Jamie Jackson's match report
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Well, for approximately six minutes, the upset was on. Once Victor Moses cancelled out Ben Marshall’s opener, the tide was only ever turning one way. Dimitri Payet ran the show for West Ham, scoring with a superb free-kick and a late rampage through a defeated Blackburn defence.
In between those two highlights, Emmanuel Emenike got his West Ham career started with two goals, and there were two red cards in a Cup tie that was certainly exciting, if not entirely competitive.
West Ham were excellent, and keeping out their forwards in this form will be a daunting task for anyone in the quarter-finals. I’ll be back later on to find out who they get in the draw. Don’t forget to join Rob Smyth for Chelsea v Manchester City live, now. Thanks for reading. Bye!
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Full-time: Blackburn 1-5 West Ham
Jon Moss puts Blackburn out of their misery, and West Ham are into the quarter-finals in some style.
91 mins: Payet began a run in his own half, flicking the ball past one defender, then turning another inside out, skipping into the box, and firing past Steele and into the bottom corner. What a player West Ham have on their hands.
GOAL! Blackburn 1-5 West Ham (Payet)
The man of the match puts extra gloss on the final score with another wonderful goal.
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90 mins: Two added minutes. Emenike puts the ball into the net, after Moses’ header is smartly saved by Steele, but he is flagged offside. Since Taylor’s red card, they have been rampant.
88 mins: Blackburn were ahead in this game. The gulf in class is growing by the minute, and Payet, the arch tormentor, almost picks out Cresswell with a cross.
86 mins: As home fans head for the exits, Payet again makes mincemeat of the defence, before slotting the ball across goal to Emenike. On a hat trick, he shimmies and shakes, but crashes his shot off the post!
GOAL! Blackburn 1-4 West Ham (Emenike)
Payet looks up from midfield, and lifts a languid through ball that takes out the entire Blackburn defence. Emenike strolls towards goal, sits Steele down, and tucks the ball inside the near post.
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83 mins: Lenihan, who could easily have been booked in the first half, is cautioned for a cynical foul on Collins.
82 mins: West Ham players, and fans, appeal for a penalty as Lanzini is dragged down in the area, but Moss is unmoved.
80 mins: The red card has changed, well, nothing – West Ham remain rooted in the Blackburn area, flicking the ball between their forwards in the training ground style. Emenike eventually fires wide when he should have scored – but replays show the striker was offside.
78 mins: That was a curious red card; there was contact, but Henley, chasing after his own loose touch, was hardly clean through on goal. Moss, at an awkward angle, seemed totally convinced it was a red card.
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77 mins: Marshall wastes the free kick, and West Ham are back on the front foot, pinging the ball around the Blackburn area before Lanzini fires over. A couple of changes: Reece Oxford is on for Ogbonna, and for Blackburn, Tony Watt comes on for Chris Brown.
RED CARD! Kouyaté sent off for West Ham!
Well, then. Jackson finds Henley, bursting forward down the left, and the full back skips past Kouyaté, before hitting the deck. Jon Moss shows Kouyaté a straight red card!
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73 mins: Alex Song is on, replacing Mark Noble. This second half has lost a little of its fizz.
Adarabioyo, Manu Garcia, Aleix Garcia, Celina, Faupala. All of these names are on the Manchester City team sheet. Join Rob Smyth for Chelsea v Manchester City – live!
70 mins: West Ham fans are toasting Slaven Bilic, keeping the noise levels high despite the patches of empty seats. Good practice for next season, eh? Eh?
69 mins: Moses goes for a repeat of his equaliser, racing deep into the Blackburn half and aiming for the far corner, but it’s scuffed and easy enough for Steele.
67 mins: West Ham bring on Manuel Lanzini, in place of Pedro Obiang. Not great news for Blackburn fans.
64 mins: Antonio, who has taken on the right-back role in the Cristiano Ronaldo style, slaloms through the Blackburn defence, and forces another Steele save. Blackburn are over-run at the back, and Kouyaté is on hand to cut the ball back, where Emenike is waiting to tap the ball into an empty net.
