ANDY STARS IN SHOWSTOPPER

Hammers’ hero Carroll back with a treble bang in an Upton Park thriller

NOSTALGIA’S grip is tightening around West Ham and their fans as the leaving of Upton Park draws near. They are giving the old place that so many of the greats of our game have graced quite a send-off.

This tumultuous draw may not have been the result that either team wanted, and Arsenal’s capitulation after being two goals up effectively ended their slim hopes of the title. But what a game it was.

West Ham’s Champions League ambitions were dented as the goals flew in. The home supporters raged, with some justification, about critical decisions that went against them.

But striker Andy Carroll, back from yet another injury, scored a hat-trick in eight minutes and drama abounded. West Ham has always been about entertainment and how the Boleyn Ground thrilled to this.

Only four home games remain now before their move to the Olympic Stadium, so the ground was awash with sentiment yesterday.

Billy Bonds, the Hammers’ greatest club servant, Trevor Brooking and other alumni were greeted with much pomp at half-time. Bubbles blew in the air.

The big screen showed footage of Alan Taylor scoring one of the goals in the 1975 FA Cup Final when West Ham beat Fulham.

But this was not just about the past. It was about the present, too, because they have new heroes to celebrate, like Dimitri Payet and Cheikhou Kouyate, players who would probably have got into any of the celebrated West Ham teams of old.

This was a team that came from two goals down to lead 3-2, a crazy, heady eight-minute spell of football featuring that Carroll hat-trick which finally battered Arsenal’s dwindling hopes of salvaging a title challenge.

The Gunners are 10 points behind leaders Leicester City with six games left to play. Surely, it is over.

Even Arsene Wenger came close to admitting so afterwards. ‘We have paid for a weakness,’ said the Arsenal boss, referring to his side’s penchant for conceding headed goals.

‘We are third in the league with 59 points and that is not where we want to be. We have made it much more difficult for ourselves now.

‘We have to keep going and keep hoping. You never know what can happen. But there are teams chasing us as well and we have to make sure we finish as high as possible.’

Arsenal did at least rescue a point with a second half-equaliser from Laurent Koscielny and that, in turn, damaged West Ham’s hopes of saying their farewells by finishing in the top four. ‘This is a blow,’ said manager Slaven Bilic.

They still have a chance but Manchester City and Manchester United have the advantage over them.

The Hammers’ biggest week of the season continues on Wednesday with the visit of Manchester United for an FA Cup quarter-final replay. Upton Park still has plenty of drama left in it yet.

Carroll, whose surprise inclusion in the starting line-up came against a background of swirling rumours about Diafra Sakho, whose absence from the squad was later blamed on injury, ensured the temperature of the match was high from the start when he was booked in the first few minutes for a scything tackle on Koscielny.

Some felt the challenge deserved a straight red. As the crowd seethed and roared, West Ham seemed to take the lead. Carroll’s overhead kick turned into an impromptu cross and Manuel Lanzini headed it in. Lanzini was onside but the linesman flagged.

Two minutes later, the home crowd’s sense of grievance deepened when Alex Iwobi played a clever pass to Mesut Ozil, who drove the ball across goalkeeper Adrian into the net. Ozil was close to being offside, too — but this time, the linesman’s flag stayed down.

Their confidence surging, Arsenal took control. Iwobi had given them momentum and 10 minutes before half-time, he lobbed the ball over the West Ham defence for Alexis Sanchez to control it and dispatch a shot expertly past Adrian.

It seemed the game was over. But a minute before the break, Aaron Cresswell swung over a cross from the left and Carroll glanced his header past David Ospina.

Then, deep into first-half injury time, Mark Noble clipped a ball into the box. Carroll, who is already being touted for an England recall on the back of this flourish, mishit it but it rebounded to him and he hooked it acrobatically into the net for the equaliser. Arsenal’s players looked at each other in disbelief.

West Ham began the second half in the same riotous vein. Carroll and Koscielny wrestled with each other in the box and when they both fell to the floor, Payet stroked the ball into the empty net.

Once again, the referee came to Arsenal’s rescue and, to the fury of the home fans, ruled out the goal.

It was only a momentary reprieve. Minutes later, Michail Antonio beat Monreal down the West Ham right and floated a delicious cross to the back post.

There was only going to be one winner. Carroll rose highest and powered his header towards goal. It flicked off Gabriel on its way in.

Wenger brought on Aaron Ramsey and Olivier Giroud, and Arsenal rallied. Midway through the half, Lanzini made a goalline clearance to turn away a piledriver from Nacho Monreal, but seconds later Koscielny lifted the ball high into the net to give Arsenal a share of the points.