored his first goal in claret and blue in the 2-2 draw with Polish side Arka last week.
6.57pm - I have just checked with the coaches and can confirm that Eyjolfsson will wear the armband tonight. Let us hope he can give the same kind of presence 'Gala used to when he was captain.
6.55pm - Both sets of players have left the field now as we get into the final countdown before kick-off.
6.50pm - The teamsheets have arrived and we know the starting XIs for both teams. West Ham United partner Fabio Daprela alongside Eyjolfsson in central defence, while further forward Terry Dixon will play alongside Frank Nouble in attack.
The hosts have plenty of experience in their side with a host of internationals throughout. Defender Toni Kallio has played for Finland, midfielder Simon Davies has played for Wales, while in attack Seol Ki-Hyeon and Eddie Johnson have represented Korea and the United States respectively.
6.40pm - One player we definitely will not be seeing is Bondz 'Gala, who has joined Scunthorpe United on loan. That means Alex Dyer will have to pick a new skipper for tonight. Again, once that is confirmed I will let you know.
Welcome to Motspur Park for this evening's reserve match between Fulham and West Ham United.
We are still awaiting final confirmation of the two teams, but looking at the players warming up it will be another young West Ham United side on show. Holmar Eyjolfsson and Anthony Edgar are both out on the pitch so we could be seeing them make their first appearances since returning from loan. I will, of course, bring the line-ups as soon as we have them.
West Ham United: Stech, Ferrari, Eyjolfsson, Daprela, Brown, Wearen, Kearns, Grasser (Montano 65), Edgar, Nouble (Abdulla 75), Dixon (Brookes 84)
Subs: Street, Zola
Fulham: Stockdale, Marsh-Brown, Anderson, Briggs, Kallio, Saunders, Davies (Moscatiello 63), Dikgacoi, Elm, Johnson, Ki-Hyeon
Subs: Foderingham, Hoesen, Smith, Uwezu