BBC Sport: Etherington made them pay almost immediately when John Pantsil played the ball into him in the box and, after a one-two with Bowyer, the winger drove home. It got even worse for Derby when they failed to clear a Solano corner, Lucas Neill headed the ball back in and it broke to Spector, whose shot was deflected in by Lewis for an own-goal. Bowyer then surged through unmarked to rifle in number four after Solano played in Cole to lay the ball across to the midfielder. With the game over as a contest, West Ham had time and space to knock the ball around.
Hammers Mad: Nolberto Solano had hit the bar with a superb 20-yard free-kick before man-of-the-match Lee Bowyer gave West Ham the lead they richly deserved. Solano's cross was headed down by Carlton Cole and Bowyer ran unmarked into the box to slide the ball home. The opening minutes of the second half was a nightmare for Derby as West Ham created chances at will. Luis Boa Morte was unlucky not to score in the 46th minute and from the resulting corner Matthew Upson rattled the Derby woodwork. Then three goals in just eight minutes put the game beyond doubt. Kenny Miller had missed Derby's best chance, squandering a free header, before West Ham put the matter beyond doubt. John Paintsil found Matthew Etherington in the box and after a clever one-two with Bowyer, Etherington swept the ball home. A minute later Jonathon Spector saw his goalbound shot carried over the line by the unfortunate Eddie Lewis for an own goal. Bowyer then ran through unmarked on the hour to score number four after Solano played in Cole, who neatly crossed into the midfielder's path.
The Times: Lee Bowyer for England? There may have been a time when the West Ham United midfield player was a contender for a place in the national squad, but with the likes of Steven Gerrard, Gareth Barry, Frank Lampard and Owen Hargreaves ahead of him in the pecking order, a call-up is extremely unlikely. And yet the idea is not as crazy as it sounds. Bowyer is West Ham’s leading scorer in the league and his two goals on Saturday helped a team who are missing 13 players to climb into the top half of the table. He is in the kind of form that persuaded Leeds United to pay Charlton Athletic £2.8 million for his services in 1996. But an England call-up? Even Bowyer thinks that is a dream too far. “I don’t think I will ever get called up again,” he said. “I scored 17 goals in one season and I didn’t get called up, so why would I get called up now?” There is no bitterness in that statement, just an acceptance that things have changed. For Bowyer, life has moved on and this season is all about redemption: for a season of failings last year, for a poor first spell at Upton Park in 2003 and for a player who has much in his past that needs redeeming. “My most important thing, especially with the disappointment of last season, is I just want to do well for West Ham,” Bowyer said, “and prove to everyone that I am better than what they’d seen the first time around. That’s why I came back a second time. I just want to play for the club. It’s the club I love and, hopefully, it will carry on.” At the start of the season Bowyer was not first choice, with Mark Noble and Hayden Mullins in the queue ahead of him. But injuries have changed that and his contribution has not gone unnoticed. “Lee is playing fantastically well at the moment,” Matthew Upson, the West Ham defender, said. “I think he feels that he has to prove people wrong. Maybe he has to prove himself more than others. Some people have already made their minds up about him, but I don’t think he can continue to be overlooked for long.” As well as scoring twice, Bowyer was booked, his fifth yellow card of the season. But his one-match suspension coincides with a hernia operation that will keep him out for a month. With 13 players already missing because of injury, Alan Curbishley, the West Ham manager, will be hoping that no one else goes lame during the two-week international break. (Josh Ball, 12th November, 2007).
KUMB: We needed a sharper, more incisive start to the second half – and, thankfully we got it. Within 30 seconds. Bowyer started the move with a nod-down to Mullins who fed Cole. Cole’s subsequent pass was as good as his first half efforts had been poor and he played a smashing little ball into Bowyer who had continued his run from deep to bury a first time volley home inside the post. It was a fine goal – good build-up and an excellent finish that reminded one of how Bowyer had played back in the days when he had been playing European football for teams like Leeds. (Gordon Thrower, 17th September, 2007)
Sunday Times: All afternoon, West Ham were unsure just how to unpick this particular Lancastrian lock but did have their share of half-chances in the first half. Anton Ferdinand’s newly shorn head made powerful contact with Mark Noble’s cross, only to beat both Chris Kirkland and his post and when Kieron Dyer’s cross eluded the entire white-shirted defence, Zamora, on the edge of the six-yards box, missed his kick entirely... Ashton, though, still looks far from fully fit and he too struggled to impose himself upon Andreas Granqvist and Titus Bramble as did Luis Boa Morte, when he replaced a hobbling Bellamy. Yet, in a glimpse of what may be the future, Boa Morte and Ashton combined intuitively to craft the equaliser. The pair played a delicate headed one-two before Boa Morte danced through the centre of the visiting defence and squared for a third substitute, Lee Bowyer, who sidefooted handsomely past Kirkland for his first West Ham strike. “He’s been desperate for a goal,” smiled Curbishley “But it just hasn’t fallen for him.” (John Aizlewood, 26th August, 2007)
The Guardian: If Ashton is desperate to reward the West Ham fans with a goal, he is not alone. "You want that goal," said Bellamy, still searching for his first for the club. "Sometimes that takes over everything, which it shouldn't do. You want to get off the mark." Five of the Hammers' starting XI are yet to score for them, and watching the substitute Lee Bowyer's joy on breaking his own duck in the 81st minute can't have helped their mood. "He went a bit mental," surmised Ashton. "He feels like the first time he came to West Ham (on loan in 2003) he didn't show what he can do. This time he's out to show that." (Simon Burnton, 27th August, 2007)
KUMB: The vacuous first half performance did elicit a positive move from the manager with a double substitution. The lacklustre pass-weary Bowyer was replaced by Hayden Mullins (a fan behind me remarked, “It was that bad out there that you feel relieved to see Mullins”) and a true wide player in the shape of Matty was introduced for the largely absent Boa. (East Stand Martin, 13th August)
WestHamOnline: Really not with it and you have to question his premiership ability after watching yet another abject display from a player who has played a couple of decent games in his West Ham career. He is not good enough has a replacement for Scott Parker and it is clear to me that we need another central midfielder. Bowyers performance today consisted in always getting caught in possession because he is far to slow.
(Vinny, 11th August)
Sunday Telegraph: Lee Bowyer has urged unsettled Newcastle midfielder Kieron Dyer to forget the lure of European football with Tottenham and join him at Upton Park instead. More than a little surprising, perhaps, considering the pair infamously came to blows on the pitch two years ago when they were still team-mates on Tyneside. The unforgettable fracas occurred during the second half of Newcastle's 3-0 home defeat to Aston Villa in April 2005. The duo had to be separated and were sent off in shame. But Bowyer, 30, claims he is now a reformed character and insists there is no lingering animosity between the two. "We're fine now,'' he said. ''Back then when it happened, it was just a crazy moment but I honestly don't have any worries about it at all now. ''Admittedly, when I was younger I made many mistakes but now I'm older, I just want to keep myself to myself." (28th July, 2007)
BBC Sport: West Ham United have signed midfielder Lee Bowyer for a second time for an undisclosed fee. The 29-year-old, capped once by England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson, had a six-month spell with the Hammers in 2003 before moving to Newcastle. "I am desperate to do well for West Ham," said Bowyer. "I loved my time at Newcastle but this is my club. "I didn't play well last time. I had a bad ankle injury. I see this as unfinished business," Bowyer added. (8th June, 2006)
