gdp's Comments

West Ham Till I Die : Vote: Player Performances v Middlesbrough

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 07:06:37 +0000

I suppose tonight came down to little bits of skill and luck - the luck was ours - Faye's header which happened to go in the right direction. Mind you, he deserved it, he was our only consistently good player. The skill was theirs - they only showed it twice but it was enough - Webster's amazing reflex save from Tomkins and their goal, which couldn't have been hit sweeter. The substitutions told a tale, too - Boro's subs dynamised the team and led to the equaliser. Our subs - well, can you think of any Hammers players more off-form than Carew and Collison? Carew looked like a middle-aged bloke playing on the beach with teenagers - his legs kept getting in the way and he was way too slow. Collison looked nervy and totally lacking in composure. Boro's subs, meanwhile, kept coming in scary waves, and then they got the goal they deserved. Something's gotta change, Sam!

West Ham Till I Die : Match Thread: West Ham v Doncaster Rovers

Sat, 10 Mar 2012 15:46:04 +0000

In the first 20' were were all over them - what the hell's going on?

West Ham Till I Die : Match Thread: West Ham v Doncaster Rovers

Sat, 10 Mar 2012 15:44:53 +0000

Soccernet gamecast gives the idea that Doncaster are fighting back... Please, no! And is Nolan the only Hammers player who can shoot straight?

West Ham Till I Die : Vote: Player Performances v Watford

Thu, 8 Mar 2012 08:26:41 +0000

(Contd) So, no 'apprenticeship' period, it was just straight into the pressure of 'Must score NOW'. I know it's their job, but sporting form isn't just something you can switch off and on. So - I think the three newbies will come good - especially Baldock - but it might not be in time to ensure us auto-promotion, though...

West Ham Till I Die : Vote: Player Performances v Watford

Thu, 8 Mar 2012 08:26:21 +0000

Sounded like it must have been pretty frustrating to be watching. How we need someone like Demba Ba, Bellamy or Tevez - someone who doesn't even need to think about it, they just whack the ball into the net. Even Ilan had that poacher's skill, I'm not sure Sullivan was right to get rid of him. I know that Cole famously has a confidence problem, and it looks like he's sunk in that at the moment, but I think that the new boys have got the same problem - they've been drafted in with the expectation that they've got to start scoring straight away, and the longer it takes them to get into a scoring rhythm, the more it plays on their nerves, which doesn't help at all when you're in front of goal with the ball at your feet. I wonder, does anyone have any stats about Lambert? He's scoring for fun at the moment, but I bet there was a time when he was having a lean goalscoring period. We only notice him now when he's come good. Problem is, when Baldock, Maynard and Vaz Te were drafted in, none of our regular strikers were scoring regularly, so the youngsters couldn't feel their way into the team, supported by the goals of their seniors.

West Ham Till I Die : Match Thread: West Ham v Watford

Wed, 7 Mar 2012 19:11:49 +0000

Boffin on the bench! Sam must be feeling optimistic. I like this selection a lot, hope Baldock gets 30 minutes and puts at least one in. COYI!!!

West Ham Till I Die : Match Preview: West Ham v Watford

Wed, 7 Mar 2012 06:32:09 +0000

I just read 'Piquionne scores 30 yard screamer' - I must be still asleep. But it seems that Piq has finally woken up, the sod.

West Ham Till I Die : Celik & Mills Upton Park Bound?

Tue, 6 Mar 2012 18:48:21 +0000

Check this out - slide forward to 2:50 and you'll see why these supporters are so hacked off: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSDWzHMD31Q&fe...

West Ham Till I Die : Cardiff City Pay Back!

Mon, 5 Mar 2012 08:48:08 +0000

Thanks SJ, a nice summing-up. This is for anyone who hasn't seen the goals yet. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embed...

