Mark Noble believes West Ham United’s fortune is no longer hiding after helping his side secure seven Premier League points in the space of seven days.
The Hammers sat 18th and inside the relegation zone ahead of their trip to Liverpool on Sunday 11 December, but a 2-2 draw there, followed by 1-0 home wins over Burnley and Hull City have taken them up five places and five points clear of the bottom three.
Noble netted the winner in those two victories and it targeting a third straight success when Slaven Bilic’s side head for struggling Swansea City on Boxing Day.
Mark, how do you reflect on Saturday’s 1-0 win over Hull City a few days on?
“We managed to win and that’s all that mattered, to be honest. We need another three points after Wednesday and we got that. We know they hit the post a few times, but we did on Wednesday and that sort of thing evens itself out over the season.”
Hull gave you a good game, didn’t they?
“Yes, but that’s the Premier League and you know you’re going to get a tough game every time you go out on the field.
“The last two games, Burnley and Hull at home, have been massive tests but we got two wins and two clean sheets and that was massive.”
You were the man for the big moment with both winning goals…
“I have taken that many penalties now that it’s become a comfortable position for me. I know what to expect and with the amount I’ve taken, I’m going to miss a few.
“There are a lot worse things happening out there in the world than taking a penalty. Luckily enough I had one saved in the week and it came back to me and I managed to score, then I was successful with the second one.
“All in all, it wasn’t the best game in the world on Saturday, but it was another three points, seven points in the week and we’re up to 13th.”
You nearly got a second goal against Hull, too, heading against your own post!
“Yeah, but to be honest, that’s the sort of luck we haven’t been getting. I was trying to block their cross and hit my own post, but the ball came back out and we managed to clear it, so it was a massive, massive day for us.”
It’s not quite flowing yet, is it?
“No, but points breed confidence and in the position we were in, we couldn’t have a lot of confidence because we hadn’t won a lot of games.
“It’s starting to come back for us. Dimi could have had a couple of goals on Saturday with a shot blocked and their ‘keeper saving one.
“Hopefully with me heading it onto the post and scoring the penalty our luck is changing a little bit.”
What are the prospects for the Hammers for the remainder of the season?
“We didn’t start the season the best, we know that, but last week was massive for us because it moved us up the Premier League table.
“We’ve got another two games that we need to go and get points from. Points breed confidence and it seems to be getting a lot better.
“If you’d said we’d have got seven points before Liverpool away and two tough games at home, I’d have taken that, even if our fans probably expected us to win the two home games.
“Now, with those wins under our belts we can go to Swansea on Boxing Day with more confidence and look forward to getting some more points on the board.
"If we can win there, we'd be on 20-plus points and if we can keep up the momentum by winning games, no matter how we win them, we can go into the New Year and the second part of the season will be a lot more comfortable and the players can start enjoying themselves."
Finally, you met your old pal James Corden again on Saturday!
“Yes, he's a top man. He's done great for himself and has become a big star over in Los Angeles with The Late Late Show.
"I must say I'm not sure about the style he's picked up since he moved over there, though. His trainers were a bit flash for my liking!
"On a serious note, it's always good to have James supporting us."