Yes Hammer, it is to be hoped that as far as you and all Wet Ham fans are concerned, Cardiff will still be suffering a hangover from today then I think you will get a result.
I have always said that Carroll is out of place at Anfield and saw nothing to alter my opinion at Wembley today, for one so tall in stature he gets knocked off the ball too easily and is always complaining plus Steven Gerrard is far from fully match fit, give me the likes of Kuyt and Bellamy any time plus the much maligned Suarez, even young Jay Spearing would have been a lot more aggressive but at least we have got some silver wear at last 
Heartbreaking to see Cardiff lose in the manner they did. You could see the exhaustion as they took the penalties. Shame it has to end that way, but with such a crowded fixture list for most clubs, maybe its the only way. Donât be too worried Hammer, itâll be a close one next week for sure. At least Green got his red card rescinded.Couldânt believe how Arsenal came back from the dead, our Annie must be doing handsprings, just like Kenwyne Jones! Our lot scraped a 1-1 draw at home, yawn ,yawn.
Forthcoming Wednesday evening Friendly International against The Netherlands.
Stuart Pearce our interim manager is sticking to his usual way of not naming his team until the day of the match, nor will he divulge who the captain will be although he has said that he made the decision a week or so ago.
He said at the press conference âThe captain will be announced tomorrow when the team is announced tomorrow morning. Itâs a format that I have followed at club level and under-21 level and I didnât see it necessary to change it at this moment in timeâ
He has at least shown he will not bow to media pressure and denied he was being evasive by delaying the announcement. Stuart would of course have known that if he had offered his choice of skipper up, the name would have had to face the press but not to talk about the forthcoming game. The topic would have been nothing more than questions about John Terry being stripped of the armband amid charges of alleged racial abuse towards Anton Ferdinand.
An eminently sensible action to take I would have thought.
Onward
It is certainly very refreshing to see Stuart Pearceâs attitude which clearly sends out the message that it is all about football and not about the media, he will no doubt have enough detractors if England do not perform too well, especially as he has reportedly chosen Scott Parker as the captain for the match, interesting to say the least but Scott had been voted England player of the year for 2011 so it seems to be very fitting that he leads the Three lions out this evening.
Good points Bob, as you know I always campaigned for Scott Parker to at least be included in the England set up.
I thought it unfathomable that Capello left him at home for the last World Cup whilst some prime donkeys were included.
That said, whilst I am very pleased for the lad, maybe it all has come a bit too late for him at the age of 31, but hopefully not.
One thing for certain, will be his total commitment and that has been an all too frequent ommision of recent times by some of our âtalentâ.
Onward.
Beaten 2-3 by a very organised and competent unit of largely world class players.
Only a personal viewpoint but I was encouraged rather than disappointed by a few things that were evident tonight.
Ok after a fairly good first half they seemed to run out of initiative. They were very deficient in key areas of organisation but could we realistically have asked for anything more given what has gone on recently.
Would a full âstrengthâ squad have done any better? I donât believe they would. There is an awful lot of work to do, the question is will the people who are prepared to put in a shift be given the chance to do it.
Given our press I somehow doubt it as I can imagine what knives the âexpertsâ are already honing for the Thursday papers.
Onward, wearily.
Actually from a personal viewpoint I enjoyed the game even though we were beaten at the death and it was refreshing to see players actually interested in playing for England, the enthusiasm stood out but you are correct Hammer, the âgentlemenâ of the press are sticking the knife in already and one even said ânow we want a proper managerâ as he jumped on the Harry for England bandwagon which is on the roll again. I think Psycho should be given the job until at least the Euro Games are played, that would at least be a good way of steadying the ship.
It was a heartening performance against a side that donât forget, contested the 2010 World Cup Final. Like you say Hammer, the Dutch had some world class players, so no disgrace, particularly coming back from two down. That last minute winner was really harsh. So need for doom and gloom, just need to sort out this manager thingie!
