Reece lightning strike tames Shrews

West Ham 1 Shrewsbury Town 0 (FA Cup 3rd round replay, after extra time)

It’s into the Clyde Best Café to meet Lisa, where we admire the menus for the “Stradford coffee house”. We’re joined by old school pal Mark and his son Duncan. Mark has to get up at 5.45am the next morning and hopes it doesn’t have to go to extra time. As if…

After a long wait for searches, we get in a minute after kick-off to meet fellow diehard Fraser, who surprisingly will pay £10 to watch a Moyes side. Matt’s working, Michael’s watching Girl From The North Country for the fourth time and Nigel’s out watching Darkest Hour. We reassure him that West Ham will never surrender.

Not a lot happens in the first half, with the West Ham side looking unfamiliar with each other. Cullen and Martinez work hard but to little effect as Shrewsbury close down space. Ayew struggles and Arthur has one of his more erratic games, as we reflect that it’s lucky Matt’s not here to shout at hm. "Is this a library?" ask the sizeable contingent of Town fans. Lanzini’s free kick at least produces a save from Henderson. 

At half time, upon being told that Mark’s son has got him tickets to the game as a Christmas present, Fraser quips, “Doesn’t your son like you?” My other old school friend Mr House the architect is making his debut at the London Stadium. We expect people make jokes about his name all the time. “Funny, it’s never struck me before,” he says in Python-esque mode.

WEST HAM'S DARKEST HOUR?

The second half sees Shrewsbury almost take the lead after a loose ball from Oxford allows Payne to break through but Joe Hart saves the one-on-one. Moyes brings on Arnie and Noble with twenty minutes left and it raises the side. Arnie fires a couple of efforts just wide, but the Shrews almost win it at the death as Nsiala heads over the bar.

We await extra time and some Churchillian oratory from Moyesy and Stuart Pearce, as the bitter cold starts to bite in what might be our darkest hour of Cup football. Noble has a looping header cleared off the line. Then Arnie bursts into the box to feed Lanzini, who twists and turns past four defenders only to se his effort chested off the line by Bolton

BURKE IN THE BOX

It looks like it’s penalties, as we ponder warming up with the Shrewsbury subs. But in the 112th minute Martinez performs some skilful ball juggling in the six-yard box to play it back to Reece Burke, who fires a fine half-volley in off the bar. Massive relief all round and it’s good to see youngsters Burke, Cullen and Martinez running to the crowd and enjoying the moment.

We see the game out and find that Carpenters Road is closed due to, “a police  incident”. So we manage to enter a deserted Westfield and make our way to the Tap for a palatable pint of Red Pye.

So we’re through to face either Wigan or Bournemouth. Not a great match but notable for very respectable attendance of 39,867. The planned Cup Final breakfast round at Nigel’s gaff in Kew is back on.

PLAYER RATINGS: Hart 6; Byram 6 (Zabaleta 6), Burke 7, Ogbonna 6, Masuaku 5; Lanzini 6, Oxford 5 (Noble 7), Obiang 6, Cullen 6; Ayew 5, (Arnautovic 7), Martinez 6.