Eyal Berkovic inspired West Ham to round off their season in style and give
themselves a chance of sneaking into Europe via the back door.
Fifth place in the Premiership will give them a chance of reaching the UEFA
Cup final via the Intertoto Cup.
They reached their goal despite a catalogue of injuries and the suspensions of
Steve Lomas, Shaka Hislop and Ian Wright.
And to do well on the continent they must strive to keep talismanic Israeli
Berkovic, who was at the heart of almost all their moves at Upton Park.
It was his perfectly weighted pass from a short corner that unleashed Frank
Lampard for the opener after just three minutes.
Twenty minutes later Berkovic inspired West Ham's second, splitting the
Middlesbrough offside trap with precision as Trevor Sinclair found Marc Keller
to extend the Hammer's lead.
In contrast, Boro failed to muster any real threat to the host's depleted
reserve. A solitary Dean Gordon effort was the best the visitors could muster
during an uninspired first half.
Bryan Robson's side seemed content with a top 10 finish, especially given the
fate of their fellow promoted sides from last season - Charlton and Nottingham
Forest.
With West Ham firmly in the ascendancy after the break, the game was played
with all the cutting edge and urgency of a pre-season testimonial. It was not
until the 70th minute that either keeper was troubled with a goal-bound strike.
With minds wandering to far-flung holiday destinations, mistakes were all too
evident. The Hammers have conceded 11 goals in their last two matches but rarely
was their defence threatened by a lightweight Boro attack.
Against this backdrop of indifference the stage was set for Berkovic to seal
the crucial points and cap a memorable personal performance.
It was his slide-rule pass that found Sinclair lurking ominously in the
penalty area whereupon the England B international delicately chipped Mark
Schwarzer.
Schwarzer was again at fault as West Ham grabbed their fourth goal in a
virtual copy of Sinclair's strike a moment earlier.
This time the bar deprived the former QPR striker but Paolo Di Canio was on
hand to end the season in style.
Teams:
West Ham: Forrest, Potts, Ruddock, Ferdinand, Minto, Berkovic,
Lampard, Foe, Keller, Di Canio, Sinclair (Cole 83).
Subs Not Used: Sealey, Coyne, Lazaridis, Mean.
Booked: Foe, Ruddock, Lampard.
Goals: Lampard 4, Keller 26, Sinclair 75, Di Canio 78.
Middlesbrough: Schwarzer, Cummins, Pallister, Vickers, Gordon,
O'Neill, Townsend, Summerbell, Mustoe, Ricard (Armstrong 46),
Deane (Campbell 73).
Subs Not Used: Beresford, Maddison, Baker.
Booked: Ricard, Vickers.
Att: 25,902
Ref: G Willard (Worthing).
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