NIGEL KAHN has been silent on this website for a long time!
Describing Nige as prickly is a bit like saying September will be here in a couple of days. Light the Olympic Stadium or Allardyce years fuse and stand well back.
But Nigel was at Anfield yesterday as a slice of Hammers history was written in the largest possible letters and we asked him: “So how exactly did that feel mate?”
Follow West Ham away – particularly to Anfield – and your head is telling you the obvious so you utter the well worn cliché: “I’ll take the point” and fill in the fixed odds coupon putting the team you love with a passion down to lose!
Our 115 year history of three victories there and not a single win in 52 years insists there is no other course – it’s the only sensible thing to do unless you enjoy waving money goodbye!.
The best result I can remember in my 45 years on this planet was a 2-2 draw back in 1999 but I watched that game on a live beam back to the Boleyn. In my four previous visits to Anfield I had seen us score one goal (Bobby Zamora, 2006).
For all that over 2,500 Hammers fans yesterday still made the pilgrimage back to Anfield hoping that this would be the year, hoping that they could say: “I was there.”
In September 1963 West Ham had still to win a trophy; the Beatles were telling us “She Loves You.” Moore, Hurst and Peters were no more than Hammers favourites – not World Beaters.
But on that great day Martin and Geoff scored the goals to give West Ham victory ending a nine year wait since the previous win with another ‘soon to be’ English World Cup hero, Roger Hunt scoring the Liverpool consolation goal.
To put that victory in context, Liverpool had lost their two previous games provoking Bill Shankley to proclaim after his team collapsed to the claret and blue: “I can assure the board that Liverpool will win a home game this season”
I doubt Brendan Rogers could ever match the wit of the Reds greatest manager in defeat.
The game yesterday is now totally etched in my mind’s eye, to be replayed to myself at will; the sight of Lanzini scoring the first can be seen in an instant, Noble slotting home the second in front of the silenced Kop and Sakho hitting the 3rd in front of the mass-ranked Hammers fans to seal the win.
It was a victory I never really believed could be, not even during the game.
Even at 2-0 I expected some sort of Liverpool reaction! All I could think about was that we were two up in the Cup Final nine years ago and we all know that outcome.
But this year there was no Stevan Gerrard to inspire a Reds fightback and in the end this was pure unbridled joy.
In the 4 years under Allardyce the arguments raged about the ‘West Ham Way!’ and what it was/is.
In just four games it is plainly evident in Billic’s team, it is the ability to lose to those we think we should beat while triumphing over those we think we have no chance against. As Hugh wrote last night that in a nutshell is the West Ham way.
So a week after Liverpool buried their Queen Cilla, West Ham bury their 52 years of hurt in Liverpool.
Never has an away day been sweeter.
Hislop was at fault for 2 goals not Gerrard’s strikes .
Sully had misgivings about Austin’s knee’s !!!!!!
Well ! Hislop was playing virtually as a cripple ,
The man could hardly react to anthing put either side of him !!!!
An Adrian or a green and we win the cup !!!!!!
I was a seven year old and at the game in 63 but can’t remember much about the game
But what I can remember is being very tired and cramped coming home in the car ,
What a fantastic result for the club and supporters ,
Maybe the hippo lovers will now realise that tactically and manly he could not lick
Slavs. ANAL ORIFACE ,
#Anotherberkobsessed
#Sad Lad
Where were you yesterday, ********?
Correction “d!ckhead”. Probably has trouble reading anyway.