Premier League
West Ham United 2-1 Wigan Athletic 

Saturday, 16th August 2008
by Gordon Thrower

Excellent start, a wobble in the middle but a good steady finish to take the honours. But enough of Essex’s marvellous victory at Lord’s. What of West Ham?



* Want to submit your match reports to KUMB.com? More details here ...

 Click to view all West Ham United vs Wigan Athletic match reports

 Click to view all match reports by Gordon Thrower

Like to share your thoughts on this article? Please visit the KUMB Forum to leave a comment.





Player Ratings

Robert Green
Rarely bothered ?EUR" unlike the back of the stand ?EUR" but pulled off a fine save when required.


Valon Behrami
Looked good going forward but our defending deep policy curtailed his forages forward.


Lucas Neill
Looked a little better on the left than he had done in pre-season but I?EUR(TM)ll be happier when Linda?EUR(TM)s back.


Calum Davenport
Battled well ?EUR" the odd lapse of concentration such as the one that led to his booking will have to go though.


Matthew Upson
Excellent and I make him MOTM for his calmness under the aerial onslaught.


Scott Parker
Gave the ball away a bit too often for my liking.


Nark Noble
An ok first half was tempered by his failure to show any authority in the second.


Julien Faubert
Got forward well but his final ball needs a bit of working on.


Matthew Etherington
Lively first half but disappeared from view in the second.


Dean Ashton
Took the goals well in an impressive first period though he was given little of the ball in the second period before he succumbed to injury.


Carlton Cole
Worked very hard throughout though it is perhaps notable that his most telling contributions came from defensive work.



Substitutes

Hayden Mullins
(replaced Parker, 73) Didn?EUR(TM)t really register in the spell he was on.


Fred Sears
(replaced Ashton, 73) A couple of good runs and won the ball off defenders a few times.


Luis Boa Morte
(replaced Faubert, 85) Not on for too long but tracked back superbly for one run to break up a promising Wigan break.


Jan Lastuvka
Did not play.


Jordan Spence
Did not play.


Lee Bowyer
Did not play.


Kyel Reid
Did not play.



Match Facts

West Ham United: Robert Green, Valon Behrami, Lucas Neill, Calum Davenport, Matthew Upson, Scott Parker, Nark Noble, Julien Faubert, Matthew Etherington, Dean Ashton, Carlton Cole.

Goals: Dean Ashton 3 Dean Ashton 10                .

Booked: Scott Parker 39 Calum Davenport 49        .

Sent off: None.

Wigan Athletic: Kirkland, Melchiot, Figueroa, Palacios, Boyce, Scharner, Cattermole, Valencia, Kapo, Heskey, Zaki.

Subs not used: Pollitt, Kilbane, Brown, Bramble.

Goals: Zaki (47).

Booked: Palacios (68).

Sent off: None.

Referee: Steve Bennett.

Attendance: 32,758.

Man of the Match: Matthew Upson.