Mickey Ambrose celebrates good times for football in Newham – at Premier League and community levels
Following the international break it was back to league football and in the Premier League our beloved Hammers, who have had a rough patch, finally got a win to chalk up three points against newly promoted Nottingham Forest.
Thomas Soucek struck a really late winner as the Hammers fought back from 2-1 down to beat Nottingham Forest 3-2 in a thrilling match at the London Stadium.
The provider of both West Ham’s late goals was the industrious James Ward-Prowse from corners. This after Lucas Paqueta had put the Hammers – who had won just one of their previous seven Premier League outings – in front inside three minutes after a quite glaring error from Nicolas Domingues. But the teams went in level at the break after Taiwo Awoniyi tapped in when Morgan Gibbs-White’s shot was saved.
Athony Elanga’s goal turned the game in Forest’s favour for the first time in just over an hour but West Ham hit back when Jarrod Bowen headed home Ward-Prowse’s pinpoint corner to set up a tense finale.
Then up stepped Soucek who had the final say. After stretching to divert a cross onto the bar, the Czech midfielder won the game when he leapt to meet another Ward-Prowse corner and planted a header beyond Odysseas Vlachodimos.
West Ham moved to ninth after taking the points, while Nottingham Forest stayed down in 15th.
Meanwhile, the Westfield Stratford City community football tournament took place at the London Marathon Community Track, Stratford on Thursday 16 November.
It is an exciting initiative aiming to foster camaraderie among Stratford residents. This tournament sought to build positive relations between the Westfield security team, local police, Safer Business Network, London Borough of Newham Youth Empowerment Team, Hackney charity, The Wickers and the young residents of the area – and it worked.
The tournament welcomed over 100 participants and spectators with the opportunity for the security team and police officers to interact with the youth in a friendly and informal setting. Through this shared experience, it is hoped that mutual trust and respect will be fostered, leading to stronger relationships and a safer community for all.
Results: Under 18s match: LBN Youth Empowerment v The Wickers Charity 5: 4; and Over 18s match: Westfield v Community United 1: 8.
Thanks to: the London Marathon Community Track for hosting the match; Chris Betts, General Manager of Westfield Stratford City and Cllr Amar Virdee, Cabinet Member for Community Safety and Crime for presenting the medals and ‘Player of the Match’ trophies; West Ham for providing the Referee; and St John Ambulance volunteers
Chris Betts, General Manager, Westfield Stratford City, said: “The tournament is more than a game – it’s a testament to the strength of unity, fostering connections between our diverse community members and the shared goal of creating a safer, stronger community for all.”
I wholeheartedly support social initiatives of this kind that bring us all together as one, that involve equality, diversity and inclusion and I would personally like to thank Hannah Durling, Social Value Manager, Westfield and Jessica Phillips-Martin of Unibail Rodamco-Westfield and the team for making this a success. Perhaps this could be an annual event?
Mickey Ambrose is a former Chelsea and Charlton player who lives in Stratford
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