GRAYS ATHLETIC v WEST HAM UNITED XI
PRE-SEASON MATCH
THURSDAY 4 AUGUST 2011
KICK-OFF: 7.45PM
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Final score - Grays Athletic 1-5 West Ham United XI
92 mins - Grays kick-off, West Ham deal with it and clear long. The final whistle is blown and that's a comprehensive win for the Hammers after a dodgy start. Hendon will be pleased, I would think, with that performance and result.
91 mins - GOAL! The youngsters get their goal. Hines is fouled and when the free-kick flicks high into the air off the wall, Sanchez helps it on and Sadlier volleys high into the net from six yards. Superb finish from the Republic of Ireland youth international.
90 mins - McCallum makes a good run and holds the ball up. Wearen screams for the pass and the striker replies by laying the ball into the Irishman, but his first-time shot flies high and not very handsome. Ah well!
87 mins - Siafa fights hard for possession near the Grays corner flag and eventually wins a free-kick. It's taken short and Turgott delivers, but a flying Sanchez can't quite get his head to the ball.
85 mins - Just as I thought Grays had run out of puff, right-back Pope storms forward, but his finish is off-target and flies low and wide of the post.
83 mins - Two young fans in front of me have been singing 'Come on West Ham United!" for the last ten minutes. They can't be more than four or five-years-old! Bless 'em!
81 mins - Cowler is replaced by scholar Sam Baxter for the final nine minutes. This is a big moment for the 16-year-old stopper.
80 mins - I'm told Grays are hoping to have a good season, but an official told me the club really needs some support to have a bright future. Whenever West Ham play on Sunday, why not pop down to give them a look? They certainly have a few decent players and the football is likely to be entertaining.
77 mins - McCallum is down again and it's the No5 again involved. No action taken by the referee. A few seconds later, Turgott tries his luck from about 35 yards, but the shot flies over the top. Despite the changes, West Ham have continued to look a cohesive unit. The young scholars have settled in quickly and the Hammers look more likely to add a fifth than concede to their older, more experienced hosts.
75 mins - Sorry about that. Had some more technical issues...
72 mins - Hines is challenged hard by the Grays No5, but he's OK after a bit of treatment and gets up to continue.
70 mins - Stanislas has done his work for the night and is replaced by Sadlier, while Nouble trots off to be replaced by McCallum. McNaughton is also off and Stephens is on at the back.
67 mins - GOAL! Stanislas is working his socks off up front. He forces an error and the ball drops to Nouble. He runs through on goal and his shot is saved, but the ball runs free to Stanislas, who adjusts well to slide in his second of the night from 14 yards.
64 mins - Wearen shoots from all of 25 yards. The ball flies just wide of the angle of post and bar and thuds into the concrete wall behind the goal. He got hold of that.
62 mins - The home side attack, but the new striker, No21, loses his feet as he shoots and Cowler collects.
60 mins - Grays make another change. No14 is replaced by No16 at the back. West Ham take off Montano and Shaw for Turgott and Siafa.
56 mins - Four changes from Grays. The mystery No3, Bunce, Sigere and goalkeeper Aksoy go off, with Nos22, 21 and 18 coming on, alongside goalkeeper Northwood. The teamsheet does not have the numbers for the replacements, so we might go a bit number-crazy here. It'll be a bit like Sesame Street. Today's numbers are,..!
55 mins - It's all happening. Carlos is a liverwire and he cuts in from the right again. I think that's a cross but it's high and bounces back off the face of the crossbar before West Ham clear their lines.
55 mins - Nouble plays the ball in for Stanislas, who feeds Hines. The striker tries to shield the ball and goes to ground under a challenge from Thomas. Nothing is given.
53 mins - Grays attack again. Denni plays the ball back to Carlos, who has swapped to the right wing. He checks and crosses left-footed. Sigere heads on but the ball bounces wide.
52 mins - Abdulla concedes a free-kick and it is taken quickly to Denni. He shoots low but Cowler shows good hands to clutch the ball to his chest.
50 mins - West Ham have two chances inside the Grays box, but both Stanislas and Montano are thwarted as they delay passes for too long. Montano punches the turf in frustration. He has set high standards for himself in pre-season.
48 mins - Nouble does well before holding up play and finding Hines. He ignores Stanislas and runs to the box, where he is challenged. Grays counter, but a low shot from Agumbar hits the side netting. Cowler had it covered.
46 mins - West Ham kick-off.
West Ham have made a change, with Sanchez replacing Faye at the heart of the defence. Grays have changed into blue shirts, for some reason?! The No20 is now No3 and still captain. I don't have any idea who he is though.
