Premier League
West Ham
May 19, 2013 4.00pm
4
2
HT : 2 0
FT
Reading
  • Kevin Nolan 23' goal
  • Ricardo Vaz Te 34' goal
  • Kevin Nolan 79' goal
  • Kevin Nolan 83' yellowcard
  • Jack Collison 85' yellowcard
  • Kevin Nolan 87' goal
  • goal Garath McCleary 53'
  • goal Adam Le Fondre 55'
  • yellowcard Jobi McAnuff 63'

Live Commentary: West Ham United 4-2 Reading - as it happened

By | , Last updated:

West Ham 4-2 Reading - as it happened
© PA Photos

West Ham United and Reading met on the final day of the Premier League season in their clash at Upton Park.

The game was full of goals as the Hammers fought their way to a 4-2 victory, thanks to a hat-trick from Kevin Nolan along with a strike from Ricardo Vaz Te.

Reading did fight back from two goals down but they succumbed in the second-half as two late Nolan goals earned West Ham a top-half finish.

To see how all the action unfolded, follow our minute-by-minute commentary below.

6.16pmThanks for joining Sports Mole's coverage of today's game and the Premier League season. We'll be back for the 2013-14 season in August. A busy summer of transfer activity awaits. Until August, goodbye.
6.15pmIn case you want to catch up all the action again, check out our report here.
6.14pmPREMIER LEAGUE FINAL SCORES: Chelsea 2-1 Everton Liverpool 1-0 QPR Man City 2-3 Norwich Newcastle 0-1 Arsenal Southampton 1-1 Stoke Swansea 0-3 Fulham Spurs 1-0 Sunderland West Brom 5-5 Man Utd West Ham 4-2 Reading
6.12pmLet's take a final look at the Premier League scores today from the last day of the season.
6.11pmReading will have to undergo squad changes as they drop into the competitive Championship. They have a good manager in charge and under Adkins, they should be one of the favourites for promotion next season.
6.09pmGoing forward the Hammers will need to strengthen to build on their momentum this year. 10 points seperated 8th from 18th in the Premier League, so there's a similar amount of quality around the bottom half of the league, so West Ham will need to ensure they are at the upper end of those teams rather than the lower. They can start by adding Carroll on a permanent basis. He's been so influential in the last few months of the season and he links so well with Nolan, that he must be top of the list for Allardyce this summer.
6.07pmLooking at these teams as they were both promoted from the Championship last year, it's easy to see why the Hammers have survived and Reading haven't. West Ham have a solid base and a goal threat with Carroll and Nolan while the Royals have been poor at the back all season and have been over reliant on Le Fondre upfront.
6.04pmReading were the ultimate in Jekyll and Hyde today. Their attacking play was at times brilliant they showed character to fight back from two goals down. But in the end their awful defending cost them as they conceded four atrocious goals from a defensive point of view.
5.59pmThis game was all about Kevin Nolan and he took advantage of some questionable defending not net a hat-trick. He was a thorn in the side of the Royals all afternoon and duly deserved his goals. What a players he's been for the Hammers this season, with 10 goals, that surely have been the driving force for their excellent season this year.
5.57pmWest Ham have signed off with a good home win over Reading, which secures their mid-table place in 10th place in the Premier League.
5.56pmThat's it the Premier League season is over!!!
90 + 2 minFULL-TIME: West Ham United 4-2 Reading
90 + 1 minCHANCE!!! Le Fondre has the chance to get a goal back for the Royals as he gets in down the left but he fires his effort straight at Jaaskelainen who makes the save.
90 minTwo minutes of added time at Upton Park.
88 minWest Ham are in party mode now and Reading look like they just want the final whistle to blow.
86 minHAT-TRICK FOR NOLAN!!!! Nolan completes his hat-trick with a simple headed finish from close range inside the six-yard box from Maiga's cross.
86 minGOALL!!! West Ham 4-2 Reading (Nolan)
85 minCHANCE!!! The space is really opening up for West Ham now as Noble finds himself in all sorts of room upfront. He tries an effort but McCarthy makes the save.
82 minSome pressure from Reading now but Carroll and Collins rise high in the air to head the danger away from consecutive corners from the Royals.
80 minThat goal seems to have sapped the life out of Reading. They've battled so hard today but it seems yet again they're going to get nothing out of this game.
78 minWest Ham regain the lead!! Nolan latches onto a ball over the top of the Reading defence and takes the ball in stride before dispatching the ball past McCarthy into the bottom corner. A nice composed finish.
78 minGOALL!!! West Ham 3-2 Reading (Nolan)
75 minReading are giving as good as they are getting at the moment as McCleary raids forward yet again, and he fires at goal but it's tame and goes past the post.
72 minCHANCE!!! Kelly's pass only goes as far as Cole who drives forward but his effort is deflected wide for a corner.
70 minThe game is stretched now as Carroll finds space on the left and his drills the ball into the area where Vaz Te was lurking but Kelly did well to clear it behind.
