Skipper Noble insists Hammers can avoid the drop but only if they stop losing points from winning positions
The Grand National was run at Aintree for the first time. The race, which was then known as the Grand Liverpool Steeplechase, was won by Lottery, ridden by Jem Mason. 1983: Arsenal goalkeeper Pat Jennings made his 1,000th appearance in first-class football.
1993: Australia’s Allan Border became the most prolific scorer in Test cricket when he surpassed Sunil Gavaskar’s record of 10,122 runs. 2006: Manchester United won the Carling Cup, beating Wigan 4-0 at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. 2009: England prop Matt Stevens received a two-year ban for failing a drugs test.
2010: Portsmouth became the first Premier League club to go into administration.
2011: Former Tottenham and Wolves defender Dean Richards died after a long-term illness at the age of 36. 2012: Liverpool won the Carling Cup after a 3-2 penalty shootout victory over Cardiff in the final at Wembley. 2017: Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s late header secured Manchester United a 3-2 EFL Cup final victory over Southampton.
MARK NOBLE is adamant West Ham’s beleaguered players know what is required to avoid relegation.
And the Hammers skipper says they must start by showing the mental strength to cling on to leads after fighting their way to winning positions.
“We’ve been in the lead so much this season and, if we’d managed to stay in the lead in the games we’ve led in, we’d be fourth or fifth in the league,” he said.
The Irons have made it 22 points lost from winning positions this season. They showed their fighting qualities with an impressive display against Liverpool, but again threw it away after taking a 2-1 lead.
No one expected such a defiant display, but Noble (right) said: “The players know what they have to do. The team have lost more points than anyone else from winning positions.
“It’s a tough one to take, even though Liverpool are a great side
Prem points dropped from winning positions this season WEST HAM ..................... and are world and European champions and soon to be English champions.
“The boys thought that there are bigger games to come. We had nothing to lose, no one expected us to go to Anfield and win or even get a point.
“We looked like we had a right go after the defeat at Manchester City, where we didn’t even take part in the game, and if anyone watched this, they could say it is not a team that is going to roll over. It is one of those where you can come in pretty proud of the performance.”
They were undone by two howlers from keeper Lukasz Fabianski (above, left), the second saw
Mo Salah’s shot squirming through his arms and legs to trickle over the line and give Liverpool their platform for a comeback victory.
But Noble refused to point the finger, saying the team must now be all in it together.
“This season individual errors have cost us a lot of points. Everyone makes mistakes, it’s football. Lukasz came in and said sorry, but I don’t like it, I don’t want him to do that because he’s saved us so many times.
“You have to take the positives out of it, I thought the lads played really well and it is just a pity.”