To coin a phrase, here come the Hammers. See what I did there?! If not, you can't be old enough...!
Half-time score - Grays Athletic 1-3 West Ham United XI
46 mins - That's the end of an eventful half!
46 mins - Hmmm... Cowler waits to clear the ball and swaps passes with McNaughton. The goalkeeper tries to shield the ball from No10 Sigere and both players go to ground. The home fans and the striker want a penalty but nothing is given and Cowler stabs the ball out for a throw.
44 mins - We're nearly at half-time and it's got a bit chilly here. On the pitch, things heat up a bit as Abdulla and Pope come together on halfway. The referee has a quick chat with both players and we're soon under way again.
41 mins - Montano takes and Faye's header is off-target. Stanislas collects but then loses the ball and concedes a free-kick.
40 mins - Stanislas takes and the ball is punched clear by Aksoy to Wearen. He lays the ball wide again and Stanislas' second cross is headed behind for another corner. Hines wins the header, but his effort hits a defender and flies behind.
39 mins - Abdulla picks out Montano with a peach of a pass from inside his own half. Montano cuts inside from the right, shoots and the ball takes a nick on its way over the top. Corner.
38 mins - West Ham win a corner. Montano delivers but it's header clear.
37 mins - I've not seen much of Frazer Shaw in action before, but he looks impressive. The left-back is a first-year scholar and hails from Custom House. He attended the same Royal Docks school as Mark Noble.
36 mins - Fantastic counter-attack. McNaughton heads clear and Stanislas surges forward a full 50 yards before playing the ball to the over-lapping Shaw. He slams in a first-time cross but it's just too close to Aksoy, who dives on the ball with claret and blue shirts swarming around him. Good play all round.
34 mins - Good strong defending from Shaw to deny Denni on the edge of the box. Stanislas finds Hines, who nutmegs one defender before being pushed over. Cheeky play from the striker.
32 mins - Academy Director Tony Carr is watching on from the stand as Nouble lays in Montano. He takes a touch and shoots left-footed, but it's deflected just wide of the far post. Montano's corner is too high and Nouble's glanced header flies well wide.
30 mins - Carlos gets forward again and his cross is put behind by Abdulla. Agumbar's deep corner finds Denni, but his shot is wayward. Agumbar picks up possession again and lays the ball back for Carlos, whose shot is hacked clear by Faye.
29 mins - To be fair to Grays, they're playing the better football at the moment. Left winger Carlos and striker Denni, in particular, are catching the eye with their pace and individual skill.
26 mins - Brilliant challenge from Wearen to deny Beaney a shooting chance. Grays had built the attack superbly again before Denni broke the offside trap and then laid the ball back when faced by Faye.
25 mins - The free-kick comes over and Cowler makes a bit of a meal of it. The No14, who is also a mystery man and not on the teamsheet, challenges but can only poke the ball out for a goal kick.
24 mins - Wearen is probably a bit lucky not to be booked there as he brings down Agumbar inside his own half. Before the free-kick can be taken, Hines needs some treatment.
22 mins - Grays aren't bad, you know. A bit of nice interplay down the left ends with No11 Jo Carlos getting in behind, but he slices his cross behind. That was really neat build-up involving Denni and left winger Agumbar.
19 mins - Abdulla brings down Beaney and Grays have another free-kick, this time wide on the right. The No20 curls the ball over but it's too high. Goal kick. The sun is out here, making my view of the pitch a bit dodgy, to say the least!
18 mins - The home captain, who is No20 but whose name is not on the teamsheet, takes. The ball hits the wall and spins out for a corner. The No20 takes again and Nouble heads clear.
17 mins - Grays must be stunned, but they haven't given up. First, McNaughton and Faye win brave headers to deny Denni, then Sigere's touch lets him down and Shaw somehow gets back to win the ball inside his own area. Seconds later, Sigere is fouled 30 yards out. Free-kick...
15 mins - GOAL! It's raining goals. Hines shows some neat footwork before releasing the rampaging Wearen through the middle. He makes no mistake as he slams a low shot past Aksoy and into the centre of the goal. Abdulla runs to Hines to congratulate him on a fine assist.
12 mins - GOAL! Hines gains possession and its two-on-one. He lays square to Nouble, who beats one defender before drawing Aksoy and coolly side-footing into the same corner Stanislas found just a few moments ago. It's a goal feast!
12 mins - Hmmm. A long ball forward from Grays' left-back should be easy for Cowler, Faye makes a mess of it and Sigere shoots but Cowler is there. He launches a counter-attack and...
11 mins - Cowler punches a dangerous corner clear and Montano picks the ball up on the edge of his own box. He makes 20 yards before trying to play in Hines. Goalkeeper Aksoy is alert and runs out of his box to head clear.
