While West Ham limped to a weak 2-1 defeat to Wigan the development squad made it 5 league wins in a row with an impressive 1-0 win over a very good Everton side.

A superb header by Elliot Lee from a Blair Turgott cross was enough to seal the win, the development squad are full of confidence at the moment and seem to have a real sense of purpose about there play.

A mixture of real attacking intent and some fine performances by Eion Wearen  at the back suggests the future is bright and another crop of players  are appearing on the production line.

The big question is are any of the players ready to join the matchday 18, well Dan Potts made the breakthrough last year and I do not think it will be too long before we see him striding out again in the premier league although this maybe at the end of the season once our Premier League status is secured.

Matthias Fanimo is someone who I know Big Sam highly rates and he has traveled a few times and maybe when there are a few injuries he may sneak a regular place on the bench.

A Player who intrigues me is Sebastien Lletget, his all action performances are catching the eye and a regular in the USA under 23 team, he was also voted on a US TV station as one of the 9 young talents to watch out for.

As for Elliot Lee he has fierce competition with Robert Hall to make the matchday 18, a chance may come for him if Hall goes out on Loan.

My last word will go to Freddie Picquionne who come on for the last 10 mins versus Everton,  a good player who must move on im afraid if he has any ambition left in football,  I am sure he can still do a very good job in a championship side.

The 7^th August 2003 is not a date that will stick in the mind of many West Ham fans but at the time the simple fact was that we signed a 20 year old goal scoring sensation.

Neil Mellor set record upon records in the Liverpool youth teams and reserves, in the 2001/2002 season he scored 56 goals for the under 19’s and a year later he scored 20 goals in the reserves.

So When Glenn Roeder signed him it was seen as something of a coup and he was a ready made replacement for Freddie Kanoute who signed for Spurs a week earlier.

I’m afraid what happened after this was a sign of things to come,  having scored a double v Crystal Palace in September these were his only goals for West Ham,  A mixture of managerial change and injuries affected the yearlong stay and he went back to Liverpool unfulfilled.

After regaining fitness for the 2004 season Mellor had arguably his best season, having scored an injury time winner versus Arsenal with a 30 Yard cracker and 2 weeks later it got even better for him Versus olympiacous where he came on as a sub at the scores level one apiece with Liverpool needing to win by 2 clear goals to progress into the next round, he scored and set one up to send them through.

This put him in hero status with the Kop and was voted as one of the “100 players who shook the Kop”

More injuries followed after and he joined Wigan for a loan spell that was again cut short by injury and he was sold to Preston in 2006.

An injury in pre-season meant he missed the start of the season and he did not score his first goal until March.

He had his best spell under Alan Irvine at Preston and become a fans favourite but the stop start career that has followed him where ever he played meant that in 2010 he went on a season long loan to Sheff Wed under the then boss Alan Irvine.

He had moderate success at Sheff Wed and scored his first Professional Hat trick in a win over Hartlepool and followed that up with another 10 days later against MK Dons although injuries and a slight loss of form affected him in the later parts of the season.

2011/2012 season was a fresh start for Mellor at Preston and scoring on the first day of the season is always a good way to start but another Knee injury at Christmas time was the beginning of the end of one of the country’s most prestigious and unfulfilled talents.

A five minute comeback towards the end of the season told Mellor all he needed to know and on 9^th May 2012 he announced his retirement aged 29.

After struggling to come to terms with retirement Neil is now studying a Sports Journalism and Broadcasting degree at Stafford University.

A career spanning 242 games and scoring 72 goals seems paltry to what it could have been, I  hope he has more success in his new career and wish him the best of luck

It’s Wednesday 10^th October and I take up my seat at the cliffs pavilion in Wescliff for the Hammers cup heroes show 75-81.

Being born in 1982 I have heard many stories and watched videos of the games but I don’t know too much about the players.  The show was presented by Tony Gale and he is a face I see on sky with regularity.

The players from the 75 cup run come onto stage, Alan Taylor, Billy Jennings, Keith Robson and Billy Bonds, the first thing that strikes me is that I would not recognise Taylor and Jennings if they walked past me in the street and I am pretty sure I could recognise any West ham player from the last 20 years.

It suddenly hit me that could you imagine the players of today doing this, what I know about Alan Taylor is that he scored 3 consecutive braces in the Quarter Final, Semi Final and Final and he now runs a newsagents.  If a player in today’s game done that he probably would have been Knighted,  it’s another example of how the game has moved on financially.

After half time some there was a turnaround of players and David Cross, Geoff Pike and Alan Devonshire come out along with hammers legend Billy Bonds again who was wearing Jeans and a suit jacket compared to the rest who all wore perfect full suits (you would not expect anything else from him )

It first struck me that all of a sudden although 5 years later these players are all still involved in football, David cross work for Blackburn,  Alan Devonshire is Manager of Braintree in the conference and Geoff Pike works for the FA which was met with a humorous chorus of boos.

