Sydney FC and West Ham United faced off in the second match of the Hammers pre-season tour of New Zealand.
Sam Allardyce's side lost their first game to the Wellington Phoenix and were looking to record their first victory of pre-season at the Westpac Stadium.
However, they fell to a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Sydney as Corey Gameiro scored a brace and Alex Brosque added another, while defender Nikola Petkovic put the ball through his own net to score the Hammers' only goal.
Read below to see how all the action unfolded.
Good morning and welcome to the live commentary of the pre-season clash between Sydney FC and West Ham United.
Sam Allardyce's side are continuing their preparations for the start of their Premier League campaign as their opener against Tottenham Hotspur is now just three weeks away. Allardyce will want to his side become more fluent and fitter than the start of their tour, so they could be in for a big test this morning.
The Hammers lost the opening match of their tour as they fell to a 2-1 defeat to the Wellington Phoenix despite a second-half goal from new signing Mauro Zarate. They are yet to win in their pre-season campaign and Allardyce will hope that his side get into a winning habit sooner rather than later.
One major blow to come out of the tour for the Hammers has been the injury picked up by £15m striker Andy Carroll. The 25-year-old struggled with injuries in his first full year with the club and now could be out for four months after suffering ligament damage in his ankle. Good thing the Hammers loaded up on strikers this summer with the arrivals of Enner Valencia and Zarate.
The team news has been announced and we'll start with the Hammers.
WEST HAM STARTING XI: Adrian, Demel, Reid, Collins, O'Brien, Noble, Diame, Nolan, Downing, Jarvis, Cole.
WEST HAM SUBSTITUTES: Jaaskelainen, Cresswell, Howes, Fanimo, Potts, Poyet, Whitehead, Vaz Te, Zarate.
SYDNEY STARTING XI: Janjetovic, Ryall, Jurman, Petkovic, Gameiro, Ibin-Isei, Ognenovski, Antonis, Dimitrijevic, Abbas, Brosque.
SYDNEY SUBSTITUTES: Necevski, Bojic, Trantis, Carle, Gligor, Timotheu, Naumoff, Muata-Marlow, Gersbach, Burges.
There are three changes for West Ham from their first game defeat to Wellington. Adrian, Stewart Downing and Joey O'Brien all come into the side at the expense of Jussi Jaaskelainen, Aaron Cresswell and Cheikhou Kouyate.
West Ham are gearing up for action in the Westcac Stadium ahead of kickoff.
NEW ZEALAND: The lads are out warming up on the pitch here at Westpac Stadium #WHUNZ pic.twitter.com/jFdd8sgfDa
— West Ham United FC (@whufc_official) July 26, 2014
Allardyce appears to have gone with his most experienced side, but pending further arrivals, this team could be very similar to the one that takes the field on the opening day against Spurs.
The players are making their way out onto the pitch and we should be underway shortly.
Decent following for West Ham in Sydney as the enter the pitch as 'Forever Blowing Bubbles' reverberates around the stadium.
NEW ZEALAND: The Claret and Blue Army are here in Wellington #whunz pic.twitter.com/C6WUHq0owQ
— West Ham United FC (@whufc_official) July 26, 2014
We're underway at the Westpac Stadium.
Jarvis raids past Ryall down the left and the right back drags him down by the shoulder as he enters the box. It looks a definite penalty, but the referee points for a free kick right on the edge of the box.
CHANCE! Jarvis plays the free kick short to Noble who tries to fire the ball through a crowd of players, but his effort is blocked after a minor scramble in the six-yard box. The ball comes back to Nolan who lets fly but Sydney get enough men back to clear the danger.
GOAL! Sydney 1-0 West Ham (Gameiro)
Sydney take the lead as they hit the Hammers on a counterattack as Abbas releases the run of Gameiro down the left flank. No player in claret and blue decides to close down the forward and he manages to get into the box and fire a low effort through Adrian. Not the start Allardyce would have wanted.
West Ham look a bit shell shocked after conceding that goal, not the best offside trapped used by O'Brien as he played Gamiero on. The Hammers have dominated possession but are only knocking the ball around at the back and this is not the type of football their travelling supporters will want to see.
Antonis loses the ball in midfield for Sydney and Nolan is able to pounce to set free Cole down the right. The move can't advance quickly enough as no Hammers player attacks the middle of the box and the attack eventually peters out.
Not a fluid start by West Ham at all and that's proven as Diame passes the ball out of play with O'Brien right next to him. A few jeers ring around the stadium after that pass from the midfielder.
SUBSTITUTION: A bad start gets worse for West Ham as Demel pulls his hamstring and is forced off. Cresswell comes onto replace him and goes to left-back, with O'Brien switching to the right.
Sydney work the ball well across the field and Dimitrijevic whips in a dangerous cross in from the right looking for the run of Ibin-Isei, but Collins gets his foot on the ball. Unfortunately for the defender he slips and nearly loses possession inside the six-yard box, but he manages to regain his composure in time to clear.
Sydney are almost in again as Ryall outwits both Jarvis and Cresswell down the right to get to the byline. The defender squares the ball back to Ibin-Isei who tries to shoot, but O'Brien gets across well to make the challenge. West Ham are all over the place at the back.
Jarvis manages to break away upfield to ease the pressure on his defence and wins a free kick from Dimitrijevic. Noble stands over the ball and lifts the ball into the box from 30 yards out, but the kick sails into the hands of Janjetovic. That set-piece has summed up the Hammers' opening 20 minutes.
Half chance for West Ham as O'Brien raids downfield and digs out a cross which Janjetovic tries to punch away but fails to make good contact on the ball. The ball spins around the box and Nolan tries to get an effort away, but Sydney have enough men back to hack it clear.