67 minAnother counterattack from Reading as Guthrie breaks up the middle but he makes the wrong decision at the last moment as fails to slip the ball into Le Fondre and loses possession.
64 minReading hit the Hammers on the counter and McAnuff whips the ball out to Gunter on the right, who raids into the area and fires a cross, across the face of goal but no Royals player is there to turn it in.
63 minWest Ham win a free kick, which Noble lifts into the area but Gorkss beats Carroll in the air to clear the danger.
59 minWhat a comeback from Reading in this half. Now they are first to every contested ball and look the more likely to get a winner.
57 minCHANCE!!! Carroll almost gives West Ham the lead again but his effort is beaten away by McCarthy after he was teed up inside the area by Nolan.
55 minReading are level! What a reaction in the second-half! Blackman races onto a ball over the top of the defence and he lifts the ball into the area with his left-foot, Reid can't get to the ball to clear it and Le Fondre nips in at the back-post to slide it home.
55 minGOALL!!!! West Ham 2-2 Reading (Le Fondre)
53 minReading pull a goal back as McAnuff raids down the left and squares the ball to McCleary on the edge of the area who drills his shot which takes a deflection off Noble on its way past Jaaskelainen.
53 minGOALL!!!! West Ham 2-1 Reading (McCleary)
50 minCHANCE! An opportunity for Reading as Karacan lines up a shot from the edge of the area which flies just over the bar with Jaaskelainen at full stretch.
48 minNolan is almost in again but he's flagged for offside as he tried to latch on Noble's through ball.
47 minSolid start to the half by West Ham with two minutes of continuous possession, as they look to build on their two-goal lead.
46 minWe're back underway at Upton Park.
5.05pmSUBS: Reading make two subs at the break as Adam Le Fondre and Nick Blackman replace Pavel Pogrebnyak and Hal Robson-Kanu.
4.59pmHave your say on who you think should be in Sports Mole's Team of the Season. Follow the link here, to vote.
4.55pmIt's been the story of Reading's season. They've played well in bursts but didn't get the goal when they were on top and an individual mistake cost them. Since then they've been under the cosh constantly.
4.52pmSo after a tricky start to the game, West Ham have dominated since taking the lead through Kevin Nolan following a mistake from Alex McCarthy and Ricardo Vaz Te doubled that lead when he fired the ball through a crowd of players in the 34th minute.
45 + 1 minHALF-TIME: West Ham 2-0 Reading
45 minOne minute of added time at Upton Park.
44 minSHOT! Another chance for West Ham as Diame cuts inside on his right foot and tests McCarthy with a drilled effort which he is equal to and he palms the shot away.
42 minCHANCE!! West Ham win the ball again and Noble knocks the ball long into Carroll who tees up Diame on the edge of the area but he shoots just over the bar.
41 minCHANCE!! Carroll causes mayhem upfront against as his knockdown goes to Vaz Te who drives at the Reading defence and fires a shot at goal which clips the post and is cleared.
38 minNolan thinks he's in again as he out-muscles Gunter on the right to win the ball but the referee blows his whistle for a foul before he can bare down on goal.
36 minReading look a bit shell shocked by that goal, they now look tense with the ball after they started the game so well.
34 minWest Ham doubled their lead and Vaz Te gets the goal with a fine finish into the bottom corner after a lovely move down the left as Diame whipped a cross into the area and Carroll took the ball out of the air and knocked it back to the striker who finished in style.
34 minGOALL!!!! West Ham 2-0 Reading (Vaz Te)
31 minReading win a free kick 25-yards out on the right which Guthrie whips into the area with pace but Collins rises highest in the area and clears the danger.
30 minReading denied a corner as Jaaskelainen allows the ball to slip beyond the line but the linesman isn't up with play and his mistake goes unnoticed.
29 minCarroll goes close again with a header from the resulting corner which goes just over the bar. West Ham are upping the ante now.
27 minGREAT SAVE!!! McCarthy redeems himself with an excellent reaction save from Nolan as he tips his header onto the bar and out after Carroll header had caused havoc in the area.
23 minWest Ham take the lead and it's Nolan whose left with a simple finish into an open goal after a horrendous mistake from Alex McCarthy who smacks his clearing kick straight into Carroll and Nolan collects the ball and slots it home.
23 minGOAL!!!! West Ham 1-0 Reading (Nolan)
21 minCHANCE!! Gunter gets in behind the West Ham defence on the right and opts to shoot from a tight angle but he fires his effort into the side netting. That was a chance!!
20 minReading have played some nice football so far and arguably should be in the lead if not for a good save from Jaaskelainen.
18 minWest Ham think they've got Diame in behind the Reading defence on the left but they're joy is shortlived as he's flagged for offside.
16 minSHOT! Reading work the ball down the left with McCleary and Karacan who squares his pass to Danny Guthrie who tries a right-footed effort which goes just wide of the post from 25-yards.
