Curbs laments Hammer blow
30 Mar 2008 - 12:20:15
Alan Curbishley claimed West Ham United's last-gasp 2-1 defeat at Sunderland was symptomatic of his side's testing season.
The Hammers travelled to Wearside with only 17 fit players but looked to be heading for a share of the spoils after Freddie Ljungberg had opened the scoring.
But after Sunderland equalised and Ljungberg was stretchered off with a hamstring problem with Curbishley having already made all three of his substitutions, the home side scored a stoppage-time winner through Andy Reid.
"It may well sum up the season what has happened to us today," said Curbishley, who also lost George McCartney, John Pantsil and Carlton Cole to injury during the game.
"The injury list is chronic and, as the game wore on, it got worse.
"We were pulling people all over the place and filling in and, to be fair, I thought we had done enough to get a point.
"There was nothing wrong with the ref putting five minutes up - there were plenty of stoppages - but the goal went in during the 96th minute.
"We are very disappointed. I looked around the dressing room and there is ice everywhere and disappointed bodies, but we will just have to get on with it.
"It has been the story of the season."