GOAL! Blackburn 1-3 West Ham (Emenike)
Blackburn can’t hold out any longer, as Emmanuel Emenike gets his first West Ham goal, and as good as ends this game as a contest.
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62 mins: West Ham crank up the pressure, and Antonio collects a pass from Payet, forcing another smart low save from Steele. Kouyaté is on hand to turn the ball in, but he’s flagged offside. It was very close.
61 mins: A throw-in for Blackburn, which Marshall launches into the area – but Randolph rises through a sea of bodies to clutch the ball.
60 mins: Payet makes his first intervention of the second half, teeing up Noble with a classy diagonal pass. The West Ham captain fires an effort across Steele, but it’s neither cross nor shot, and drifts wide.
58 mins: Jackson is on, replacing Craig Conway. The task is much tougher for Blackburn now, of course.
56 mins: West Ham sense the chance to kill the game, and Steele has to extend himself expertly to keep out Antonio’s low shot from a tight angle. Taylor looked upset with himself rather than the referee, and it’s hard to argue both challenges deserved a booking.
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RED CARD! Chris Taylor sent off for Blackburn!
Moses brings the ball away and skips past Taylor, who clips the winger’s heels. Jon Moss issues a second yellow card, and Taylor is off!
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53 mins: Bennett, perhaps Blackburn’s standout player, sees another shot blocked by Collins, and the hosts win a corner. A melee ensues, with Ogbonna clearing a snap shot smartly, but West Ham can break...
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52 mins: Blackburn look set to make an attacking change, with Simeon Jackson getting ready to come on. From another deep free kick, Marshall finds Lenihan, whose header loops into Randolph’s arms. Still, a positive start from the hosts.
50 mins: Collins does err under pressure, conceding a throw in deep in his own half. Bennett sees his shot deflected away, before another thunked Collins header lands at the feet of Lenihan. His low, angled shot flies a couple of feet wide of the far post.
48 mins: The lofty camera angle at Ewood Park is well suited to Blackburn’s long-ball tactics, but so is James Collins, who is getting his head to every hoof upfield.
46 mins: Blackburn earn a free-kick through Brown, who commentator Derek Rae eloquently describes as ‘rumbustious’. The set piece is delivered long, but West Ham clear their lines comfortably.
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Peep
The second half is underway, with West Ham now playing towards their vocal travelling fans. No changes at half-time.
Rob Shaw is a (moderately) happy Hammer at half-time:
“Difficult to recall a time when West Ham could play an away cup tie in the North against a club like Blackburn and look so comfortable... from a Hammer’s viewpoint the sensation is one of alarm.”
Here’s that Payet free kick. Not bad, eh?
Half-time: Blackburn 1-2 West Ham
After a scrappy start, Ben Marshall had Ewood Park rocking with the opener, but West Ham quickly turned up the tempo, equalising through Victor Moses, then taking the lead through Dimitri Payet’s fantastic free kick. The visitors have looked comfortable since, but signs of complacency are creeping in – and this game is far from finished.
45 mins: Two added minutes, with Taylor’s intervention getting the home fans interested again. At the other end, Moses fires a speculator high and wide.
44 mins: West Ham ping the ball around midfield, but Collins over-reaches with a pass to Payet, and Taylor charges upfield. Without any real support, he charges past Collins and into the box, but the ball won’t sit up for him, and his eventual shot, from a tight angle, is tame. That was careless from Collins, who looks relieved.
43 mins: West Ham remain camped in the Blackburn half – although Noble almost presents Bennett with a clear route to goal, after stumbling on the halfway line. They can’t afford to take it too easy here.
40 mins: Antonio threads a slide-rule ball down the right touchline, and Kouyaté forces a corner. Payet delivers the cross, but Collins heads over the bar. Blackburn will now be happy to get to half-time a goal behind.
38 mins: “We’re going to Wembley” bellows the throng assembled in the away end. It hasn’t taken long for West Ham to turn this game around.
GOAL! Blackburn 1-2 West Ham (Payet)
Payet lines it up, and smacks a curling free kick that drifts over the wall, then swerves into the bottom corner, beyond Steele’s helpless dive, as if drawn by a magnet. Magnificent.
