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  • Andrews (51)
  • Noble (35)
  • Date:2009-03-21
  • Kick-off:15:00
  • Venue:Ewood Park
  • Attendance:21672
  • Referee:Foy, C

Live Commentary

90mins

Blackburn fail to take their chances and have to settle for a point in the end as West Ham hang on to take a point.

90mins

Blackburn fail to take their chances and have to settle for a point in the end as West Ham hang on to take a point.

90mins

West Ham make their last change of the game with Josh Payne coming on for the first time in the Premier League, taking the place Diego Tristan.

90mins

The fourth official indicates there will be three minutes of added time, can Rovers get the goal their play deserves?

89mins

Parker is booked for a heavy challenge in on Warnock.

87mins

The Hammers nearly steal it right at the death after a deep cross towards the far post is headed across the face of goal by Tomkins but it bobbles out for a goalkick.

84mins

Tristan takes the resulting freekick for the Hammers just to the left of centre 25-yards from goal but it's a dreadful effort and goes well wide.

84mins

Aaron Mokoena is given a yellow card, not his second as I might have thought, after bringing down Tristan.

83mins

Dyer robs Samba and then is seemingley pulled back by the Rovers defender but after a long hard look at it Chris Foy doesn't award a penalty.

81mins

Zola makes his second change of the game with Kieron Dyer coming on for David Di Michele.

78mins

West Ham make their first change of the game with Walter Lopez replacing Luis Boa Morte.

77mins

Diouf takes a corner for Rovers which is headed away at the near post but the ball comes back to Andrews whose effort is blocked by the desperate West Ham defence.

75mins

West Ham have possibly their first shot of the second half with Tristan trying his luck from 22 yards but his effort is high into the Hammers fans behind the goal.

74mins

Another brilliant pair of blocks from the Hammers defence, this time it's Neill who stops McCarthy's effort before getting up and denying Pedersen as well, great defending.

71mins

Pedersen with another long throw nearly sets-up the equaliser for Rovers as McCarthy's shot is blocked brilliantly by Parker, the West Ham man getting up and clearing it away before McCarthy can have another go.

69mins

It's back to the walls stuff for West Ham already after another long throw from Pedersen caused chaos in the Hammers box but McCarthy's overhead kick is wide as Zola's side hang on.

67mins

Ryan Nelsen goes into the book after pulling back Boa Morte.

63mins

McCarthy finds some room to put a nice cross into the box which is flicked on at he near post by Roberts which inadvertently takes it away from Diouf at the far post who was unmarked.

62mins

Blackburn have the ball in the back of the net again but this one won't count after Green parries Andrews' deflected effort and the ball falls to Diouf who roll the ball home but from an offside position as Rovers continue to dominate.

60mins

Givet's cross finds Pedersen who takes on the high ball first time with a volley which flashes wide of Green's goal by a couple of yards.

59mins

Diouf chips a freekick into the box, sending it towards the near post where Green arrives to punch the ball away with an excellent fist to relieve the danger.

56mins

Pedersen winds up another long throw which Green doesn't get to and thankfully for West Ham Kovac can clear the ball away.

54mins

From the resulting corner Rovers try to force the ball home after the ball dropped inside the box but eventually it rolls behind for a goalkick.

52mins

Pedersen now tries his luck from a tight angle which takes a massive deflection off Spector and goes behind for a corner.

50mins

Rovers equalise and it is the substitute ANDREWS who has leveled things up after another Pedersen throw-in was half cleared Andrews fired a low drive through a crowd of bodies to level things up.

49mins

Chaos in the Hammers box again as Spector's head falls to Roberts whose shot is deflected and before another Rovers player can have another shot Parker dives in to get the ball away.

47mins

Pedersen clips a cross into the box which is flicked on by McCarthy in an attempt to get the ball to Roberts but the former Wigan man can't reach it and the ball goes behind for a goal kick.

45mins

Rovers have made a change at the break with Keith Andrews coming on in place of Andre Ooijer.

45mins

Chris Foy gets the second half underway with West Ham looking to extend their lead and push on for a Europa League place.

45mins

West Ham lead at the break after a frantic first half where Rovers had their chances early on but the Hammers managed to establish a foothold and eventually Noble finished off a great counter-attacking move to give Zola's side the lead.

