Rovers hammered by West Ham

2008-08-30 18:17

London - Paul Ince suffered a miserable return to West Ham as the Blackburn manager ran a gauntlet of hate during his side's 4-1 thrashing at Upton Park on Saturday.

Ince has never been forgiven by West Ham fans for being pictured in a Manchester United shirt before he completed a move to Old Trafford in 1989 and they gave him another hostile reception on his latest visit to east London.

Even that paled in comparison to the pain of watching Rovers dispatched by West Ham, who lifted the pressure on Alan Curbishley with a second win of the season.

Ince must have known it wasn't going to be his day when Calum Davenport scored with a powerful header from a 12th minute corner.

Julien Faubert was the catalyst for West Ham's second goal eight minutes later. The French winger's pass found Mark Noble, whose shot deflected off Christopher Samba and into his own net.

Jason Roberts gave Blackburn a lifeline in the 22nd minute with a fine turn and finish. Roberts had a golden chance to bring Rovers level early in the second half.

Double-strike

Carlton Cole handled Steven Reid's free-kick in the West Ham area but Roberts's penalty was well saved by Robert Green. That was the turning point as Craig Bellamy's late goal killed off Rovers before Cole's 90th minute strike added to Ince's agony.

Portsmouth won for the first time this season as Jermain Defoe's double-strike clinched a 3-0 victory over Everton.

Harry Redknapp's side had slumped to the bottom of the table after defeats against Chelsea and Manchester United, but they bounced back in style at Goodison Park.

Peter Crouch's partnership with Defoe finally sparked into life in the 12th minute. Crouch flicked on a long punt and Defoe worked space to drive home a low strike for his first goal in nine games.

Johnson played a one-two with Defoe and surged into the penalty area before flicking a sublime finish past Tim Howard.

David James preserved Portsmouth's two-goal lead early in the second half when he saved Ayegbeni Yakubu's penalty after Johnson fouled James Vaughan.

Defoe put the result beyond doubt in the 69th minute with a clinical finish for his 100th goal in league football.

Defender

Middlesbrough striker Tuncay Sanli finally killed off 10-man Stoke to snatch a late 2-1 victory at the Riverside Stadium.

Gareth Southgate's side went ahead in the 37th minute after Stoke defender Amdy Faye was sent off for a two-footed lunge on Mohamed Shawky.

From the resulting free-kick, Brazilian forward Alves bent a fine strike into the top corner.

Stewart Downing squandered a chance to kill the match when he drove a penalty against the bar in the second half. Stoke levelled when Hoyte, a recent signing from Arsenal, turned a Liam Lawrence cross into his own net. But Tuncay stole the points in the 85th minute.

Hull's dream start to life in the Premier League came to an end as the newly-promoted Tigers were thrashed 5-0 by Wigan.

Phil Brown's side had taken four points from their first two matches but Wigan gave them a reality check and collected their first league win this season at the KC Stadium.

The Latics got off to the perfect start when Hull defender Sam Ricketts scooped Kevin Kilane's corner into his own net after five minutes.

Antonio Valencia doubled Wigan's lead in the 13th minute. Egypt striker Amr Zaki struck in the 63rd minute before Emile Heskey rounded Boaz Myhill for the fourth five minutes later. Zaki smashed in a superb effort to put the seal on a stunning performance.

Bolton manager Gary Megson was frustrated as Kevin Davies had a late goal disallowed in his side's 0-0 draw against his former club West Bromwich Albion at the Reebok Stadium.

Arsenal host Newcastle in Saturday's late match. On Sunday Chelsea face Tottenham, Liverpool travel to Aston Villa and Sunderland take on Manchester City.

- AFP