Matthew Etherington insists that West Ham's player owe their manager a big performance after Saturday's defeat at Reading.

Matthew Etherington - insists the Hammers squad owe manager Alan Pardew a win Picture: STEVE O'CONNELL

The 2-0 loss at the Madejski hurt more than most as Hammers were outfought and ultimately outplayed by the side Alan Pardew left to take over at the Boleyn earlier this season.

But left-winger Etherington is certain everyone at the club will be ready to bounce back when the relegation-threatened Rams come to Upton Park tomorrow lunchtime.

"We definitely owe the boss a performance," said the popular midfielder. "We let ourselves down on Saturday, everyone knows that and we know we have to get it right tomorrow.

"You can't just pinpoint one thing that went wrong at Reading. I don't think anyone performed on the day and we have had a few performances like that.

"We were all a bit down at the start of the week but the manager was fairly upbeat.

"But he told us we didn't work hard enough off the ball and made sure we knew we had to earn the right to play and to win games."

More on West Ham United atthe official site

Published Friday April 9, 2004

Brought to you by the Evening Echo