Reserves 0-0 Wolves FT

West Ham United reserves v Wolverhampton Wanderers reserves
Barclays Premier Reserve League South
Woodside Park, Bishop's Stortford
Tuesday 15 September
Kick-off: 7pm

 

FT West Ham United reserves 0-0 Wolverhampton Wanderers reserves

94 mins - Malone fires a cross high and wide of the far post. Kurucz gathers the ball and fires it upfield and referee Yeo blows for full-time. That is a very decent point for West Ham, who were up against a much more experienced side in Wolves in front of a crowd of 271 at Woodside Park.

93 mins - West Ham win a free-kick deep inside their own half. Surely they have done enough to earn a draw now?

91 mins - We're into the first of three added minutes and West Ham are going forward through Payne, but he is just edged out by Malone.

90 mins - Close! Hemmings skips clear and drives a low shot against the base of Kurucz's post before West Ham scramble the ball clear. Wolves are finishing really strongly here. Can West Ham hang on for the point their second half performance deserves?

88 mins - Super defending from Da Costa prevents Hemmings from giving Wolves the lead. The substitute was unmarked just six yards from goal, but the Portugal U21 man flung himself in front of the shot. Seconds later, Payne is booked for a late tackle in the midfield.

87 mins - Dyer's youngsters have done really well since the break. Wolves looked odds-on to win this game during the first half, but the hosts have more than held their own in the second period. The manager will be pleased with their application. Nouble does well, picking up a long ball and turning before trying to find Kearns, but Ikeme is out to gather.

85 mins - West Ham win a free-kick wide on the left and send nine men forward, only for Edgar's set piece to hit the first defender. Not the best delivery, that.

84 mins - Oh dear! Substitute Hemmings gets into a shooting position but completely scuffs the ball and Kurucz pounces on it. The goalkeeper has been in good, strong form this evening.

82 mins - Eoin Wearen is battling well in midfield. The 16-year-old already has a real physical presence and is giving as good as he is getting.

80 mins - Decent effort from long-range from Edgar, who picked up a pass from Daprela before shooting from 25 yards into the midriff of Ikeme.

76 mins - Close from Mendez-Laing, who cut in from the right and fired a low shot just past the far post. Both sets of players thought the shot had been deflected and lined up for a corner, only for referee Yeo to award a goal kick.

74 mins - Nouble has a golden chance to give West Ham the lead, racing through the middle of the Wolves defence, but his shot is too close to Ikeme and the goalkeeper scrambles the ball to safety.

72 mins - A third change for the visitors. Ashley Hemmings replaces Vokes. For West Ham, Dyer brings on Eoin Wearen, the Republic of Ireland youth international, for Olly Lee. Will Wearen be able to impress against the former Ireland senior manager McCarthy?

71 mins - Wolves continue to look the more likely scorers, but they are not creating clear goalscoring opportunities. Jones whips in a low corner and the Hammers clear again.

68 mins - No sign of any chances, or changes, for the Hammers. Having said that, they look secure at the defensive end, and a goalless draw would be a very respectable result against a high-calibre Wolves side.

65 mins - Castillo wins a corner, but before it is taken, the South American is replaced by substitute David Davis.

64 mins - Risky play from Kurucz, who takes a backpass from Payne and skips round Spray before clearing his lines. Maybe the Hungarian was bored? He certainly hasn't had much to do since half-time.

62 mins - Super interplay down the left from Malone and Surman before the latter crosses. Vokes rises unmarked and seems to handle the ball past the far post. The referee takes no action and awards a goal kick. Strange...

60 mins - This game is still devoid of clear-cut chances. Wolves are going to make another change in a few moments.

58 mins - Wolves make their first substitution, bringing on Nathaniel Mendez-Laing replaces Kightly, who has enjoyed a decent return from a long-term leg injury.

56 mins - Vokes has a shooting chance, but Kurucz does well to force him wide. He chips the ball to the far post, where Surman wins a corner off Ferrari. Kightly delivers, and Jones is penalised for a foul before heading over the top.

54 mins - Fabulous play from Daprela, who buccaneers past two challeneges into the Wolves box before seeing his shot deflected inches wide of the post. West Ham have a corner, which Da Costa heads on to the roof of the net.