The evening was filled with funny antidotes and stories and was hosted superbly by Tony Gale who is a natural after dinner speaker if ever there was one. 

One of the stories that stood out for me was that during a radio broadcast Tony Gale told Billy Bonds who was at a separate game that Alan Pardew has brought in a bubble machine to gee the players up and he then asked what Billy Bonds did to gee himself before a game and his response was “ I nutted the wall a few times”

He also went onto to say that the only times he ever wore shin pads was Leeds and Newcastle away, what a true warrior and what a Hammers legend! 

Stick or right time to go

There is a common Question that is heard around Upton Park,

Where is the next Brooking, Ferdinand, and Cole coming from? 

It’s thought that in recent years that the management are too quick to bring in their own players and move on the next crop of promising youngsters, but how many of them are actually good enough?

Do the fans really believe they are good enough or are those cries of disappointment more to the fact that it’s another crop of promising youngsters gone without the next gem?

I have taken look at some of the departures over the last few years to see if their careers have the potential to blossom since finding a new club.

Freddie Sears – Colchester left 2012

Since leaving Freddie has joined Colchester but after a prolific pre-season for them he has failed to find the net in the league, although sad he left West Ham it was the right time to go in search of regular first team football.

Zavon Hines – Bradford left 2011

When he burst on the scene with a scintillating performance against Liverpool in which Jamie Carragher was chasing shadows I really thought he was going to be the real deal.  But it’s a shame he never reached those heights again

Junior Stanislas – Burnley left 2011

This is the one player I actually wish we kept, he has a wide player of some potential who did score goals, I think this will be known as the one who got away and he is one to watch this year in the championship having already scored this season.

Jordan Brown – Barnet left 2012

For the last few years the voices from Upton Park always said watch out for this kid he is a full back of some potential but in reality he never got near the first team and it is probably the best thing for his career to go and play some football in the league

Marek Stech – Yeovil left 2012

I think Yeovil have got a gem here even though again I think it was right to leave West Ham, He already has 2 MOM performances under his belt this year including a vital penalty save so good luck to one of Ludo’s inports.

Matt Fry – Bradford / Olly Lee – Barnet /Callum Mcnaughton  - AFC Wimbledon / Josh Payne – Aldershot

I will be keeping an eye on these players also but again were they given an opportunity or as is often thought are the next crop of youngsters behind them better so it’s the right time to leave.

As with the youth teams there is always another age group ready to jump on the conveyor belt and play in the development squad

So not only do Glasgow Rangers poorly run football club owe in Excess of 134 Million pounds, the fans have decided to Boycott away games next season and the Scottish cup because they cannot sign players over the age of 17 for one season.

Let’s be realistic they have got away lightly, what will happen is that they will have the majority of their debts written off and may pay back 10p in every pound which is the norm and in 2 year’s time everything will be back to normal.

But what about those clubs who run there club correctly and within the financial restraints that allow them to survive.  I’m sure that when those clubs dealt with the great Glasgow Rangers they never dreamed of being forced to accept a lesser payment but that is what potentially face Dunfermline Athletic with who they still owe £83,370 or Inverness Caledonian Thistle £39,805 I am sure these clubs thought well don’t worry we only really want a tenth of the money back ( yea right )  To a lesser extent they still owe Hearts £800,000, Dundee United £65,981, Celtic £40,337 and also to clubs in England and Abroad.

The shear self-indulgence and short term vision is what staggers me most of all and to go with that the total lack of intelligence from the Rangers supporters assembly who seem intent on punishing the smaller clubs further.

Much of a smaller clubs revenue comes from match days and if Rangers boycott the away games that will leave a big hole in their pockets. 

To add to this boycotting the cup has been sounded out so a non-league club or a lower division club battle to get through each year in the hope of drawing Rangers or Celtic for that chance to play in the fantastic stadiums and then pocket gates receipts and possible TV revenue but all this hope/glory and financial gain is then put in jeopardy.

So before you make stupid statements and poorly advised decisions be thankful for what you have got and get on with it because that is what the rest of Scottish football do.

The remarkable similarities between Brian Lara and Darren Bravo stem much much further than the fact that they are both left handed.

After 15 test Matches they are only separated by 31 runs, 1284 to Bravo and 1253 for Lara with Bravo having 3 test centuries and 2 to Lara.

A test career spanning 131 test matches and 11953 runs if Darren Bravo has a career anything like Lara’s then the West Indies will have a great player for years to come.

The ever maturing Bravo who has a mixture of flair and aggression with a sense of match situation which enables him to knuckle down and occupy the crease when required.