10 mins - We've lost two balls out of the ground in the space of 30 seconds. First the yellow one was belted over the top of Cowler's goal, then a white one disappeared over the Hammers dugout. With a second white ball in operation, Grays win a corner.
8 mins - GOAL! That's better. Stanislas sees a gap around the wall and curls a low shot around it and into the bottom right-hand corner. He made that look a bit easier than it should have been. I'm not sure the wall was very well positioned, but you've still got to put them away.
7 mins - Driver ploughs forward from right-back and is brought down about 25 yards from goal. Another chance for Stanislas...
6 mins - Faye's hurried clearance falls to Stanislas, who turns and lobs the ball forward. A loose header falls to Nouble, who beats a man and crosses low, but it's cleared.
4 mins - West Ham need a quick reply. Stanislas shoots but it's blocked. West Ham win it back and Hines is tripped on the edge of the penalty area. Free-kick. Stanislas has a two-step run-up but cannot get the ball up and down. Goal kick.
2 mins - GOAL! That didn't take long. A long clearance from goalkeeper Aksoy and striker Louie Denni gets goalside of the Hammers defence before slamming a left-foot shot past Cowler's left hand and into the bottom corner.
1 min - A long ball forward is volleyed out for a throw by left-back Shaw. The ball is worked back to Grays No2 Craig Pope, whose high cross is well caught by Cowler above his head. West Ham break and win a throw but it comes to nothing.
7.46pm - Grays get us underway...
7.44pm - Grays come out in their white shirts, blue shorts and blue shorts. We're going to kick-off slightly late, but it won't be long. For some reason, we're using a bright yellow football.
7.42pm - Ahmed Abdulla leads out the Hammers, who are wearing their traditional claret and light blue shirts, light blue shorts and socks. No sign yet of Grays as the Hammers lineup for a team photo with two young mascots.
7.40pm - The starting XI have headed back to their dressing room, while the replacements remain out on the pitch. I hope it's not going to rain as I've moved from under the stand to an exposed and elevated walkway near the corner flag to try and get some reception.
7.30pm - I am having some technical issues connecting to the internet here. Apologies if the updates are not regular!
7.20pm - The Grays Athletic starting XI is Aksoy, Pope, Bunce, Thomas, Baker, Agumbar, Beaney, Denni, Sigere, Carlos and Flynn. The home substitutes are Small, Fontaine, Northwood, Oxby, Sweeney, Worrell, Smith and 1999 FA Youth Cup winner with the Hammers, striker Bertie Brayley.
7.15pm - West Ham's substitutes are goalkeeper Sam Baxter, Sergio Sanchez, Josh Siafa, Zak Stephens, Blair Turgott, Kieron Sadlier, Sebastian Lletget, George Moncur, Rob Hall and Paul McCallum.
6.45pm - The West Ham United XI starting lineup is - Cowler, Driver, Shaw, McNaughton, Faye, Stanislas, Montano, Abdulla, Wearen, Hines, Nouble. So, Abdoulaye Faye makes his first start for the Hammers since injuring his hamstring on his debut against FC Basel in Switzerland on 16 July. The centre-back is one of four starters with first-team experience under their belts - Junior Stanislas, Zavon Hines and Frank Nouble being the other three.
6.40pm - Welcome to Rookery Hill. It's a cool evening here on the north side of the Thames estuary. However, it looks like the rain that has been about earlier in the day has gone away and we might have a dry 90 minutes. Grays, I am told, did fairly well in the Ryman League Division One North last season, considering their fate was not decided until a month before the season. Their landlords here, East Thurrock United, were promoted to the Ryman League Premier Division as champions.
Good evening and welcome to Rookery Hill in Corringham, home to East Thurrock United FC and, on a temporary basis, Ryman League Division One North club and tonight's hosts Grays Athletic.
We will have live text updates from around 7.15pm, with team news expected around 6.45pm.
Ian Hendon has brought his development squad to deepest Essex for the latest in a series of pre-season fixtures, with a mixture of youth and first-team experience expected to be on show.
Hendon's side have defeated Bishop's Stortford, Gillingham and Ebbsfleet United, drawn at Sutton United and lost out at Weymouth during a busy build-up to the 2011/12 campaign.
Manager Sam Allardyce has shown an inclination to use young players and, with a Carling Cup first-round tie against Aldershot Town next Tuesday evening to think about, a number of the players on show tonight could be playing for a place in that game.
West Ham's most recent visit to Grays came in July 2009, when Zavon Hines and Cristian Montano were on target in a 2-1 Hammers victory at the New Rec.
Team news is expected to be announced around an hour before kick-off.