West Ham on brink of return

SOCCER/ West Ham 2; Ipswich Town 0 (West Ham win 2-1 on aggregate): Alan Pardew was brought to West Ham with the task of leading the club back to the Premiership at the first attempt, and the manager is now just one game from completing the task.

A final against Crystal Palace (May 29th) in Cardiff awaits after his players deservedly overturned a first-leg deficit last night.

Goals by Matthew Etherington, a lively presence after the interval, and the captain Christian Dailly, saw off Ipswich who will forever rue wasting their best chance inside two minutes and had the misfortune to hit a post through Ian Westlake in stoppage-time.

That would have forced extra-time but West Ham were worthy winners. Their hungry players broadly dominated with the backing of their noisy fans, hitting the bar, drawing two good saves from Kelvin Davis and wasting a couple of clear opportunities. Ipswich threatened little until a burst of late pressure; this play-off disappointment follows similar failure three times in a row in the late 1990s.

Pardew had tried to shift the pressure on to Ipswich during the build-up by saying the East Anglian team were favourites thanks to a 1-0 lead from the first leg, but there was no question that the greater expectation lay on West Ham.

He knew that failure to win an instant return would necessitate changes to his squad. The minimum £15 million or so from sponsorship and TV rights that comes with a Premiership place is much needed. The manager acknowledged he would face an "unpleasant" agenda if the Hammers stay down.

Pardew might have been planning soon after the game had begun. With sharper finishing Ipswich would have been ahead inside two minutes, when Darren Bent sprinted clear, but the striker, who scored Saturday's goal, pulled his shot wide.

Not all of West Ham's play was fluent but they dominated for a period after that early scare, and could have scored twice before the quarter-hour. If their impressive fans felt hard done by when Steve Lomas struck the bar from Etherington's cross, they could not believe it when a Bobby Zamora header failed to hit the back of the net after Kelvin's dramatic save.

Etherington was to make the breakthrough West Ham needed early in the second half, however. Out of Fabian Wilnis's reach on the right flank, he collected a short corner from Michael Carrick, ran towards the edge of the penalty area and fired a fine shot into the far corner.

Immediately Ipswich created an opening, Bent crossing when he might have shot, and the visitors' threat on the break began to grow as they knew they now had to score. But West Ham were the livelier and wasted two chances in quick succession. Connolly was guilty both times, off-target first from Brian Deane's knock-down and then Harewood's through-pass. Soon, though, the home fans had a decisive goal to celebrate, Etherington's corner bouncing off Richard Naylor into the path of Christian Dailly, who scored with a deflected low shot.

^{WEST HAM: Bywater, Repka, Melville, Dailly, Mullins, Harewood, Carrick, Lomas, Etherington, Connolly (Reo-Coker 82), Zamora (Deane 57). Subs not used: Srnicek, Brevett, McAnuff. Goals: Etherington 50, Dailly 71.}

^{IPSWICH: Davis, Wilnis, Elliott, Naylor, Richards, Wright, Magilton (Reuser 72), Miller, Westlake, Darren Bent, Kuqi (Armstrong 45). Subs not used: Price, Diallo, Santos. Booked: Wilnis.}

^{Referee: N Barry (N Lincolnshire).}