But on the 16th April 1994 in Brian Lara’s 16th test a test innings changed he’s career forever, he broke Sir Gary Sobers record score of 365 not out which stood itself for 36 years by scoring 375 against England.  

The whole of the West Indies are crying out for a new hero and for someone to just bat with Shivnarine Chanderpaul.  While it is unlikely that Darren Bravo will match Lara’s heroics in he’s 16th test he will be looking to make a mark on the current series and help the West Indies achieve a creditable draw versus Austrailia.  For Darren Bravo the story is just beginning

Some class it as the greatest Golf tournament on earth, laced with tradition and oozing with historical significance.

The clubhouse has stood since 1864 and the land of the course was brought by Bobby Jones in 1931 and opened in 1933.  It is thought that after he’s retirement he just wanted somewhere to play with he’s mates.

The first Masters proceeded in 1934 and was won by Horton Smith who collected the $1500 winnings, to put this into context Charl Schwartzel the 2011 winner collected $1,440.000.

A trophy which is made up of 900 pieces of silver and features the name of every winner, a champions locker room containing a personal locker marked with the name of every past champion show that this is a golf tournament like no other.

Although many traditions remain, the course itself has gone through a few changes over the years.  The extra lengthening in 2001 drew some criticism however with the added length of the modern day player from the tee, iron shots from the fairway remain a similar distance to those that faced by Nicholas in the 70’s.  Although length of tee and accuracy are key, the tournament is generally won through the short game imagination and the ability to scramble and hole your 10 foot putts for par.

Woods and Mickelson have won 6 of the last 12 Masters titles between them, 2 experts in Imagination of the short game and both in the pomp deadly from 10 feet on the green.

Vijay Singh won the masters in 2000 a former world number 1 and Mike Weir won the masters in 2003 following 2 PGA tour wins a month earlier following this up with a 3rd place in the US Open.

Zach Johnson won the masters in 2007 and a player I believe is in good shape to compete again this year, he is someone who understands the course, a former champion and after a solid start to 2012 is someone who finds himself in the top 10 for scrambling and putting.

I’m going to look at who can challenge the big 3 Mcilroy, Woods and Mickelson,  Ian Poulter has never been out of the top 33 on he’s previous 7 Augusta appearances and he will have been encouraged by a return to form after he’s bout of Pneumonia. 

Keegan Bradley has never played in a Masters and i usually believe that this is a course in which you need some inside knowledge and experience to tackle however I do believe he’s game is suited to Augusta.

Bubba Watson hits the ball a long way and no matter where you hit it you will generally have a shot at the green.  What should also encourage Bubba’s challenge is leading the PGA tour stats on Greens in regulation.  The other glaring fact on Bubba’s side is the fact he has had 10 top 20 finishes in a row which goes a long way to suggest he is playing the most consistent golf of he’s career.

There are a few players that I don’t think will pose so much of a challenge,

Martin Kaymer has never made the cut in 4 previous appearances at Augusta and last week Lee Westwood throwing he’s putter showed that he’s putting frustrations are very much getting the better of him

Nick Watney is having a pretty uninspired season compared to 2011.  And what of last year’s Champion?  Having missed he’s previous 2 cuts and having the responsibility of the champions dinner affecting he’s preparation, Charl Schwartzel will have he’s work cut out to repeat last year’s success.

So I would avoid those guys and Take an E/W punt on Zach Johnson and Ian Poulter at 100’s and maybe a cheeky few pounds on Keegan Bradley and Bubba Watson

It is not always easy for young English talent to shine through in the county game, faced with Kolpak’s overseas stars and your established county pros, the task of breaking through can be tough

But below are 5 players i have identified and believe they have the qualities that Andy Flower looks for in players.

Liam Dawson is a 22 yr old opening batsman and slow left arm off spinner who finished last season with 152* against Warwickshire.

Joe Root is another opening Batsman who finished the England Lions tour with a match winning 110*, at 21 i believe he has a big future ahead of him and he like Liam Dawson bowls more than useful off breaks.

Andy Flower likes players who offer something in more than one discipline and the England team have been crying out for a Batsman who can be more than just a part time bowler.

Simon Kerrigan a player who announced himself on the county scene last season by taking match figures of 12 for 192 vs Hampshire.  The 22 yr old has been Understudy to Gary Keedy at Lancashire for a little while now but this is the year i believe he will emerge from the shadows.

Jaik Mickelburgh is what you would call an old fashioned batsman in today’s modern day game.  He is someone who likes to build an innings and make big scores, Jaik is a middle order batsman who was used as an opener at some stages last year but with England’s middle order aging he is someone for the future.

