West Ham United 2-5 Tottenham Hotspur

Tuesday 22nd January 2013

WEST HAM UNITED 2-5 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
The FA Youth Cup Fourth Round
Tuesday 22^nd January 2013
Stephen McCartney reports from Boleyn Ground

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR booked their place in the last sixteen of The FA Youth Cup following their comfortable win over their London rivals West Ham United tonight.

The north London outfit were by far the better team on a cold night in east London as fans took advantage of a seven o’clock kick-off and £3 admission to watch these two London rivals' lock horns.

Tottenham Hotspur raced into a 3-0 lead within the opening 22 minutes, courtesy of an own goal from Amos Nasha, and strikes from striker Shaquille Colthirst and winger Kenneth McEvoy.

West Ham United pulled a goal back before half-time through striker Elliot Lee, 18, who made his first team debut at Old Trafford in their FA Cup defeat to Manchester United last week.

The spirited hosts made a game of it when they pulled another goal back, courtesy of Kieran Bywater’s header, before Tottenham Hotspur scored twice inside the final fourteen minutes through left-back Grant Ward and McEvoy’s second of the night to seal a home tie against Bolton Wanderers.

West Ham’s Spanish goalkeeper Gines Guzman Rosique made a comfortable save to deny Angolan born midfielder Laste Dombaxe scoring with a speculative right-footed drive from 35-yards.

But Tottenham Hotspur opened the scoring after 11 minutes when Republic of Ireland youth international McEvoy put in a low centre from the left to find Roman Michael-Percil at the far post and he drove the ball back across goal and the ball bounced off Nasha and rolled over the line.

Visiting keeper Luke McGee made a comfortable save low to his left to save Josh Cullen’s right-footed curler from 25-yards.

Tottenham Hotspur doubled their lead in the seventeenth minute when Frenchman Nabil Bentaleb fed Michael-Percil down the right and his ball inside found Coulthirst, whose right-footed shot deflected off West Ham United defender Jamie Harney to deceive his goalkeeper.

Both sides then failed to hit the target as Kieran Sadlier and Frazer Shaw linked up well for West Ham but striker Lee’s header was blocked, before the impressive McEvoy floated over a cross, but the unmarked Coulthirst hooked his volley high over the bar and into the empty Bobby Moore Stand.

Clinical Tottenham Hotspur raced from defence to ease into a 3-0 lead.

Goalkeeper McGee plucked Bywater’s floated corner out of the air before launching a big kick straight down the middle of the pitch for McEvoy to latch on to and slot his shot past the exposed home goalkeeper.

Stunned by their poor start, West Ham United began to get themselves back into the game and right-winger Sadlier played the ball into Lee’s feet and the skipper played the ball back to Sadlier, whose right-footed angled drive was gathered by McGee at his near post.

But Lee led by example as his 37^th minute sublime finish clawed his side back into the game.

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Dombaxe slipped and gave away possession to Lee on the half-way line and he raced 40-yards before stroking a right-footed shot across McGee to find the far corner from sixteen-yards.

The visitors’ created the final chance of the first half but the unmarked Coulthirst planted his free-header wide after meeting Josh Onomah’s inswinging corner at the near post.

Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper McGee was forced into making the first major save of the night when he used his outstretched left-hand to tip over Bywater’s right-footed drive from 22-yards.

It wasn’t long before spirited West Ham United made the game interesting, scoring their second goal in the 57^th minute.

Lee floated over a cross in from the inside right channel towards the far post to pick out the unmarked Bywater, who planted his header back across goal to find the top far corner.

With the game now on a knife edge, that goal kick-started Tottenham Hotspur back into life and striker Coulthirst squandered a couple of good chances within a minute.

McEvoy’s cross from the left was knocked back by Michael-Percil, but Coulthirst’s shot was blocked, before the striker was denied by an outstretched leg from the Hammers’ stopper, when he attempted to place his shot from eight-yards.

The visitors’ almost gifted West Ham a way back into the game when a mistake from Tottenham substitute Harry Winks gifted the ball to Nathan Mavila, the winger’s left-footed chip from outside of the box was easily plucked out of the air by the Tottenham keeper.

But Tottenham snuffed out their rivals’ attempted fight-back by pressing for more goals.

A corner from Winks found it’s way out to Dombaxe, whose right-footed dink bounced once into Guzman Rosique’s gloves.

McEvoy then cut in from the left before seeing his right-footed drive from the edge of the box comfortably saved, before Tottenham’s fourth goal arrived with fourteen minutes left.

Serbian Milos Veljikovic played the ball out of defence to find substitute Winks out on the left flank and he cut the ball back to Ward, who whipped in a first time shot from 35-yards, which sailed over the flapping West Ham keeper and dipped quickly to find the top near corner.

This goal sparked many home fans streaming towards the exits, before classy Tottenham Hotspur scored their fifth goal with six minutes left.

West Ham defender Harney gave the ball away to Coulthirst who danced his way into the penalty area before cutting the ball across the penalty area towards the far post to the unmarked McEvoy, who was rewarded for his impressive performance to side-foot the ball in from close range.

Yet more poor defending from the home side, this time from right-back Cheye Alexander sent Coulthirst away again, but this time Guzman Rosique came off his line to smother at the striker’s feet.

A penetrating run into the West Ham penalty area from McEvoy should have been finished off by Coulthirst, who casually drove the ball past two defenders and the keeper saved comfortably gather at his near post.

Coulthirst then cut inside and smashed a left-footed shot towards goal from 25-yards, which stung the West Ham keeper’s fingers, the Spaniard gathering at the second attempt.

West Ham United had the game’s last chance inside stoppage time when substitute Thomas Gogo cut the ball back to Sadlier, who hit a first time effort high into the Bobby Moore Stand.

Meanwhile, with the entire Kent football programme wiped out due to frozen pitches tonight, Cray Wanderers came away from Hastings United with a point in a 1-1 draw at The Pilot Field.

Leading goalscorer Lee Bremner gave Ian Jenkins’ side a first half lead from the spot, before Hastings' levelled with ten minutes left courtesy of Zac Attwood.

West Ham United: Gines Guzman Rosique, Cheye Alexander, Frazer Shaw, Taylor Miles (Emmanuel Onariase 70), Jamie Harney, Amos Nasha (Ben Marlow 77), Nathan Mavila (Thomas Gogo 81), Josh Cullen, Elliot Lee, Kieran Bywater, Kieran Sadlier.
Subs: Tim Brown, Lewis Page

Goals: Elliot Lee 37, Kieran Bywater 57

Tottenham Hotspur: Luke McGee, Alex McQueen, Grant Ward, Laste Dombaxe (Filip Lesniak 85), Milos Veljkovic, Connor Ogilvie, Roman Michael-Percil (Daniel Akindayini 81), Nabil Bentaleb, Shaquile Coulthirst, Josh Onomah (Harry Winks 50), Kenneth McEvoy.
Subs: Dominic Ball, Liam Priestley

Goals: Amos Nasha 11 (own goal), Shaquille Coulthirst 17, Kenneth McEvoy 22, 84, Grant Ward 74

Attendance: 1,189
Referee: Mr Paul Harris
Assistants: Mr Paul Bakalarz & Mr Paul Evans
Fourth Official: Mr Andrew Tonks