West Ham United and Reading met on the final day of the Premier League season at Upton Park with the Hammers hoping to secure a top-half finish in the Premier League.
The Royals had little to play for other than pride to avoid finishing bottom of the top flight, having already been relegated to the Championship.
The teams played out a six-goal thriller as the Hammers came away victorious with a 4-2 win, thanks to a hat-trick from Kevin Nolan.
Sam Allardyce's side secured their place in the top 10 of the Premier League taking advantage of some poor defending by the visitors as the claimed the three points.
Sports Mole examines the game to see if the Hammers deserved their win on the final day.
Match statistics:
West Ham:
Shots 20
On target 10
Possession 49%
Corners 5
Fouls 12
Reading:
Shots 16
On target 6
Possession 51%
Corners 4
Fouls 10
Was the result fair?
West Ham dominated the first half after taking the lead through Nolan but after the break Reading responded with two goals of their own. However, their poor defending allowed Nolan to grab his hat-trick and secure the win for the Hammers who were always a threat. Reading were decent going forward but were always vulnerable at the back and if you can't defend in the Premier League, you will be punished.
West Ham's performance
Going forward the Hammers were very impressive especially Andy Carroll and Nolan. Their tactics of hitting the ball deep to the England international worked very well as the visitors couldn't cope with his physicality especially in the first half. They took the chances that were given to them and were clinical in front of goal. Defensively they weren't their best and were cut open a few times by Reading. A better team could have punished them more.
Reading's performance
At times Reading played some good football in the final third of the pitch and they were guilty of missing good chances in front of goal. Garath McCleary and Adam Le Fondre were excellent and thorns for the Hammers defence and they should perhaps have scored more than the two goals they got. Defensively it was an absolute shambles, as time and again they were caught out at the back and conceded some horrific goals due to individual mistakes and poor basic marking. The story of their season.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Kevin Nolan: The midfielder was clinical in front of goal and deserved his hat-trick. He was a menace to the Reading defenders and was always in and around the box, looking to latch onto knockdown's from Carroll. He showed predatory instincts to notch all three of his goals. His 10 goals this season have been vital in helping the Hammers to 10th in the table.
Biggest Gaffe
West Ham's first goal was nightmare for Reading keeper Alex McCarthy as he blasted his clearing kick straight off Carroll into the path of Nolan, who made no mistake in rounding him and slotting the ball into the net. Not one McCarthy will like to remember.
Referee performance
Mike Dean did a solid job. He was given a simple task this afternoon and appeared to make all the right decisions and there was no controversy.
What next?
West Ham: The Hammers will gear up for another season in the Premier League and will look to build on their top-10 finish this campaign. They must try and sign Carroll on a permanent basis as his partnership with Nolan has proved to be more than a handful. They could also do with bolstering their defence with a true left-back as Joey O'Brien is not a natural left-footed player. Apart from that, there aren't too many holes in the team that could prevent them from a similar finish next season.
Reading: Nigel Adkins will probably overhaul his side completely in the summer to bring in his own players for their Championship campaign next season. They have a decent base of players for the second tier to make a challenge for promotion next year and have a manager who knows how to get out of that division, so the omens look good for the Royals.
Simon Sinclair