15 minAn end to end start to the game as neither team can control the ball for a sustained period of time.
13 minINTERVENTION! West Ham have a great chance to break upfield as they clear their lines from a corner and Vaz Te looks to get control of the ball but before he can Stephen Kelly makes a great intervention with a sliding tackle.
11 minWest Ham break straight upfield and the ball drops to the feet of Joe Cole, 25-yards from goal but he skies his shot well over the bar. Wasteful!
11 minJem Karacan slides the ball into the feet of Garath McCleary who should take the ball in stride but he misses the ball and a chance to get behind the West Ham defence is wasted.
9 minCHANCE!! A great opportunity for Reading to take the lead as they pass the ball well down the right and Robson-Kanu lifts a good cross to the back post for Pavel Pogrebnyak who heads at goal but his low effort is well saved by Jussi Jaaskelainen.
7 minHalf chance for Reading as the build up nicely down the left and Hal Robson-Kanu switches the ball to the right where he finds Chris Gunter, who lifts his cross to the back post for Jobi McAnuff who heads just over the bar.
5 minWest Ham win a free kick which James Collins pumps long into the box but Kaspars Gorkss is there to win the header in the penalty area and the visitors scramble the ball clear.
3 minThe Hammers are playing decent possession football so far with Mark Noble seeing a lot of the ball in the middle of the park on his return to the team.
2 minEarly pressure from West Ham but Reading clear the line and the danger is gone.
1 minWe're underway at Upton Park.
3.57pmThe players are making their way out onto the pitch and the game should be underway shortly.
3.55pmPREDICTION: West Ham have been good at home this season and don't expect that to change today against the already relegated Royals. West Ham 3-0 Reading.
3.52pmWe may see an open game here. Both teams have little to play for but both will want to end their respective campaigns on a high. And remember each place in the Premier League is worth a bit of cash, so the teams will not want to miss out on that.
3.45pmNigel Adkins will get to test some of his players out for the final time before they begin their Championship campaign next season. It shall be interesting how many of these players will be on the Royals' books come August.
3.42pmThis will be Andy Carroll's last game before his loan spell at the Hammers ends. Skipper Kevin Nolan wants him to stay at the club but it maybe one of those long drawn out transfer sagas that last the summer in this case, as Liverpool will want a sizable return on their £35m investment. Let's see if Carroll can go out on a high today.
3.38pmSTAT ATTACK: Reading have the second worst defensive record in the Premier League after conceding 69 goals. Only Wigan Athletic (71) have conceded more.
3.33pmSTAT ATTACK: Kevin Nolan is the Hammers leading goalscorer this season along with on-loan striker Andy Carroll with seven goals.
3.29pmAnother note of interest about Kaspars Gorkss. The defender has spent the last few months on loan in the Championship with Wolverhampton Wanderers, who were relegated to League One. He'll be enduring his second relegation of his season today.
3.27pmReading subs: Taylor, Pearce, Mariappa, Le Fondre, Akpan, Carrico, Blackman.
3.25pmWest Ham subs: Henderson, Tomkins, Collison, Maiga, Wellington Paulista, O'Neil, Taylor.
3.22pmReading boss Nigel Adkins makes just one change to his side that was beaten 2-0 by Manchester City in midweek. Kaspars Gorkss makes his first appearances for the Royals since December and replaces Adrian Mariappa in the lineup.
3.19pmWest Ham United boss Sam Allardyce makes three changes to his side that were beaten 2-0 by Everton last week. Gary O'Neil and Jack Collison are out and are replaced by Mark Noble and Joe Cole. While Ricardo Vaz Te replaces Matt Jarvis.
3.16pmReading: McCarthy, Gunter, Kelly, Gorkss, Morrison, McCleary, McAnuff, Guthrie, Karacan, Robson-Kanu, Pogrebnyak.
3.15pmWest Ham: Jaaskelainen, Demel, O'Brien, Collins, Reid, Noble, Diame, Nolan, J.Cole, Vaz Te, Carroll.
3.13pmTeam news is coming in from Upton Park and we'll start with the home side.
3.10pmReading have struggled this season under Brian McDermott and their relegation was confirmed under new boss Nigel Adkins weeks ago following their draw with Queens Park Rangers. A point today for them will see them finish with some pride as they'll finish 19th rather than 20th in the table.
3.07pmThe Hammers have exceeded all expectations this season and survived the threat of relegation comfortably and can finish in the top-half of the Premier League with a win today.
3.05pmGood afternoon and welcome to Sports Mole's coverage of the final day of the Premier League season as West Ham United take on Reading at Upton Park.
Author photo

Written by

Share this article:

People mentioned in this article :

Teams mentioned in this article :

West Ham United related articles
Football related articles
Subscribe to our newsletter

Get FREE daily news and in-depth previews for games from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football — straight to your inbox.

Subscribe