52 mins - This is defintely better from the home side, but they have still yet to test Ikeme with a shot on target. At least there are signs of better things to come, though. Wolves seem to have lost their fluency.

48 mins - Edgar rolls the ball to Quashie, who smashes a low shot into the wall. It loops up, but Daprela cannot get his boot to it and Ikeme gathers. West Ham have created more in three minutes than they did in the opening 45.

47 mins - A fine pass from Quashie finds Lee on the edge of the Wolves penalty area, but his shot is blocked behind for a corner. Wolves head clear, but a handball gives the Hammers a shooting chance from a free-kick 25 yards out.

No changes for West Ham at the break, nor Wolves for that matter. Both sides are back out on the pitch and Nouble will get us underway.

Half-time - West Ham United reserves 0-0 Wolverhampton Wanderers reserves

47 mins - Referee Yeo blows his whistle and that's half-time.

44 mins - Fantastic play from Kightly, who cuts inside Daprela and whips the ball in with his unfavoured left foot and finds the head of Vokes, who can only plant his head back past both Kurucz and the near post. He should have done far better there. We're going to have one minute of added-time.

42 mins - Lucky! Castillo skips away from Josh Payne and lays the ball out to the left flank. There, Malone takes a touch and curls the ball in for Vokes, who slides and diverts the ball goalwards. Fortunately , the effort has no pace on it and Kurucz is able to gather easily.

41 mins - Good football again by Wolves. Little finds Vokes, who holds off 'Gala to lay the ball off to Surman. The England Under-21 midfielder takes a touch before curling a shot wide with his left foot.

39 mins - Castillo lets fly from fully 30 yards, but it was never threatening the target.

37 mins - Finally, eight minutes before half-time, West Ham fashion a half-chance through the enterprising Ferrari, who breaks on to a pass from Edgar. He is challenged and the ball nearly falls to Nouble, but Wolves scramble the ball clear.

35 mins - The lack of width is hurting the Hammers here. Every time they try to build an attack, it becomes stifled in the crowded central third of the pitch. Daprela and Ferrari are doing their best to get forward, but they're not having a huge amount of joy so far. On the plus-side, Kurucz and his defenders are looking solid, despite being put under a lot of pressure.

33 mins - Wolves win a free-kick on the left flank just outside the box. Kightly goes across to take and whips the ball in, but it is too high for Batth at the far post.

31 mins - I can report that the live text alerts were nearly ended by a Wolves clearance that came within inches of wiping out my laptop. Thankfully, the wall to my left saved the day, just.

30 mins - West Ham just cannot get any rhythm in their play. Nouble attempts to break clear down the right and play in the rampaging Daprela, but his pass is cut out and Wolves go back on the offensive.

26 mins - Wolves win yet another corner as Da Costa puts the ball behind. Kightly takes and the ball flicks the head of Batth before flying out for a goal kick.

25 mins - Wolves pass up another decent chance to work Kurucz. Kightly teases Lee before laying the ball back for Little to cross. The ball hits Ferrari and drops to Jones, who can only shank his shot into the ground, allowing 'Gala to clear.

23 mins - Not much is happening to be totally honest. Wolves still hold the balance of power on the pitch. Nigel Quashie has the physio on. It looks like he has a leg injury as he was sitting on the turf before wandering to the touchline.

22 mins - Wolves' left-back Scott Malone spent a period on loan at Hungarian side Ujpest FC. There, one of his team-mates was former West Ham midfielder Tony Stokes, who has since joined Ujpest on a permanent contract. According to a story on the Wolves website, the pair would spend their afternoons drinking coffee together with their team-mates at a large shopping centre.

20 mins - West Ham lack a bit of width to their play. Kearns is supporting Edgar and Nouble from a central position, with Lee and Payne also narrow alongside Quashie. As a result, the home side are struggling to get in behind Wolves. Maybe manager Dyer will change the shape of his team if they cannot make a breakthrough soon?

