4th November, 2007

KB: KUMB; HM Hammers Mad; ST Sunday Times; SE Sunday Express; SM Sunday Mirror; OB Observer;
DM Daily Mirror; GU Guardian; TM Times; HD Hammers Diary; SK Sky; DE Daily Express

JS John Simkin BF Bishops Finger WH WestLondonHammer BN Ben GL Gary Loughran SC Scaloni
ZA Zam EG Eggy DG Dodger HS Hambrosia Stu DU Dublin Iron MN Mark Noble WR Wragg

West Ham v Bolton: Video Highlights

Sky Sports: Mark Noble had a groin strain and Anton Ferdinand a hamstring problem, adding themselves to a treatment room already containing the likes of Dean Ashton, Craig Bellamy and Scott Parker. The players remaining quickly imposed themselves on Bolton, Matthew Etherington and Nolberto Solano causing panic with dangerous deliveries. Lee Bowyer appeared to have wasted a glorious chance in the 12th minute when Cole headed into his path and he fired wide with the goalkeeper to beat, but the flag was up anyway. Etherington then got behind the Bolton defence when he outpaced Andy O'Brien but his low cross was cut out by Abdoulaye Meite, with the ball spinning to safety. The opener came in the 19th minute after Bolton failed to clear a Solano corner. Matthew Upson had an effort cleared off the line, then flicked on when the ball was crossed back in, and McCartney produced an acrobatic volley past Jaaskelainen. It was the defender's first goal in West Ham colours - but he was required for his usual defensive duties two minutes later when Diouf was found on the edge of the area.

BBC Sport: Given McCartney has scored just one goal in his professional career - for Northern Ireland - he was an unlikely candidate to be the game's first goalscorer. Bolton had spurned several opportunities to clear the ball following a West Ham corner and McCartney - with both feet off the ground - expertly volleyed the ball past Jaaskelainen to punish Megson's side. The goal was reward for West Ham's bright beginning to the game with Matthew Etherington always purposeful, delivering a series of dangerous crosses from the left wing. Etherington delivered the pass of the game in the second half when he flighted the ball to the feet of Cole. The former Chelsea striker's shot was partially saved by Jaaskelainen and Cole was unable to prod in the rebound. (John Sinnott, 4th November, 2007)

Hammers Mad: Although Matthew Etherington and Solano had threatened with early bursts upfield, it was Campo who came closest to breaking the deadlock when he curled a 20-yard free-kick a whisker wide of Green's right-hand post. But on 19 minutes, McCartney, poised on the edge of the six-yard box, went one better when he met Matthew Upson's nod-on with a spectacular, aerial volley after Bolton failed to clear Solano's inswinging corner. And just two minutes later, the Northern Ireland International was the darling of the East End once more, when he nodded El Hadji Diouf's deflected, looping shot off the Hammers' goal-line with Green well and truly stranded.

Daily Telegraph: McCartney was again the name in the news up until the interval. But this time it was George, not Paul or Heather. A fraught and messy affair was lit up by West Ham's Northern Ireland international left-back, George McCartney, who produced a gem of a finish followed by a timely goal-line clearance. The goal was a collector's item. Not only was it a perfectly-struck acrobatic volley with the right foot that McCartney normally reserves for standing on, it was also his first league goal. Bolton passed up three or four opportunities to clear a West Ham corner before Matthew Upson won a header, and McCartney lent back to steer the ball powerfully home. Moments earlier, Upson had been denied by a desperate block from Abdoulaye Meite. Lee Bowyer also went close as McCartney and Matthew Etherington joined forces to cut through Bolton's beleaguered right flank. (Clive Tyldesley, 5th November, 2007)

The Times: When Curbishley opens his 50th birthday presents on Thursday, he may be hoping that instead of boxer shorts and socks, his wife has bought him a spreadsheet to keep a record of the remarkable list of injuries. It was 13 at the last count, when Hayden Mullins limped off yesterday, but best to double check. Handy, too, would be a list of players out of contract, as at this rate they may not get to the January transfer window. Curbishley hurled his water bottle in disgust at the end, a reflection of his team’s intermittent daydreaming and carelessness. “We wasted a lot of energy in needless things when we should have been professional and killed the game off,” he said. George McCartney’s crisp strike was out of synch with the dross on show otherwise. The left back did a pirouette to scissor-kick in Lee Bowyer’s cross. It gave West Ham control, but they never had a second clear opportunity, despite Nolberto Solano and Carlton Cole going close. West Ham conceded possession as quickly as it was gained and Bolton Wanderers were able to grow. Daniel Guthrie struck a post, Gary Speed narrowly missed, Kevin Davies put a free header over and then Kevin Nolan prodded home from Lubomir Michalik’s flick in the third minute of stoppage time. (Gary Jacob, 5th November, 2007)

Iain Dale's Hammer's Diary: At times, especially in the first half, we looked awesom, especially down the left hand side, where Matty Etherington ruled the roost. Defensively we also looked comfortable for long periods, but it was in midfield that I thought we were poor. This is hardly surprising when you look at our injury list, but Bowyer and Solano were never going to form the kind of midfield bulwark which is needed against teams like Bolton. Carlton Cole showed more positive signs but Luis Boa Morte was appalling. How on earth did Curbishley ever feel that it was worth paying £5 million for his services. We needed two out and out strikers against Bolton and Camara should have been on the pitch from the start. Sky showed a list of our injured players, who could make a team on their own - and they even missed out Julien Faubert on the graphic. It was good to see John Pantsil get a brief runout towards the end. I still feel he might have something to offer us. If we still have Noble and Mullins out for the Derby game I’d stick Lucas Neill on the right side of midfield and put in Pantsil at right back. (Iain Dale, 5th November, 2007)

The Guardian: Carlton Cole, at times isolated in West Ham's tentative 4-2-3-1 formation, forced a superb save from Jussi Jaaskelainen on the counterattack but Bolton's force was becoming irresistible. Diouf had a header cleared off the line but, moments later, Nolan intervened decisively. "We've been done," lamented the West Ham manager, Alan Curbishley. "Once you get to the 94th minute you should see the game out. In the last 10 minutes I thought we were 1-0 down the way we were playing - we were breaking to get in the box and crossing balls in when we didn't need to. We needed a little bit of professionalism, one or two to get their foot on it, run it in the corner and kill the game off. But I'd give Bolton a lot of credit because from the moment we scored they upped it a bit and we never really looked like we'd get that second goal." Having 12 players absent does not help, but Curbishley was loth to use West Ham's wretched injury list as an excuse. "I think [to mention that] is a little bit disrespectful to the team that's playing," he said. "If we'd got those extra two points we'd be in the top half of the table." (Rob Smyth, 5th November, 2007)

KUMB: Alan Curbishley's injury problems - which had left him short of no less than eleven players (at least eight of whom would have been involved today) worsened after Hayden Mullins was withdraw just five minutes into the second half. But it still looked as if United's patched up team of reserves and misfits had done enough to earn all three points - until Bolton's late equaliser... Looking back this will no doubt be considered two points dropped against a team bottom of the league that had managed just ten league goals prior to today (with six of them coming from Nicolas Anelka, who was absent today through injury). But given United's horrendous injury problems a return of five points from the last three games (extending their unbeaten run to four games in all competitions) isn't as bad as could perhaps be expected. (Graeme Howlett, 5th November, 2007)

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