English FA Premiership/West Ham United (2), Fulham (0): After four successive home defeats, West Ham needed this result more than their mid-table position suggested, but the way it was won was typical.
Superb first-half goals from Anton Ferdinand and Yossi Benayoun must have left new signing Ean Ashton thinking he will have quite a standard to live up to, but it was characteristic of the Hammers that they should go on to make life horribly difficult.
The first chance of the game went to Fulham, and it was a better opportunity than Brian McBride's lackadaisical volley may have suggested. So did the second, and this time Fulham were unfortunate. Heidar Helguson met Simon Elliott's corner perfectly only for his header to thump against the legs of his team-mate Luis Boa Morte standing just in front of West Ham's goalkeeper Roy Carroll.
Anton Ferdinand, though, was inspired, probably by having seen his older brother Rio score a cracker against Liverpool on Sunday. Coming up for a corner, he was on the edge of the box when Antti Niemi's punched clearance bounced towards him. In one movement he swivelled and hit a glorious dipping volley beyond Niemi's dive. Now West Ham began to move and pass the ball with purpose and when, 10 minutes later, they scored another goal as exquisite as Ferdinand's, Fulham must have begun to suspect this was not their night. This time the executor was Yossi Benayoun. The Israeli international picked up possession about 22 yards out, beat Carlos Bocanegra with a shimmy, looked up and drifted a sweet chip over the desperately reaching Niemi.
Seven minutes before half-time he almost scored again, exchanging passes with Marlon Harewood and whipping in a shot from an angle that required Niemi to dive full length to turn away.
Things were going so well for West Ham it was almost inevitable they would ship a daft goal. Sure enough, a mistake by Danny Gabbidon let in Helguson to volley past Carroll and in off the post.
The mood changed, and might have changed even further had Uriah Rennie not been at his most generous in disallowing an appeal for a penalty when Paul Konchesky bundled over Helguson.
WEST HAM: Carroll, Repka, Ferdinand, Gabbidon, Konchesky, Benayoun (Katan 86), Mullins, Reo-Coker, Etherington (Newton 90), Harewood, Zamora (Dailly 80). Subs not used: Hislop, Sheringham. Booked: Benayoun, Dailly. Goals: Ferdinand 17, Benayoun 28.
FULHAM: Niemi, Rosenior, Knight, Bocanegra, Bridge, Elliott, Legwinski, Malbranque (Radzinski 62), Boa Morte, Helguson, McBride (John 70). Subs not used: Warner, Goma, Niclas Jensen. Booked: Boa Morte, Rosenior. Goal: Helguson 52.
Referee: U Rennie (S Yorkshire).