Young James Harris at Glamorgan seems to have been around a long time but at the age of 21 he has 211 first class wickets and 7 first class 50’s.  He has represented England Lions and will be key to Glamorgan improving on last season’s performance.

Was this just a one off or was it the start of something bigger and better for Bangladesh in One Day International Cricket.  Since Bangladesh gained independence in 1971 the popularity of cricket has grown and is now the most popular sport in Bangladesh.  

With a population estimated at 142,319.000 which is greater than England, Australia and South Africa put together, Bangladesh has the 3rd highest population out of all the test playing nations after India and Pakistan.  

When the domestic game became first class in 2000/2001 it was always going to take a little while for the standard to rise and for better players to be developed but with the emergence of the younger players and a successful under 19 side things are 100% on the up. With the new Bangladesh T20 premier league “admittedly with slight teething problems” the profile of the cricket will rise even more.

Stuart Law is a massive coup, he may well be a young coach in the game but he will add professionalism to the playing side of things that they have never had before.  He understands how the game should be played and it seems to be paying off already with back to back wins over India and Sri Lanka in the Asia cup.

This current team is playing like no other Bangladesh side has ever played before, the fact they have played 4 games of good consistent against top quality opposition on the bounce is a massive leap in the right direction.

The return to form of Tamim Iqbal, 4 50’s in 4 innings against Top class opposition shows he is maturing into a right good batsman and not just a slogger.   

Along with Tamim the other player of real genuine quality is Shakib Al Hassan and there is no doubt that he is one of the best all round cricketers in the current game, averaging over 35 with the bat and less than 30 with the ball he’s stats will stand up against anyone.

The most pleasing aspect in all this is the emergence of other players like 20 year old batsman Nasir Hossain and the continued emerging talent of Mahmudullah who contributes with bat and ball.  The return to fitness of Mushrafe Mortaza is a big plus as where Bangladesh do suffer is the lack of  fast bowlers.

In Summary my only conclusion is that Bangladesh are going to continue to improve, they have a large population, an improving domestic structure, a very good coach as well as 2 world class players in Tamim and Shakib but most of all they are playing like a team and not replying on individuals to get the job done.

The one day results are improving but the next step is the test team and that is a totally different ball game.

For now watch this space………….

The low point of American golf can be pin pointed to the defeat in the Ryder Cup 2010, quite how or where were the players to replace Stricker, Furyk, Mickelson who are all now in their 40’s and Tiger Woods who’s continual fitness problems remain a concern as well as he’s private life.

Many players have tried but they fail to find the consistency that these 4 have shown over the years,There seemed to be many questions, what players coming through? Who can break the strangle hold of the European’s in the rankings? Who can consistently win Majors?

But there are a new breed of players just beginning to show the qualities that are needed, Webb Simpson, Keegan Bradley, Rickie Fowler, Kyle Stanley and Gary Woodland are here and they are here to stay.  They all meet the criteria i was looking at, younger than 28 and been a tour pro for less than 5 years.  Out of all these players only Rickie Fowler has played in a Ryder Cup and only Keegan Bradley has won a major.  Webb Simpson has a highest ranking of 6 but none of the others have reached the top 10 as of yet but by the time this season is out i fully expect all 5 of them to be comfortably in the top 50 and and at least 2 of them pushing the European strangle hold on the top four in the rankings.

Webb Simpson was 2^nd to Luke Donald in the 2011 Money List, his main strength is the ability to hit greens and is never out of the top ten in greens in regulation.   He also qualified for the 2011 Presidents cup where he was the youngest player of the American team and he finished 4^th in the overall points standing.

Keegan Bradley was the 2011 pro tour rookie of the year, he is just one of 3 golfers to ever win a major on debut, I firmly believe he will not be a one major wonder and has a steel and determination about him to become a multiple major winner.  He appears to have a sense of calmness around him like Tiger Woods used to show in he’s heyday and in similar to Woods he seems to hole putts when under the most pressure.

While Rickie Fowler may look like he suits a skateboard park he can play some really good golf, he has an army of fans and on Ryder cup debut where he come back from 4 holes down against Eduardo Molinari to snatch a half which included birding the last 4 holes going a long way to enhance he’s ever growing reputation.

When the name Kyle Stanley gets mentioned he could have been remembered as the guy who threw away a 7 shot lead on the final day when trying to win he’s maiden USPGA tour event,  one week later the same Kyle Stanley shot a bogey free 65 to win the Phoenix Open.  The bottle shown to come back and do this a week later shows that this guy learns fast and will win many more events.

Gary Woodland is the final man on my list, while he may be a longer shot than the others in more ways than one, the sheer length of his drive makes even the toughest holes look easy.  Having made 20 consecutive cuts he has shown some good consistency and with consistency comes results.