The game was an irrelevance, really. We all expected to lose and were duly rewarded for our expectations. Arsenal looked in a different league to us and next year they will be. Any chance we may have had of an unlikely result was severely diminished by the news that Super Scott was unable to play with an ankle injury and then Mark Noble, the Robin-like boy wonder to his Batman superhero, left the field in the first half with an injury. A midfield of Sears, Kovac, Spector and Hines supplemented by Rigor was never going to compete. A defence with Faubert managing to look a better full-back than Bridge on his disastrous debut gave Rob Green ample opportunity to show off. And Carlton laboured unconvincingly yet again.
So we were lucky to get nil.
At the time we all thought it was bye-bye Avram. That included Avram. But it hasn't happened and now might be the time to reflect on the competence displayed by the ruling triumvirate of The Pornographers and Lord Sugar's Suck-up and their contribution to the slow-motion, technicolor and 3D disaster movie that is West Ham in recent times.
When Sold and Gullivan took over by acquiring 51% of the club, it was a subliminal confirmation of their cheapskate approach. If all the protestations of love, stability and European football were more than the regulation new owner bullshit, at least they would have bought the lot.
And while they have regularly castigated the previous owners for their profligate ways leaving the club desperately in debt (and they have good evidence with players like Kieron Dyer), they bought (not the manager) Big Benni from Blackburn's reserves, hired Mido (over-paid at the reputed one grand a week) and have now brought in Wayne Bridge reputedly on £90k a week wages. So much for Prudence.
In the summer their transfer policy was absurd. They bought a couple of young players - Reid and Barrera - for a goodly part of a very limited budget - and neither is good enough to start. They brought in loan signings who are not worth their place (Ben Haim), playing more than was expected of squad signings (Piquionne), or much less effective than they think they are (Obinna). The one proven player was available to us because of his injury record (Hitzlsperger) and lo, he has been injured all season. Kieron Dyer anyone?
So a squad that wasn't good enough last year has, arguably, been made worse by their acquisitions.
And then there was their choice of manager.
At least Avram Grant has experience of relegation struggles. To which he is adding. What he hasn't got is successful experience of relegation struggles. And nor will he have after this season. He has made some key players worse. For all the crowd's remorseless haranguing of Carlton Cole, he clearly has the power and talent to be a handful for every central defence. Under Zola he improved beyond all measure to become an England squad player. If his trajectory of improvement had been maintained he would have been some player now. But he has gone backwards and clearly lacks confidence - as well as service usually. That has to be down to the coaching and management. While I might long for West Ham to have the Fernando Torres of two seasons ago, I know that's not going to happen. But to turn possibly decent players into less than the Torres of this season is teeth-gnashingly incompetent.
But the playing side management incompetence is more than matched in the boardroom.
Zole was serially undermined by The Pornographers. Fair enough, he wasn't their appointment and last season he perfected his impression of the rabbit in the headlights. But when the co-Chairman denounces the performances in the programme, it hardly helps the cause. When the co-Chairman subsequently announces all the squad is for sale except Super Scott, I think the phrase 'lost the dressing room' is inadequate to describe what the players probably think of The Pornographers.
And to seek to avoid paying Zola's contract by presenting his justified comment 'Jesus Christ, what's going on?' as breach of contract (a ruse that didn't work), reinforced the ducking and diving, cheapskate image all over again. So his sacking was badly handled.
And the current events around Avram Grant have had the quite amazing oucome of making people feel sorry for him. We all know he's not adequate to the task. We have known it since the first month for all his ability to see improvements in performances and express optimism about future results. But the appalling lack of class with which the club has handled the 'will he be gone, won't he be gone' events of recent days has served to emphasise the dignity with which he has coped.
When the BBC and Sky Sports and every national newspaper confidently asserts that he is to be replaced by Martin O'Neill, it is clear they have the story from somewhere. Moreover, they will have had confirmation of the story. And they got it on the day of the Arsenal game, before the game. Great preparation.
The story is followed by silence from the club. No denials, no confirmation, no vote of confidence. Nada, zilch. And, incidentally, nothing from Martin O'Neill to deny it. Sam Allardyce, when questioned refused to discuss it because, he said, Avram Grant had not been relieved of his duties - much to his credit, I think.
And then, according to reports again, O'Neill backs out disenchanted with how the matter has been handled by West Ham. What did he expect from our owners?
Now I know they made most of their money in the pornography industry. And I guess it's a different business. Well, they've certainly got transferable skills. What really counts in the pornographic film industry - I'm told - is the money shot. But it's always preceded by fake hyperbole about size and importance and pleasure and price. While we've not seen the money shot, we've had 'save our season' games, 'biggest game of the past twenty years', reduced rates for numerous games and enticing offers of 'hospitality', as well as one mildly entertaining debut (by Obinna) being hailed as the birth of a West Ham legend.
What really counts in The Sport news (allegedly) paper, is the ability to present the most far-fetched ravings as reported truth and the number and size of the mammaries on display. So The Pornographers' comments each home game in the programme fit the kind of 'reporting' in the Sport and they are, well, an enormous pair of tits regularly on display.
The Vice-Chairman, Karren Brady, is supposedly running this on a day-to-day basis.
Inevitably, it's time for her to go, too - and take her Olympic Stadium dream with her.
If only we could hear Lord Sugar's punchline for the lot of them.
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