West Ham Till I Die : Vote: Player Performances v Cardiff City

Sun, 4 Mar 2012 17:15:08 +0000

Quite a few people have been slagging off Vaz Te and Maynard - give them a chance, they're still fitting into the side. Collison still worries me - he went from very good to awful today from one minute to the next (though I suppose that means he's improving - against Palace he was just awful). And we also learnt that there's no point in playing punt the long ball without at least Cole up there to aim for. As I said on the match thread, Macca's goal was one that Maradona would've been proud of (tho' I think he just used up a whole career of goal-scoring luck). Good result, very good defending especially in the second half, Faye MOTM, as we all seem to agree. I'm confident we can grind out results like this to get auto-promotion. What keeps me awake in the dead of night is the possible loss of 6 points from the Portsmouth matches. When is the curse of Warnock going to end?

West Ham Till I Die : Match Thread: Cardiff City v West Ham

Sun, 4 Mar 2012 14:43:17 +0000

Maradona would've been proud to score Macca's goal. Brilliant.

West Ham Till I Die : Match Thread: Cardiff City v West Ham

Sun, 4 Mar 2012 14:09:43 +0000

Then again, if Lansbury comes good, Arsene will nab him straight back.

West Ham Till I Die : Match Thread: Cardiff City v West Ham

Sun, 4 Mar 2012 13:48:07 +0000

Great that we're winning, but possession and nice passing around the centre circle and Nolan's goal apart, this is pretty poor from the Hammers - we so badly need a smart midfielder who can cleave the defence. Maybe Lansbury can be that player, he just needs regular games. Maybe Cole for the last 30', to see if he can do anything with those long punts?

West Ham Till I Die : Match Thread: Cardiff City v West Ham

Sun, 4 Mar 2012 13:44:17 +0000

Mourinho may well replace him this summer.

West Ham Till I Die : Parish Notice: A New Look for WHTID - Your Views Please

Mon, 27 Feb 2012 12:24:34 +0000

Shouldn't that be "without the acrimony"?

West Ham Till I Die : Twenty Things We Learned From The Draw With Palace

Sat, 25 Feb 2012 21:06:31 +0000

The Blackpool defence was like a rusty colander, that was what gave us that freedom.

West Ham Till I Die : Twenty Things We Learned From The Draw With Palace

Sat, 25 Feb 2012 20:23:23 +0000

And what's the news on Diop? We could do with having him back, not to mention the long-promised Demel (who I almost believe exists). But definitely, Lansbury for Collison, who needs to go away for some intensive training till he's the player he was 2 seasons ago.

West Ham Till I Die : Twenty Things We Learned From The Draw With Palace

Sat, 25 Feb 2012 19:44:06 +0000

And where would we be without Green? 7th, 8th, maybe 9th place. I know he's only doing his job, but he does it well, week after week.

West Ham Till I Die : Vote: Player Performances v Crystal Palace

Sat, 25 Feb 2012 17:51:13 +0000

You're right there. One thing is the team having an off day, and another is the players not trying, which you can't accuse them of today.

West Ham Till I Die : Vote: Player Performances v Crystal Palace

Sat, 25 Feb 2012 14:58:12 +0000

Too bad we can't play so well with 11. But seriously, the tiredness must be building up after the past three weeks, and it showed today - Palace had more energy, snapping up most of the loose balls. Once again, Green did his job exceptionally well, saved our bacon yet again. And their dense defending didn't give us any chances in thre first half, and we blew the ones we had in the second (especially Baldock's second chance - which he just sidefooted to the goalkeeper - FFS. That should've been in). Faye was a rock, as he often is, Noble was my MOM, though even he was giving away more balls than he usually does. In short, we were lucky to get the point - and Zaha was unlucky not to get on the scoresheet. Maynard and Vaz Te, meanwhile, were neutralised by the deep defence. Apart from the point we got away with, the best thing that happened today was that Tommo recovered from that horrible collision - it looked very bad at first. The last thing we need is to lose him at this point in the season.