44mins

Givet plays a cleaver ball up to Roberts on the edge of the penalty area, the Rovers striker turning and firing it towards goal but a great block from Tomkins can make sure its not going to be an equaliser.

43mins

Pedersen with a corner for Blackburn which is swung into the near post but it's a poor one and Tristan can head it away from goal.

41mins

Boa Morte nearly goes close to setting up Di Michele for a second West Ham goal but the flag goes up against the forward as he is marginally offside.

38mins

Diouf tries to respond for Rovers, clipping a freekick into the penalty area but a shove from Samba ruins Rovers' chances as West Ham win the freekick.

35mins

West Ham take the lead with a fine counter-attacking goal after Boa Morte's cross for Tristan is layed off by the Spanish striker into the path of NOBLE who fires home with a great finish.

34mins

Roberts lays the ball off to Warnock on the edge of the penalty area whose effort is a poor one and ends up in row K behind the goal.

31mins

Rovers have the ball in the back of the net but it won't count after a long throw into the penalty area caused chaos in the Hammers back line but as the ball is bundled home Green was impeded and the freekick goes to West Ham.

30mins

Pedersen puts a high cross in from the left towards the far post, looking for Illunga who has to head it out for a corner under pressure from Diouf.

25mins

Noble puts a low cross into the six yard box which nearly results in Robinson and Samba conspiring to put the ball in their own net after getting into a real mix-up but eventually the ball is cleared away.

22mins

Blackburn are through again, this time with Roberts who tries his luck but a crowd of claret and blue shirts make sure the shot doesn't test Green as Rovers continue to dominate.

19mins

Pedersen tries his luck from a long way out, trying to float the ball into the top corner after the Hammers defence decides to back off and give him some room. However Pedersen's shot is high and wide.

18mins

Pedersen with a corner for Blackburn which he sends towards the near post where Nelsen tries to attack the ball but Neil is there to beat him to it and clear it away.

16mins

The Hammers finally test Robinson for the first time after Noble finds Di Michele on the edge of the Rovers penalty area and with a bending effort the Italian forward forces Robinson into a decent save.

14mins

West Ham finally get within shooting range of the Blackburn goal and with very few options Parker is forced to shoot but drags his effort wide without testing Robinson.

13mins

Diouf sends in a low cross from the right which looks to be heading in Roberts direction but the Blackburn strike fails to make contact on the ball and Green can gather.

11mins

Pedersen clips in a corner for Rovers, sending it towards the near post where it's half cleared before a shot comes in from Samba who forces a brilliant save from Green as West Ham hang on for dear life.

8mins

First real chance of the game for either side and it goes to Rovers as Pedersen clips the ball into the penalty area it falls to McCarthy who from six yards out hammers the ball high over the bar.

6mins

Pedersen sends a high cross into the penalty area from the left hand side but it is straight down the throat of Green as both sides continue to play the game at a high tempo.

3mins

Pedersen sends a long throw into the six yard box which Green punches but doesn't do so cleanly and eventually Tomkins can clear for the Hammers.

0mins

Referee Chris Foy gets the game underway with Blackburn falling further towards the drop zone following Portsmouth's win over Everton earlier in the afternoon and knowing they could be back in the relegation places if results go against them today.

0mins

West Ham XI: Green, Neill, Tomkins, Spector, Ilunga, Noble, Parker, Kovac, Boa Morte, Tristan, Di Michele

0mins

West Ham are forced into three changes from the side that escaped with a 0-0 draw with West Brom on Monday with Jonathan Spector, Diego Tristan and Luis Boa Morte all come in for Matthew Upson, Savio and Freddie Sears.

0mins

Blackburn XI: Robinson, Ooijer, Samba, Nelsen, Givet, Diouf, Mokoena, Warnock, Pedersen, McCarthy, Roberts

0mins

Blackburn make three changes from the side that were beaten 4-0 at Arsenal last time out with Benni McCarthy and Ryan Nelsen coming into the side while Zurab Khizanishvili and Danny Simpson drop out.

Match Preview

Blackburn Rovers must recover quickly from the 4-0 hammering they suffered at the hands of Arsenal last weekend if they are to defeat seventh-placed West Ham United.

The defeat to the Gunners was summed up by Rovers boss Sam Allardyce, who commented: "It was the right result. We weren't good enough at the end of the day."