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34 mins: Payet is too hot for Blackburn to handle, skipping forward from a pass from Obiang and goading Taylor into hauling him down by his shirt. Taylor is booked, and West Ham have a free kick, 25 yards out in a central spot...
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32 mins: West Ham are dominating things, with Antonio and Kouyaté getting forward to support the front three, and test Blackburn’s rigid back line. The hosts are holding firm, for now.
31 mins: Some suggestion that Steele may have picked up an injury – he winced after taking a goal-kick, moments before Moses scored.
29 mins: Kouyaté is proving a handful for Blackburn with his runs from midfield, with Noble and Obiang keeping the door closed behind him. From a looping Moses cross, he hares around the area as the ball bobbles endlessly, finally skewing his shot over the bar.
26 mins: West Ham have been knocking ever since Marshall’s opener, and while Blackburn have defended gamely, they switched off en masse here. Moses was able to dribble from the centre circle to the edge of the area unopposed, and hit a shot that, like Marshall’s, lacked real power – but it squirmed through the hands of Steele and into the far corner.
GOAL! Blackburn 1-1 West Ham (Moses)
West Ham are back level, thanks to Victor Moses, who was given the freedom of the Blackburn half and slotted a low shot through the hands of Jason Steele.
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24 mins: Payet sees his corner cleared, collects the ball on the right and whips in a corker of a cross. Akpan heads it behind, but Blackburn are, for some reason, awarded a goal kick.
22 mins: West Ham try to turn up the intensity, but Kouyate is penalised for a high boot after a testing cross from Payet. His foot was actually barely off the floor – Ward chose to throw himself headlong to clear the ball, so that seems harsh.
20 mins: That was a tidy finish from Rovers’ top scorer, who shaped to curl the ball towards the far corner, then swept it low in the opposite direction. It wasn’t the fiercest shot, and Randolph may have been unsighted – or just caught cold by the change of direction.
Ben Marshall, who is making his 100th appearance for Rovers today, has now scored the opening goal in every round so far in the FA Cup. 1-0
— Blackburn Rovers (@OneRovers) February 21, 2016
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GOAL! Blackburn 1-0 West Ham (Marshall)
...the corner is half-cleared, but only to Ben Marshall, who cuts inside onto his left foot, and hits a low shot from 20 yards that creeps inside Randolph’s near post! It’s on now!
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18 mins: Blackburn go long, and Taylor collects a clearance to earn a corner from nothing. Bennett will swing it in...
16 mins: West Ham try and keep the ball for more than 10 seconds, after an all-action opening spell. Obiang produces a pass from the left touchline to find Payet in the area, but Shane Duffy stands up to the shimmying midfielder, and the ball bobbles out for a goal kick.
14 mins: Victor Moses and Emmanuel Emenike will both want to make an impression today, but both lose possession after drifting into wide areas. It’s been an even start.
13 mins: It’s blowy out there, with Bennett needing three attempts to place a corner. When he does whip it in, he finds Akpan unmarked – but the midfielder heads over from an awkward angle.
Great work from Tom Shaw: “Not many people know this, but West Ham have beaten Blackburn Rovers in a Cup Final...”
10 mins: It’s been, shall we say, a feisty start, with Noble left prone after another hefty Lenihan challenge.
8 mins: Bennett curls the free kick in from the left, 25 yards out, but Collins gets a head to it, the dull thud echoing around the ground. West Ham break, and Lenihan trips Kouyaté. Referee Jon Moss again keeps his cards in his pocket, but has a word with the midfielder.
7 mins: Brown is lucky to escape a booking, stepping firmly on Mark Noble’s foot as the two players chased a 50/50 ball. Brown is again offering nuisance value, forcing a free kick when Collins shoves him over...
6 mins: Marshall, Taylor and Bennett play a couple of quickfire triangles, before Bennett races to the touchline and cuts the ball back dangerously – but Collins is on hand to prod the ball away from Chris Brown.
