LONDON // West Ham gave its European ambitions a timely boost as a superb second-half display saw the Hammers beat struggling Hull 3-0 at Upton Park on Sunday.
Sam Allardyce’s side was booed off at halftime after a dismal opening period but Hull paid the price for some lackluster finishing as Andy Carroll, Morgan Amalfitano and Stewart Downing all found the net after the interval.
West Ham climbed above Liverpool into seventh while Hull manager Steve Bruce has now overseen just two wins in 15 league games.
The hosts were dreaming of the Champions League when it sat fourth in the middle of December but four league games without a win, including draws against West Brom and Swansea, had dampened expectations.
This victory puts the Hammers back in touch with the top four and was particularly important given their next seven fixtures include Liverpool, Manchester United, Southampton, Tottenham, Chelsea and Arsenal.
West Ham finally broke through in the 49th minute when Enner Valencia unleashed a stinging shot from 25 yards (meters). As Tigers goalkeeper Allan McGregor parried the ball, Carroll outmuscled Curtis Davies to prod home his fifth goal of the season.
In the 69th, Valencia slid in Amalfitano and the midfielder coolly dinked the ball over McGregror to double West Ham’s lead.
Three minutes Alex Song released Downing with a brilliant through ball and the winger held his nerve, tucking home his fifth goal of the campaign.
Hull remains in the relegation zone with 19 points from 22 games.
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Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
The five pillars of Islam
57 Seconds
Director: Rusty Cundieff
Stars: Josh Hutcherson, Morgan Freeman, Greg Germann, Lovie Simone
Rating: 2/5
The biog
Age: 59
From: Giza Governorate, Egypt
Family: A daughter, two sons and wife
Favourite tree: Ghaf
Runner up favourite tree: Frankincense
Favourite place on Sir Bani Yas Island: “I love all of Sir Bani Yas. Every spot of Sir Bani Yas, I love it.”
'C'mon C'mon'
Director:Mike Mills
Stars:Joaquin Phoenix, Gaby Hoffmann, Woody Norman
Rating: 4/5
The biog
Name: Timothy Husband
Nationality: New Zealand
Education: Degree in zoology at The University of Sydney
Favourite book: Lemurs of Madagascar by Russell A Mittermeier
Favourite music: Billy Joel
Weekends and holidays: Talking about animals or visiting his farm in Australia
if you go
The flights
Fly direct to Kutaisi with Flydubai from Dh925 return, including taxes. The flight takes 3.5 hours. From there, Svaneti is a four-hour drive. The driving time from Tbilisi is eight hours.
The trip
The cost of the Svaneti trip is US$2,000 (Dh7,345) for 10 days, including food, guiding, accommodation and transfers from and to Tbilisi or Kutaisi. This summer the TCT is also offering a 5-day hike in Armenia for $1,200 (Dh4,407) per person. For further information, visit www.transcaucasiantrail.org/en/hike/
Company Profile
Company name: Namara
Started: June 2022
Founder: Mohammed Alnamara
Based: Dubai
Sector: Microfinance
Current number of staff: 16
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Family offices
Set-jetting on the Emerald Isle
Other shows filmed in Ireland include: Vikings (County Wicklow), The Fall (Belfast), Line of Duty (Belfast), Penny Dreadful (Dublin), Ripper Street (Dublin), Krypton (Belfast)
