England captain Rio Ferdinand leads star-studded turn out for Tony Carr testimonial at West Ham

06 May 2010 10:55
Rio Ferdinand gave Manchester United and England a major boost after he continued his comeback from back and groin injuries to play in Tony Carr's star-studded testimonial. [LNB]Look who's back: Rio Ferdinand gives Manchester United a timely boost on his return to West Ham[LNB]Ferdinand, who has started only 11 Barclays Premier League games this season, was granted permission by Sir Alex Ferguson to travel to London and pay respect to the West Ham academy director responsible for so much of his early development at Upton Park. [LNB]Ferdinand partnered his brother Anton in West Ham's clash with the Academy All Stars and looked untroubled as he came through the opening 28 minutes before being substituted. [LNB]Carr said: 'Rio has been struggling with his back for a couple of weeks but I give Sir Alex credit. [LNB]'I got a call from Rio and he said he was getting on a train with permission to play by Fergie.' [LNB]It was a night to remember for Carr, who has given 37 years of service to the club and brought through seven current England players. [LNB] One night only: Frank Lampard and John Terry, along with fellow Chelsea team-mate Joe Cole, were afford a warm reception at Upton Park[LNB]Although they were not allowed to play, Frank Lampard (left), John Terry (inset with Lampard) and Joe Cole were all back in a claret and blue shirt but were given mixed receptions when they were introduced to the 13,000 crowd at the start of the game. [LNB] Italian job: West Ham legend Paolo Di Canio delights the crowd running past compatriot Alessandro Diamanti[LNB]Michael Carrick was unable to attend due to his wife giving birth to their second child last weekend, while Glen Johnson had a club function and Jermain Defoe was in action for Tottenham against Manchester City.[LNB] Thanks for the memories: Lampard didn't play but he paid tribute to Hammers Academy boss Tony Carr at his star-studded testimonial[LNB]Gianfranco Zola's side won the game 5-1, with former Hammers hero Paolo Di Canio voted man of the match with the fans in awe of the Italian on his return to Upton Park. [LNB]MATCH FACTSAcademy All-Stars: Stech (John 84),Newton (Purches 46), A Ferdinand (Forbes 49), R Ferdinand (Ward 28,Edwards 71), Ridgewell (Richardson 46, Hall 77), Slater (Hodges 34,Williamson 64), McCann (Stokes 46), Holland, Britton (Reid 46), Eastwood (Ephraim 34), Di Canio (Alexander 58)[LNB]West Ham United: Green (Kurucz 45),Spector (Spence 46), Gabbidon (Da Costa 46), Tomkins (Di Canio 69),Daprela (Brown 46), Stanislas (Sears 32), Parker (Kovac 46), Noble (Lee46), Boa Morte (Stokes 46), Franco (Montano 46), Diamanti (G Zola 69,Daprela 89)[LNB]  Salute West Ham's star finder: Big names to pay tribute to Tony Carr, the man who launched the careers of Ferdinand, Cole and LampardWest Ham target Shrewsbury wonderkid Tom Bradshaw as Shrews eye Paul Ince as next bossWEST HAM UNITED FC

Source: Daily_Mail