Premier League: West Ham's first home win has been on the cards, says skipper Noble

West Ham United skipper Mark Noble believes their 3-1 home win over Liverpool shows the kind of performance they have been threatening for some time.

The midfielder said: "We were good on Monday night [2-2 at Hull City] and probably should have deserved a little bit more than what we came away with.

"We should have beat Spurs here the first game of the season but we were poor against Southampton so we're a little bit  black and white at home. The performance that we've had lately shows what we're capable of.

"We need to make this place a fortress and that's what it was tonight."

He was particularly pleased with his team's start to the game and the way they held onto their early lead.

"We started off like a house on fire," he said, "we came out of the blocks so quick - couple of goals ahead and you know when you are playing against a top, top, quality side, you know they're going to threaten but I thought defensively, as a unit, today we were brilliant.

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"The first half was fantastic and obviously Liverpool are going to come out, with the players they've got, and give it a right go and they've done that but our back four today, and every one of us, were bang on and we deserved the win."

Former Liverpool player Stewart Downing also enthused about West Ham's approach, which saw Winston Reid tap in their first before Diafra Sakho floated the second in over Reds' keeper Simon Mignolet. 

"Brilliant start," he said, "two good goals, brilliant finishes. It gave us a foothold in the game and we could play off from there and I thought we worked hard throughout and the result paid off.

"I think Sakho probably did mean it. He's an off-the-cuff type of player and he's got some great finishes. He's settled in really well. He's a big threat and he worked ever so hard, him and Enner [Valencia]. They're hard for teams to play against because they've got pace and they're strong boys."

Raheem Sterling's 26th minute goal pegged the Hammers back to a single score lead but Morgan Amalfitano wrapped up their first home win of the season seven minutes from the end.

And Downing paid tribute to the West Ham fans for their vociferous support. He said: "We needed a result today. We've lost home games, two or three already this season, so it was big for us to get something. 

"At the start, the fans got behind us and played a massive part and kept with us because it was difficult at times. Liverpool got a lot of the ball and have quality players but I thought we defended ever so well and held out."