Middlesbrough 1 West Ham 0:Substitute Massimo Maccarone came to Middlesbrough's rescue again to claim three precious Premiership points against West Ham.

The Italian, Boro's record signing at £8.15million, claimed the only goal of an ordinary game just six minutes after coming on when he rounded Robert Green and slotted home from a tight angle 15 minutes from time.

Maccarone, who wrote himself into Teesside folklore with late UEFA Cup strikes against FC Basle and Steaua Bucharest on the way to the final last season, ended Boro's two-game losing streak in front of a crowd of just 25,898.

Aiyegbeni Yakubu had earlier wasted a 64th-minute chance to head his side in front, while England winger Stewart Downing forced a good save from Green before the break.

The Hammers, who arrived in the north east on the back of successive league victories over Blackburn and Arsenal, were always in an even contest, but rarely troubled goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer as Gareth Southgate got one over on former Crystal Palace team-mate Alan Pardew.

Southgate promised he would remove the shackles from his side after successive defeats at Manchester City and Watford and then swiftly contradicted himself by naming Yakubu as a lone striker.

The Nigerian started brightly, repeatedly bamboozling defender James Collins with a series of neat turns.

But in a drab first half Boro created only three chances which went begging due to a combination of sub-standard finishing, solid goalkeeping and excellent defending.

Green saved comfortably from Morrison on 22 minutes but was stretched further nine minutes later by Downing's rasping drive which he turned around the post.

The best chance of the half fell to Yakubu in injury time and it was perhaps fitting that it arrived courtesy of an error. Not for the first time Collins was caught out by a Mark Schwarzer clearance as it sped towards his penalty area on a swirling wind. Yakubu managed to latch on to Collins' desperate mishit clearance but Danny Gabbidon slid in to block his shot.

If Boro were toothless in attack the visitors were perhaps even more so as Marlon Harewood and Teddy Sheringham were starved of possession despite the enterprise of Nigel Reo-Coker, Yossi Benayoun and Matthew Etherington behind them.

Jonathan Woodgate had to hack away a dangerous Reo-Coker cross, but Schwarzer did not have a single save to make.

The opening minutes of the second half were far more encouraging as both sides adopted a more expansive approach.

Fabio Rochemback smashed a left-footed shot across the face of goal and inches wide of the top corner after Collins had headed away a Downing free-kick.

Schwarzer was relieved to see Etherington's cross sail over Harewood's head after neither man managed to make a decisive contact.

The visitors appealed in vain for a 51st-minute penalty after Benayoun went down under Emanuel Pogatetz's challenge and Harewood sent a dipping volley just over from Sheringham's lay-off five minutes later.

But Downing was starting to find more space as full-back Jonathon Spector, who had earlier been booked, had to be careful, although he wasted a good opportunity on 61 minutes when he drilled a cross beyond Morrison, the only Boro man in the box.

Pardew responded by replacing Harewood with Argentinian Carlos Tevez and he immediately gave the visitors a more enterprising aspect as the home defence came under increasing pressure.

However, Yakubu should have put the Teessiders ahead with 26 minutes remaining when he got his head to Morrison's cross but directed the ball hopelessly wide of the target.

Southgate had earlier introduced Maccarone for Rochemback and he did the trick
just when his side needed it most.

Lee Cattermole won a header on the edge of the box to send the ball into Maccarone's path and he rounded the advancing Green with ease before firing home right-footed from a tight angle.