WATFORD 1 Deeney (pen, 3) WEST HAM 1 Ayew (73)

ANDRE AYEW climbed off the bench to rescue a point for 10-man West Ham at Watford.

The Hammers were trailing to Troy Deeney’s third-minute penalty until Ghana forward Ayew tucked in the rebound after Michail Antonio’s shot had hit both posts.

It was no more than West Ham deserved, as they were unlucky not to have been awarded a secondhalf spot-kick for an almost identical incident to the one which gave Watford the lead.

However, they had to hold out for the final five minutes with 10 men after Antonio was sent off for handball.

Sadly it was also a bittersweet evening for Hammers old boy Mauro Zarate, who won his side’s penalty, but departed on a stretcher with a serious-looking knee injury before half-time.

The Argentinian winger had an immediate impact against his former side, darting into the area to meet Deeney’s pass before being sent sprawling to the turf by Cheikhou Kouyate. Deeney rolled in the penalty for his fourth in five Premier League games.

West Ham pushed for an equaliser and Younes Kaboul did superbly to block a goalbound Robert Snodgrass shot, before sticking out a foot to prevent Antonio from equalising.

Snodgrass should have levelled when Heurelho Gomes pushed Aaron Cresswell’s cross straight to the winger, but he could not adjust his feet in time.

Kouyate was then wrestled to the ground by M’Baye Niang in the area, only for referee Craig Pawson to wave play on.

But the leveller arrived in the 73rd minute after Antonio outpaced Kaboul before seeing his shot clip the near post, roll along the goalline and back out off the far post, straight to record signing Ayew, who sidefooted in his second goal for the club.

Antonio, who had been booked in the first half, then handled the ball after he had been tackled to be shown a second yellow card.