OMG! we are back to the foreign manager syndrome in this morningâs press with Mourhino and Wenger being mentioned as possible England managers! Our FA certainly like to slap home grown talent in the face, what is wrong with letting Pearce see what he can do with the squad at Euro 2012? Rumour also has it that Harry will not be taking the job on as yet so the time is ripe for an English Manager to have a go and if he makes a success of it then look at the situation as and when, we need stability and teamwork right now, from the very top downwards.
Just an added comment here, it has also been reported that Sir Trevor Brooking is not too keen on Redknap taking over the England job, wonder if that is true?
Bob.
Bob, I think it was the band Metallica that âsangâ âWelcome to where time stands stillâ. A bit like the FA and the England job.
I started to read a few pieces from the âinformedâ press about Pearce and gave up as I thought they were being less than fair to him. Nothing I saw was remotely objective, just bandwagon hopping.
I wait with bated breath to hear what the ex player turned pundits club pronouncements are. They should all try and remember with very few exceptions their collective managerial achievements can be written large on a second class stamp.
I really hope that Stuart does not bother to read the rubbish being spouted at the moment. It is very sad to see genuine enthusiasm and the will to want sucess for our national side being dismissed as incompetence.
On the Brooking front, I do seem to recall there was a bit of ill feeling at the time of the Billy Bonds saga.
I agree wholeheartedly with you on the stability and Pearce managing the squad for the Euroâs. We were never expected to do any good at all so anything will be a bonus.
To bring Harry in at the devils dancing hour would be insanity but since when has commonsense ruled the FA?
Onward.
So what is the talk then about the special one house hunting in London all about,saw it in the headlines. a womans eye view is " Why the hell dont they sort it all out. Whats all the nonsence about clubs going broke, I will tell you, its all the fault of managers giving ridiculous amounts of money to men to kick a ball about the field for 90 mins because they havent got the brains to do anything else.
In quiet reflection, I think for all thats being going on, Stuart Pearce is a breath of fresh air. Could you get a more passionate Englishman? Harry Redknapp more and more, comes over as a Del Boy type, ducking and diving, not to be trusted. Trevor Brooking has sat on the fence on too many occasions. Mourinho? just donât go there, heâs got more baggage than Joan Collins! Give Pearcie another go next match, got nothing to lose.
yes John Pierce did look like a football manager of years gone bye, but he doesnt want the job full time and I have to agree with you about HR,he does look like a spiv, but from my point of view when the going gets tough its a pleasure to look at Mourinho and his coat.
Annie,
maybe the âchosen oneâ is being lined up for a possible vacancy at Arsenal or just maybe Spurs, I somehow cannot see him getting a sniff at the England job, althoughâŠhm. 
Just watched the Cardiff v West Ham game on TV, and Hammer, your boys did you proud. Looked as though Cardiff were a bit flat after last weekendâs exertions, but the better side won. Our guy Holdsworth went back to former club Mansfield, but got no joy, losing 2-1. So AVB got his P45, so no surprise there. Got to feel sorry for him though , with that no win situation with the players egos, and that miserable bastard Russian. Arsenal have to get some big hitters in to keep Van the Man. What can you say? Liverpool all over the Gunners like a cheap suit, but that Flying Dutchman, heâs something else.
John,
Yes I watched with a great deal of interest.
Thinking back I believe this result made a change from our usual TV appearances where we lose.
I am not sure as the mind is still a bit hazy from the heady three points but I think the last time they were on and did not suffer a defeat was a goaless draw at an evening game at Anfield.
It should not really count as I actually went to the match and recorded the game.
However all the points count, I think we reaped the benefit of Cardiffâs exertions last week. They were looking very weary at times although still dangerous. In all honesty we should have boxed the game up just after half time and I thought we might just pay for our snatched trigger attitude.
One thing I noticed, the BBC commentary.
Was it Mark Bright who provided the co-commentary?
If it was, I understand the bias now, he hates us for some reason. Even JP was getting a bit weary of his one eyed slant on things.
The Arsenal, did I spot a slight facial twitch of a grin from Arsenne? it was quickly gone. You are spot on the real Reds played them off the park but got done.
