MACARI, BONDS & REDKNAPP Frank McAvennie left the club in September 1987, and had a spell of 18 months with Celtic, but John Lyall brought him back in March 1989 in a failed attempt to bring some goal power and escape relegation, but it did not work out, and the Hammers went down, with Frank failing to score in 8 games. In the new season of 1989-90, with Lou Macari now installed as the new manager, and with the club back in the second division, much was expected of the Scottish striker against lower quality opposition. Sadly, Frank did not get that fresh, early season opportunity to make a difference, because he was cut down in the 55th minute of the opening match of the season at Stoke, where City’s Chris Kamara made a crunching tackle on Frank that resulted in a broken leg. In Frank’s autobiography, he alleges that as Kamara stood over his prone body, the City player yelled ‘Get up you Scottish bastard. This is a man’s game.’ Despite the pain Frank was suffering, he was more furious at Kamara’s remarks than anything else, and would have got up and decked his opponent had he been able to. The referee Mr G. Aplin did not even book the Stoke player, which was an oversight, to put it mildly. Frank did not play again until 6 months later, but he made just 4 substitute appearances. He was never quite the same player, and although scoring 10 goals in 34 outings in the following promotion season of 1990-91, he scored just 6 from 20 in 1991-92 where three of those came amazingly as a second half substitute in the final game of the season against Nottingham Forest at Upton Park. It was in the away fixture with Hull City in September 1989, that David Kelly, who now had responsibility as the main striker, was sent off for fighting with Stephen Doyle, who was also dismissed. With just 4 minutes left on the clock and the game all-square at 1-1, a free kick was awarded to the Hammers outside the Hull box. There were a number of elbows flying around as the kick was taken and then Martin Allen made a challenge on the Hull ’keeper as the ball came over. Hull’s Doyle immediately punched Allen to the ground and kicked him. David Kelly, not normally known for getting involved, rushed in and pulled Doyle away from Allen, and then both had a bit of a scrap. As a consequence both players had an early bath. Probably the most consistently violent game ever at Upton Park took place in November 1989 during the short-lived Lou Macari reign. It happened when Wimbledon came to the East End for a 4th Round Football League cup clash. And clash it certainly was. The nicest way to describe the attitude and style of the visiting team was ‘rigorous, uncompromising and bloody-minded’. Now mix that with three explosive Hammers in Julian Dicks, Mark Ward and Martin Allen who could all be expected to ‘get stuck in’ fairly at best, or exact revenge to add a few sparks, at worst. There was bound to be fireworks, and it was a bit like lighting the blue touch-paper and not moving away. Fouls were too numerous to mention and intimidation was the name of the game, causing a major brawl involving no less than 17 players just before half time, and it was expected that the break would calm things down. Only it didn’t. When Martin Allen lifted his boot, studs up into the nether regions of Eric Young, there was another scuffle between players, and Allen was booked. Dicks protested unnecessarily and was also given a yellow card. Then he turned that into a red by tackling Dennis Wise with a scything tackle that saw the ’Dons’ player’s legs go in different directions. The redeeming moment of the game came when Martin Allen, using his right boot for a more positive purpose, scored with an absolute screamer to put the Hammers into the Quarter Finals. The referee was Alf Buksh who had been the official in charge two years previously when Ward was dismissed for fouling Wise. There was so much furore in the media over the manner in which the match was played that the F A, on video evidence, fined both clubs £20,000. The Quarter Final of the Football League Cup at Upton Park against Derby County also turned out to be quite a competitive and frenzied affair. Early on County lost Stephen Cross when George Parris tackled recklessly and at speed into him, and he was stretchered off. George was lucky just to receive a ‘talking to’ by the referee Mr Callow. Then Hammers’ Steve Potts brought down Dean 48 Saunders in the area. It certainly looked a penalty, but the official waved play on. In the second half Martin Allen was quite rightly dismissed for a highly dangerous two-footed lunge at Derby’s Mark Patterson. Allen looked for all the world as if he was taking part in the Olympic long jump as he sped across the pitch and then ‘took off’ with both feet at the opposing player. Before the end of the game Derby’s Mel Sage, who had ‘put himself about a bit’, flew at David Kelly with a cross-buttock attack that took the striker up in the air. Although the offence was not as dangerous as the Martin Allen foul, it was worthy of a red card, but Sage stayed on. The result of the game was a 0-0 draw and it took 2 replays for West Ham to go through to the Semi-Final, although it may have been better had they not, remembering the 1st leg at Oldham and the 0-6 fiasco that is forever known as the ‘Valentine’s Day Massacre.’ It was only 4 days after the Oldham game that manager Lou Macari, who had been employed to take over from John Lyall, walked out on the club after a short playing period of just over 6 months. Macari, who had lifted Swindon Town from the Fourth Division to the Second in 3 years, had a difficult act to follow in Lyall, and within the club there developed a definite split between those who liked and got on with Lou, and those who didn’t, with surprises in both camps. The reason that Macari resigned and left West Ham was not over results, but over illegal Martin Allen betting accusations at his former club, and it is difficult, because of his short time at Upton Park, to assess how he would have fared as manager over a longer period. There was certainly no time for any fans to lift a banner with ‘Macari Out’. Billy Bonds was installed as the man ‘in charge’ at the club, and in the West Ham United v Sheffield United 2nd Division fixture at Upton Park, the Hammers, already a goal to the good, were awarded a penalty when Trevor Morley was pulled down by Simon Tracey, the visitor’s goalkeeper, although video evidence proves that the offence was outside the area, with Morley falling inside. Technically, with the goalkeeper being the last man, he should have been dismissed by the referee Gerald Ashby. Throughout the game, with the visitors kicking everybody and anything that moved, Bill Whitehurst, at least should have received a red card for persistent offences culminating in clawing at Ludek Miklosko’s face as the ’keeper grabbed the ball. Sheffield United did get a 5-0 drubbing after all, with Stuart Slater providing an electric display of tremendous speed and trickery, laying on 3 of the goals against a side that would eventually gain promotion as runners-up. Earlier in the season when West Ham were the visitors at Bramall Lane, goalkeeper Tracey brought down Slater (Dicks missing the penalty by hitting the bar) and then up-ended Eamonn Dolan but Ward scored from the spot. Mr K. Redfern, the referee, did not send Tracey off, and not only that, he failed to book him! As early as the third game of the 1990-91 season, opposition players began to give Hammers’ Stuart Slater rough treatment, as his lightning pace began to run opposing defences ragged. Watford’s Gary Williams was the first of the season to get his marching orders at Upton Park. In a niggling encounter, after already being booked in the first half, his second bookable offence came after a crude body check and dangerous trip on the quicksilver Hammers’ forward, When former West Ham manager John Lyall made his first return to Upton Park with his Ipswich side in September 1990 he must have been satisfied with his team’s showing as they led by a single goal at half time. Hammers’ manager Billy Bonds made a double substitution on 58 minutes that included swapping the disappointing McAvennie for Jimmy Quinn, and 4 minutes later West Ham were level via a goal from Ian Bishop. The visitor’s downfall began when substitute Neil Thompson was 49 handed a red card by Gerald Ashby in the 78th minute for hauling back Trevor Morley en route to goal. Quinn scored a peach of a goal by lifting the ball over Ipswich ’keeper Craig Forrest and diving forward to head into the empty net, and Morley added another before the end. Why do West Ham United struggle in Cup ties against lowly opposition? Fourth Division Aldershot came to Upton Park for an F.A.