Yet Blackburn may be heartened by the turmoil that has surrounded the Hammers over the past week as the club have been forced into a settlement with Sheffield United.

West Ham had been set to enter a courtroom battle with the Blades over their illegal signing of Carlos Tevez, but the Hammers this week agreed to a compensation deal that could reportedly reach £25million.

It has been an unwelcome distraction for the club after a tough two months that have brought just four goals in seven games.

Two 1-0 wins have helped hide the indifferent form and to maintain their position just above the 11-team relegation group, but a 0-0 draw with bottom club West Bromwich Albion on Monday exposed their recent on-field troubles.

Long-term injuries to midfielders Valon Behrami and Jack Collison have recently extended an injury list that already includes Dean Ashton and Danny Gabbidon.

The latest addition is England international centre-back Matthew Upson, who injured his groin again West Brom and is likely to be out until after the international break.

Kieron Dyer and James Collins are battling to be back in time to face Rovers but, even if they recover, the Hammers' goalscoring problems are unlikely to be solved.

The departure of Craig Bellamy to Manchester City in January has left a gap that David Di Michele, Freddie Sears and Diego Tristan have been unable to fill.

That space has also had to widen due to the absence of first-choice striker Carlton Cole through suspension, although the clash with Blackburn is his final match on the sidelines.

Blackburn have a considerably shorter list of injured players but the loss of striker Roque Santa Cruz, absent since the start of March, has hit them hard.


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Match Report

Keith Andrews' first goal at Ewood Park ended Blackburn Rovers' run of six straight defeats against West Ham.

Mark Noble had fired the visitors' into a first-half lead with a neat finish from ten yards.

But Andrews earned a valuable point for Sam Allardyce's side just minutes after coming off the bench.

El-Hadji Diouf was twice denied by the linesman's flag, as Rovers more than matched their loftier opponents.

There was mixed injury news for the two managers before the game, as defenders Ryan Nelsen and Gael Givet passed late fitness tests for the home side, whilw Matthew Upson and Savio Nsereko were ruled out for the visitors.

Allardyce had called for greater vocal support in the build-up to the game and, backed by an expectant Ewood Park crowd, Rovers made the better start of the two teams.

On eight minutes, Chris Samba flicked on Nelsen's ball into the box, but Benni McCarthy volleyed wildly over when Diouf was perhaps better placed.

Two minutes later, Morten Gamst Pedersen's corner caused chaos in the West Ham box and, when the ball eventually dropped back to the Norwegian winger, his shot was well saved by Robert Green.

The Hammers weren't without their chances too however. On 16 minutes, Noble fed David Di Michele, whose curling effort was comfortable for Paul Robinson and, just under ten minutes later, Rovers failed to clear their lines, but Diego Tristan was unable to force the ball home.

Rovers had the ball in the back of the net just past the half-hour mark, when Pedersen's long throw was flicked on by Samba and Diouf bundled the ball home, but the Senegal international was flagged offside.

At the other end, West Ham wasted a two-on-one, as Tristan was also flagged offside, but the visitors didn't have to wait long for the opening goal.

Noble started the move with a break down the right and, after Luis Boa Morte and Tristan had combined in the box, the ball was played back out to Noble, who stroked home his fifth of the season with the outside of his boot.

Allardyce brought on Andrews for Andre Ooijer at the break and the substitute made an immediate impact.

On 50 minutes, the Irishman's cross found Jason Roberts at the far post, but his crisp strike was blocked on its way to goal. From the very next play, Pedersen's long throw was only partially headed clear by Herita Ilunga and Andrews drilled the ball home through a crowd of bodies.

Pedersen volleyed well wide just past the hour mark and, two minutes later, Diouf again thought he'd opened his Ewood account.

Samba's left-foot strike was well kept out by Green and Diouf pounced on the rebound, but again the former Sunderland striker had strayed offside.

Rovers laid siege to the West Ham goal but, time after time, the visitors made vital blocks from strikes on target.

Gianfranco Zola brought on Kieron Dyer for Di Michele and the former England international thought he'd won a late penalty after a tangle of legs inside the box with Samba, but referee Chris Foy remained unmoved.

Blackburn Rovers

West Ham United

Corners

71

Fouls

149

Goal attempts

166

Shots off target

54

Offsides

34

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