In the end this was a result neither to entirely satisfy nor to unduly irritate either side. West Brom brought their losing streak to an end – a relief after a trio of Premier League defeats – but could not get back to winning ways thanks to a determined and occasionally dogged display from West Ham.
While the Baggies could take some solace in stopping the rot, the Hammers had to settle simply for stopping their opponents. Albion dominated, particularly in the second half, yet struggled to find a way through a West Ham rearguard expertly marshalled by the outstanding James Collins. The home side managed to hit the woodwork twice but there was precious little incision.
"I can't really say I'm disappointed – I thought a draw was probably the right result," said the Albion manager, Steve Clarke. "It was important to defend well, to aim for the clean sheet, which we got. We've not had one for while, so that's a positive aspect.
"It does stop the run of defeats, which is another positive aspect and it's another point towards the total that we're trying to achieve."
West Brom remain sixth for 24 hours at least – Arsenal can leapfrog them with a win on Monday evening at Reading – and if there is a concern for Clarke it is that his side have now gone more than five hours without scoring in the league. On two occasions they went very close to ending that drought, first when Winston Reid's miscued header plonked on to the crossbar just after the restart, then 15 minutes from full-time when James Morrison, who thoroughly improved Albion's play when moved further forward from his initial deep-lying midfield role, powered his own header on to the woodwork from Chris Brunt's corner.
In between those close shaves West Ham created a couple of openings of their own. Gary O'Neil was inches away from curling home a beautiful effort from 20 yards after the mother of all scraps on the edge of the box, and Matt Taylor, who switched flanks with Matt Jarvis in the second half to ease congestion in the middle of the pitch, dragged wide his effort.
All those chances came in the second half that was frenetic rather than fantastic yet had the good fortune of following an opening period that defined drabness.
West Ham were so stretched by injuries that Sam Allardyce named only six substitutes, three of them youngsters who have never made a Premier League appearance, so at least they had an excuse for putting safety first.
"We've earned our point today," said Allardyce. "When you've got that many injuries you're very worried as a manager because you wonder whether your team is going to be capable of holding out. But our defensive qualities today were exceptionally good."
When the seven first-teamers currently absent from Allardyce's squad - Andy Carroll, Alou Diarra, George McCartney, Ricardo Vaz Tê, Jack Collison, Yossi Benayoun and Mohamed Diamé – return then the Hammers will be able to set their sights a little higher. The West Ham manager also hinted that he will look to strengthen the side in January.
"If there's anyone there who we think can enhance the team then we'd like to go for them," he said. "It depends on who's available when the window opens and who we can actually get. But the main priority for us is getting the injured players back."
Albion had no such mitigating circumstances, but they did have the better of proceedings throughout. In the first half Shane Long, Peter Odemwingie and Chris Brunt either shot straight at Jussi Jaaskelainen or dragged efforts wide, but they were no more than half-chances at best. In the second, Zoltan Gera also tested Jaaskelainen with an effort from distance.
West Ham's opportunities were few and far between, with the off-balance Reid poking over from close range after Collins had nodded down a corner in the first half and Joey O'Brien turning Mark Noble's back-post free-kick narrowly over Boaz Myhill's bar in the second. "I'm really relieved," said Allardyce. It was an emotion shared by many around the Hawthorns at the final whistle.
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Guardian