Wolves hunt down Hammers

Two goals in three second-half minutes helped Wolves record a 3-1 victory over fellow strugglers West Ham at Upton Park.

McCarthy's men turn on style to leave Zola reeling

Two goals in three second-half minutes helped Wolves record a stunning 3-1 victory over fellow strugglers West Ham at Upton Park to pile the pressure on their relegation rivals. Wolves had the better of the opening half and capitalised on the home side's nervous approach when Kevin Doyle pounced on James Tomkins' poor touch to advance into the area and unleash a low drive into the net via the bottom of the post. Scott Parker nearly engineered a leveller when his run and shot came off the woodwork, but it was the visitors who seized control when the influential David Jones played in Ronald Zubar to crash home the second with a fine strike after 58 minutes. And just three minutes later the game was over as a contest, George Elokobi combining with Jones for Matthew Jarvis to slot a stylish third past Hammers keeper Robert Green. West Ham did pull one back, thanks to Guillermo Franco's late clipped effort, but it was Mick McCarthy's side who eased their relegation worries with the vital win, pulling seven points clear of the drop zone. Wolves are looking safe - but this mauling leaves West Ham perched perilously just three points above Hull, Burnley and the relegation zone. And on the evidence of this game, West Ham lack the hunger, the quality and the composure to stay in the top flight. Wolves were quite the opposite.

Hollow

Franco came off the bench to score in injury-time for West Ham but it was the hollowest of consolation goals. By then, Upton Park was almost empty. The new joint-chairmen David Gold and David Sullivan were still in their seats and they had to listen to the boos and the chants of "you're not fit to wear the shirt". Kieron Dyer may no longer be alone on their list of overpaid and underperforming players. West Ham crumbled the moment Doyle, who led the line magnificently all evening, pounced on a defensive howler from Tomkins to put Wolves ahead. Wolves had fired a warning shot inside eight minutes when Doyle beat Matthew Upson to a long ball and flicked it on for Kevin Foley, who struck a rising shot from an acute angle that beat Green but rattled the crossbar. West Ham had started brightly and took the game to Wolves. Scott Parker tried his luck from distance and Julien Faubert cut in from the left before dragging his shot harmlessly across goal. Benni McCarthy picked out Carlton Cole's run into the box but he was well marshalled by Jody Craddock and scuffed his left-footed shot. But West Ham lacked a cutting edge and had nothing to show for all their possession when Wolves landed a sucker punch. Tomkins failed to deal with a simple pass 40 yards from his own goal, Doyle pounced on the loose ball and bore down on goal before sliding his angled shot past Green and into the far corner. The goal sparked a major shift in momentum. Wolves began to dictate play and should have had a penalty when Radoslav Kovac chopped Jones down on the edge of the box but referee Dowd waved play on. West Ham were chasing shadows as Wolves built a slick move with Michael Mancienne and Doyle interchanging passes wonderfully to create a shooting opportunity for Jones, which was deflected wide. McCarthy opened up the Wolves defence with a clever lay-off for Parker, who charged into the box and curled a right footed shot past Hahnemann but it rebounded off the inside of the post and rolled across the goal-line.

Temporary reprieve

But Wolves scrambled the ball clear and preserved their lead into the interval, when Zola made two key changes with Tomkins replaced by Jonathan Spector and Junior Stanislas sent on for Kovac. Soon after the break, Faubert picked out McCarthy at the near post but the South African striker could not twist his header on target and it drifted wide. Diamanti, who had switched wings to accommodate Stanislas, worked some space in-field and tested Hahnemann with a bobbling effort from 25 yards but the American keeper was equal to it. West Ham almost gifted Wolves another goal when the alert Jarvis came close to intercepting a poor header from Faubert back to Green. But it was only a temporary reprieve as Wolves struck twice in three minutes. West Ham failed to clear their lines properly and Zubar raced onto Jones' pass into the box and he drove a cross-shot low past Green. Jones was the creator again and this time Jarvis latched onto his through ball into the box and he fired Wolves into a 3-0 lead, sparking elation in the away end and anger everywhere else. Chants of "you're not fit to wear the shirt" rang around the stadium and the "clap-banners" West Ham had provided to help create and atmosphere were thrown in fury. Franco scored with a deft chip over Hahnemann but the game had long since gone as Wolves sealed a deserved victory.

West Ham United	Team Statistics	Wolverhampton Wanderers
1	Goals	3
0	1st Half Goals	1
9	Shots on Target	3
8	Shots off Target	1
4	Blocked Shots	1
8	Corners	5
9	Fouls	24
2	Offsides	1
0	Yellow Cards	2
0	Red Cards	0
76.1	Passing Success	71.4
18	Tackles	22
77.8	Tackles Success	81.8
54	Possession	46
53.6	Territorial Advantage	46.4