Chelsea and AVB, a terrible way to treat the guy, I hope they vanish without trace but I do like De Matteo as a good bloke.
Keep the faith with the Imps, never change that, it does get better at least I keep thinking it does but have thought that for years without any change except when WHU won the world cup of course.
Onward
Quite an all round professional performance from your favourites Hammer and I must agree that towards the end Cardiff were once again visibly tiring as the visitors seemed to brush them aside at will so another 3 points in the bag as they look down on the rest of the pack.
As for Liverpool, they should have been out of sight by half time against the Gunners but as the old saying goes âthe ones that go in are what countâ and that man Van Persie once again proved his worth to the Arsenal side as they snatched another win at Anfield.
Hard luck again John, that is really a dismal season that the Imps are experiencing, hopefully things will turn for the better this month.
If Jim still reads this thread I will just mention the fact that Cowdenbeath are still top of the Scottish Division 2 after drawing 1-1 at Airdrie.
QPR: The Four Year Plan.
Not sure if anyone saw this BBC 90 minute documentary transmitted last Sunday.I suspect its original brief was to show how back in 2007 Queens Park Rangers a Football Club; in dire straits and facing not only relegation but also bankruptcy could be saved by the expertise and not inconsiderable cash injection from some high profile billionaires.
What we got was an altogether but strangely fascinating different programme.The main protagonists in this one act farce had apparently allowed the makers unrestricted access to record and film what they wanted whilst having no editorial control at all. It is also unbelievably said that these same business wizards even paid for it to be made. I cannot think they are of the same opinion now it has been aired.
The boardroom and directors box antics of both the then co-owner Flavio Briatore and chairman Gianni Paladini could have been seen and enjoyed as an episode from a Spike Milligan Q8 series.The Gary Jules one hit wonder âMad Worldâ would have not been out of place as background music. I say could have been, for there was a much more sinister machiavellian edge to all the proceedings.
They managed to plough through five managers in one season, deriding each and every outgoing âfortunatesâ as âidiotsâ. Briatore, who clearly knows nothing at all of football imposed his not inconsiderable bulk and foul mouth in the directors box and attempted to control the manager like a puppeteer via his string pulling hit man, the obsequious but dangerously ruthless Paladini.
We saw very little of Ecclestone and heard even less but Vice-chairman Amit Bhatia came across as a genuine bloke who cared about the club and its staff. Our old mate Neil Warnock was taken on to sort out the club and gain promotion to the Prem which he did in the way that Neil does.
I am relieved to say that these people are no longer at the club, nor sadly is Neil but I do not put him in the same class.The question must still be asked, why have we let these people and others like them take over our national game like this?
Maybe we have to look back a long time to 1961 when the PFA were threatening a strike for the removal of the minimum wage to see where the rot set in.
Reg Pratt the rather astute Chairman of West Ham United FC gave a pretty good and sensible interview at the time. He had many suggestions that were about right and if that road had been trodden we would I feel have a wholly different and better game today. One thing for certain is, it would be poles apart from the insanity that this programme highlighted.
Onward.
Hammer, I missed the programme, but hope to catch it up on I Player, or a repeat. They were a right crowd of chancers at QPR! How they passed the so called âRight and Proper Person Testâ is one of lifeâs mysteries. The Football Authorities have made themselves a joke interpreting this edict. As long as these villians have the funds, in you come. Look at poor old Pompey, classic case of the three wise monkeys. OOPS! Musânt say that, apparently according to a recent tribunal, its racist! Apart from sticking our heads up our behinds, weâll just have to carry on.
Spot on John,
It is sad the way Pompey have been put through it in recent years, I really hope they are saved from extinction and not simply because of what would happen to the remainder in the division.
I think it stands that if they vanish the results thus far are expunged. It would mean the Hammers would lose six points because we have played and beaten them twice.
That would drop us out of the two automatic promotion places and who knows a quirk of the fixture table could see us stay in the Championship for another season despite the results already achieved on the pitch.
No doubt it would bring a wry smile to a few.