19 mins - In some ways, tonight's game sums up the unpredictability of reserve-team football. Last week, with the likes of Valon Behrami and Alessandro Diamanti at Dyer's disposal, West Ham completely outplayed Birmingham. Tonight, it is Wolves with the experienced first-team performers in Kightly, Vokes, Jones and Castillo, and their class is telling so far. The Hammers are holding their own, though, and Peter Kurucz has not had a serious save to make so far.

16 mins - Nouble is having trouble holding the ball up against the powerful Batth.

14 mins - Fine play from right-back Little, who wins a header from Ferrari's crossfield pass before swapping passes with Batth and racing clear down the right. He has a great chance to cross to the unmarked Spray, but over-hits his pass and the Hammers clear.

11 mins - Daprela concedes yet another corner after Surman's cross was allowed to drift across the six-yard box. Jones curls the ball over the top of everyone and out for a goal kick.

9 mins - Wolves come close again. Kightly finds Vokes, who turns 'Gala with ease and clips the ball into the six-yard box. Surman looks odds-on to score before Ferrari slides in to clear the ball over the crossbar. From the resulting corner, West Ham head clear and Kearns looks to launch a counter-attack, only to be hauled back by Surman, who is booked.

8 mins - Wolves are looking dangerous here. Kightly nips past 'Gala and crosses low towards Spray. Da Costa slides in and slices the ball high into the air. Kurucz comes out and claims well above the head of the Wolves striker.

6 mins - It's been all Wolves so far. West Ham are struggling to keep possession of the ball, until Anthony Edgar nearly breaks clear, only to be denied by the outstretched leg of Ronald Zubar.

4 mins - Mark Little puts a dangerous cross into the West Ham penalty area, which Da Costa does well to clear for a corner with a brave header. David Jones' initial corner is deflected out for another flag-kick. Jones crosses again and Kurucz punches well clear of his area.

3 mins - Nigel Quashie sets Daprela clear with a beautiful pass down the inside-left channel, only for the Swiss to be flagged for offside. That was a close-call.

2 mins - The first chance falls to James Spray, who plays a neat one-two with Kightly 20 yards from goal but can only drag his right-foot shot well wide of the post.

7pm - Wolves get us underway...

6.59pm - More than 50 scouts have turned out tonight to do a bit talent-spotting. Among the interested parties is Wolves manager Mick McCarthy.

6.57pm - Here come the two teams, led by referee Mr Yeo. This promises to be a good game. Wolves will be desperate to earn a win after losing their first two matches, while West Ham will be eager to build on last week's thumping win over Birmingham at the Boleyn Ground.

6.50pm - It is a grey evening here at Woodside Park. While London has been suffering a deluge all day long, it looks like Bishop's Stortford has largely escaped the rain. However, the heavens opened at about 6pm and it's now a dank and very wet scene here. Luckily, the playing surface is in immaculate condition, so we should be in for a fast-paced game on a green and zippy pitch.

Alex Dyer has a named a side combining youth and experience as his West Ham United reserves seek to build on last week's 6-0 victory over Birmingham City with the visit of Wolverhampton Wanderers to Bishop's Stortford.

On what is a miserable night on the Essex/Herts border, Bondz 'Gala will skipper the Hammers. Scotland midfielder Nigel Quashie will anchor the midfield, with Manuel Da Costa partnering 'Gala at the heart of the defence.

Up front, Frank Nouble will lead the line, supported by Anthony Edgar and Northern Ireland youth international Danny Kearns.

For Wolves, England Under-21 winger Michael Kightly is to make his long-awaited comeback from injury, while new signing Segundo Castillo is also named in the midfield. Sam Vokes, a Wales international colleague of Jack Collison and Danny Gabbison, will play up front.

West Ham United reserves: Kurucz, Ferrari, 'Gala, Da Costa, Daprela, Payne, Quashie, Lee (Wearen 72), Kearns, Edgar, Nouble
Subs: Street, Eyjolfsson, Grasser, Moncur

Wolverhampton Wanderers reserves: Ikeme, Little, Batth, Zubar, Malone, Castillo (Davis 65), Kightly (Mendez-Laing 58), Jones, Surman, Vokes (Hemmings 72), Spray
Subs: Metcalf, Rooney