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Sheffield Wednesday 1-0 West Ham: Late Chris O'Grady strike sends hosts through to fourth round after Hammers miss penalty
A tightly-contested affair saw the League One outfit get one over on their Championship opponents after Sam Allardyce's side had hit the post and failed to convert from the spot
8 Jan 2012 16:55:00
By Sion Cleaver
Getty Images
League One's Sheffield Wednesday stunned Championship high-fliers West Ham as a late goal gave them a 1-0 victory at Hillsbrough in the FA Cup third round.
The Hammers had a penalty saved and hit the post in the second half through striker Sam Baldock but saw their cup dream cruelly ended as Chris O'Grady slammed home with two minutes remaining.
The hosts made changes to the side which beat Tranmere 2-1 in their last outing as Jermaine Johnson replaced Clinton Morrison up top and Miguel Llera dropped out of the squad due to being cup tied.
West Ham United were relatively unchanged for the game, with the biggest shock coming in goal, where Ruud Boffin replaced Robert Green.
The opening twenty minutes saw both sides fight hard for possession before George McCartney was unfortunate not to break the deadlock as his delightful shot from 35-yards out was blocked by the Wednesday defence.
From then on, visitors dominated the ball but failed to carve out any clear cut chances.
Therefore it was no surprise when the best opportunity of the first half eventually fell to a Sheffield Wednesday player, namely defender Danny Batth. The youngster caught on to a Julian Bennett long throw from the left but headed his effort just wide of the post from 12 yards out.
The game continued in much the same vein from then on and the sides went in all square at the break.
Despite a frustrating first period, West Ham found themselves with a gilt-edged chance to give themselves the lead as they won a penalty just minutes into the second half.
Wednesday defender Reda Johnson was adjudged to have brought down Winston Reid unfairly in the box and the referee duly pointed to the spot.
Striker Baldock stepped up confidently but saw Nicky Weaver pull off a save to deny Sam Allardyce's side the lead.
Baldock must surely have felt like it was not his day when he then saw a shot on goal tipped onto the post by Weaver.
The next chance came in the 66th minute when Morrison held up the ball brilliantly from Reid before delivering the ball to Lines, who’s terrific low shot from 25 yards was blocked well by McCarthy.
However, with two minutes left of normal time and the tie looking set for a replay, O'Grady found himself behind the Hammers defence and, in spite of the tight angle, he drove home to send the home fans into raptures and his side into the fourth round.
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The Hammers had a penalty saved and hit the post in the second half through striker Sam Baldock but saw their cup dream cruelly ended as Chris O'Grady slammed home with two minutes remaining.
The hosts made changes to the side which beat Tranmere 2-1 in their last outing as Jermaine Johnson replaced Clinton Morrison up top and Miguel Llera dropped out of the squad due to being cup tied.
West Ham United were relatively unchanged for the game, with the biggest shock coming in goal, where Ruud Boffin replaced Robert Green.
The opening twenty minutes saw both sides fight hard for possession before George McCartney was unfortunate not to break the deadlock as his delightful shot from 35-yards out was blocked by the Wednesday defence.
From then on, visitors dominated the ball but failed to carve out any clear cut chances.
Therefore it was no surprise when the best opportunity of the first half eventually fell to a Sheffield Wednesday player, namely defender Danny Batth. The youngster caught on to a Julian Bennett long throw from the left but headed his effort just wide of the post from 12 yards out.
The game continued in much the same vein from then on and the sides went in all square at the break.
Despite a frustrating first period, West Ham found themselves with a gilt-edged chance to give themselves the lead as they won a penalty just minutes into the second half.
Wednesday defender Reda Johnson was adjudged to have brought down Winston Reid unfairly in the box and the referee duly pointed to the spot.
Striker Baldock stepped up confidently but saw Nicky Weaver pull off a save to deny Sam Allardyce's side the lead.
Baldock must surely have felt like it was not his day when he then saw a shot on goal tipped onto the post by Weaver.
The next chance came in the 66th minute when Morrison held up the ball brilliantly from Reid before delivering the ball to Lines, who’s terrific low shot from 25 yards was blocked well by McCarthy.
However, with two minutes left of normal time and the tie looking set for a replay, O'Grady found himself behind the Hammers defence and, in spite of the tight angle, he drove home to send the home fans into raptures and his side into the fourth round.
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