3 mins: Antonio, surging forward from right-back, is brought down by Henley. Free kick to West Ham out on the right flank, which Payet swings in. It ricochets into the path of Moses, and his low half-volley is deflected wide. Payet’s corner swings out of play.
2 mins: A scrappy start, with West Ham fans making a right racket in the away end.
Here we go
Blackburn kick off in front of a sparse looking Ewood Park crowd. The hosts are in blue and white halves; the visitors in their first-choice claret and blue. Two top-drawer kits.
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The teams walk out to the strains of Coldplay, the refrain “I used to rule the world” ringing around the stadium. In a comfy armchair somewhere in the UK, Kenny Dalglish wipes away a tear.
Ten minutes until kick-off at a rather overcast Ewood Park. 7,000 West Ham fans have made the trip to Lancashire – they are very much up for the Cup.
The #ClaretandBlueArmy fill the Darwen End - all 7,235 of them! #WHUFC pic.twitter.com/7cvcESgGwR
— West Ham United FC (@whufc_official) February 21, 2016
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Now, it’s Slaven Bilic’s turn...
“Strong team, because it’s the FA Cup... we used this week to train, but also to rest... we are ready for the game. We spent the last couple of days showing the players Blackburn and warning them. I just told them, look at yesterday’s results. They know that we’ll have to be on top of their game.”
Paul Lambert speaks...
“We’ve got a massive game this week (Blackburn play Derby on Wednesday) and something like 11 games in 31 days. Our lads can do the job today, though. Over the course of the season, you’d struggle to match sides like [West Ham], but in a one-off game, we can get through.”
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Paul Lambert has gone with a cautious line-up that’s received, let’s say, mixed reviews from fans on Twitter. Grant Hanley, Corry Evans and Jordi Gómez, all of whom would surely feature in a first-choice Rovers XI, start on the bench, while Chris Brown leads the line.
West Ham have a line-up that’s depleted more through injury than selection, with Michail Antonio filling in at right back, and Emmanuel Emenike making his first start. Manuel Lanzini is on the bench after injury problems – as is Doneil Henry, fresh from a loan at Blackburn where he got a grand total of three minutes on the pitch.
The teams
Blackburn Rovers: Steele; Marshall, Duffy, Ward (c), Henley; Bennett, Lenihan, Akpan, Taylor, Conway; Brown.
Subs: Raya, Kilgallon, Hanley, Watt, J Gómez, Evans, Jackson.
West Ham United: Randolph; Antonio, Collins, Ogbonna, Cresswell; Noble (c), Kouyate, Obiang; Payet, Moses, Emenike.
Subs: Adrian, Song, Henry, Lanzini, Oxford, Parfitt-Williams, Browne.
Preamble
To those of a certain vintage, Blackburn v West Ham doesn’t have the ring of a potential FA Cup shock. This fixture has been a middle of the top table affair for much of the past twenty years, fortune only lurching in the visitors’ favour in 2012, when West Ham passed Blackburn on their way back to the big time. Make no mistake though: if Blackburn were to prevail today, it would be an upset worthy of the name.
For one thing, West Ham are something of a bogey team for Rovers, who have failed to beat them in their last 11 meetings – beginning with a ragged FA Cup defeat in 2006, the year Alan Pardew’s claret and blue army went all the way to Cardiff. Yes, it was a while ago. For another, in the decade since, Blackburn have never been further behind today’s opponents in the trusty league ladder.
31 places separate Slaven Bilic’s Europa League dreamers and Lambert’s outfit, who are fretting over the faint possibility of a drop into the third tier for the first time since 1980. That particular year could also inspire the hosts today – it’s the last time a second-tier team won the cup. Who, you ask? Why, West Ham of course. Trevor Brooking scored the winner with a header – not that he likes to talk about it.
That was West Ham’s third FA Cup, a record Blackburn trump with six shiny pots – although the last was in 1928, so there’s no chance of resting on their laurels. There are more contemporary reasons for Rovers to be hopeful, with West Ham carrying a spate of injuries up front, and a tendency for Cup capitulation that stretches back to Bilic’s time as a player. Believe it or not, this is a proper FA Cup tie.
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