CHANCE! Diame wins the ball from Dimitrijevic and has a clear path to goal. The midfielder gets inside the box, but he scuffs his effort straight into the hands of Janjetovic. A poor shot from Diame and West Ham just don't look at the races today.
GOAL! Sydney 2-0 West Ham (Brosque)
Matters get worse for the Hammers as they fall two goals behind, but take nothing away from Sydney as they have been clinical as Brosque fired a left-footed volley into the bottom corner. Ibin-Isei broke upfield and found the forward with a lofted pass to the left, Brosque took a touch and rifled his effort past Adrian. A great finish.
Downing tries to get his side back into the game immediately as he speeds down the right and cuts back onto his left foot. He drives an powerful shot at goal, but his effort is straight into the hands of Janjetovic, who makes the comfortable stop.
Better from West Ham as they up the tempo in the final third of the pitch and Downing again shows his quality as he jinks into the box and cuts the ball back for Cole. However, Petkovic is there with a big boot to clear the ball downfield.
Ryall shows quality moving forward again as he exchanges a one-two with Ibin-Isei and Jarvis has to be alert to cut out the danger with a covering tackle. From the resulting corner, the ball pinballs around the box for a second before the Premier League side clear the danger.
YELLOW CARD: Abbas goes into the book as he hauls down Jarvis down the left, just outside the box.
Noble lifts the free kick into the box and again Janjetovic can't gather the ball, and Nolan feeds it back to Downing on the edge of the box and his effort strikes Ryall and is cleared. The Hammers appealed for a penalty but the referee quickly said no spot kick.
CHANCE! Diame feeds the run of Cresswell down the left and he plays a neat one-two with Cole to get inside the box. The ball is set up for volleyed effort and the left-back strikes the ball with venom, bit his shot goes just wide of the post.
West Ham are showing better intent in the final third but still haven't tested Janjetovic. They also look very vulnerable on the break and if Sydney can produce another bit of quality in the Hammers half it could be game over.
CHANCE! A loose ball falls into Downing on the edge of the area and he lets fly with a first-time shot, but he can't get any power behind his effort and Janjetovic saves with ease.
Sydney's turn to want a penalty as Ibin-Isei knocks a cross into the box for Gameiro to attack and O'Brien does his best to stop the forward making contact with the ball and he goes down in a heap. The referee correctly decides not to award a spot kick.
There will be one minute of added time.
HALF-TIME: Sydney 2-0 West Ham
Half time at the Westpac Stadium and the Hammers trail by two goals to Sydney, who were clinical in the first 30 minutes of the game to put Allardyce's side to the sword. Gameiro and Brosque both scored excellent goals from almost identical places on the pitch as West Ham's defending was far from its best.
Stewart Downing was West Ham's best player going forward and he carved out several opportunities for himself but he just couldn't find the net. Aaron Cresswell had his side's best chance of the half, but he failed to hit the target from inside the box. It has been one of those games for Allardyce's men so far and he will want to see an improvement after the break.
The players are making their way back out onto the pitch and we should be underway again shortly.
SUBSTITUTION: Cole is replaced by Zarate at half time for the Hammers.
We're underway in the second half.
A decent move to start the half is brought to an end for West Ham as Nolan is caught offside, after Downing and O'Brien had linked up well down the right.
GOAL! Sydney 2-1 West Ham (Petkovic OG)
West Ham are back in the game and they get a bit of luck as Jarvis's attempted cross is turned into his own net by Petkovic. Jarvis cut in from the left and drilled the ball off the defender, and the ball looped up off his hand and over Janjetovic into the net.
SUBSTITUTIONS: Bojic and Carle replaces Brosque and Ryall for Sydney.
CHANCE! West Ham clear their lines from a free kick into their box but only as far as Abbas 30 yards from goal and his volleyed effort takes a deflection and goes just over Adrian's bar.
SUBSTITUTION: Triantis replaces Dimitrijevic for Sydney.
Diame finds Zarate on the edge of the area and he twists and turns to try to fire an effort at goal. He manages to find enough space for a shot, but his effort goes well over the bar.
SUBSTITUTION: Jarvis comes off for the Hammers and is replaced by Vaz Te.
A huge opening for Sydney as Carle releases the run of Gameiro inside the box with a lovely reverse pass. The forward bears down on goal, but he takes too long to decide what to do and scuffs the ball into the site netting.
Abbas has success for Sydney down the left and he manages to square the ball to the edge of the box for Antonis. The midfielder shoots first time and he can only blaze his effort well over the bar. A wasted chance as he had support around him.
OFF THE BAR! Sydney come within inches of extending their lead as Triantis lets fly with a 25-yard attempt and his effort looks to have caught Adrian unawares and his shot strikes the crossbar and goes over.
GOAL! Sydney 3-1 West Ham (Gameiro)
Controversy in the Westpac Stadium as Bojic blatantly handballs into the path of Ibin-Isei, but the referee continues to wave play on. The West Ham players stop and Ibin-Isei releases Gameiro through on goal and the forward rounds Adrian to slot the ball into the net. West Ham are far from happy with the referee and they have full right to be, that was blatant.
SUBSTITUTIONS: Naumoff and Gligor replace Abbas and Antonis for Sydney.
SUBSTITUTIONS: West Ham changes now as Poyet and Whitehead come on for Diame and Noble.
CHANCE! Gameiro has the chance to make it four as he gets in behind the West Ham defence, latching onto a pass from Ibin-Isei. The forward is on his own and has to shoot from a tight angle, but he forces Adrian into a save which the keeper can only parry, but he manages to gather at the second attempt.
SUBSTITUTION: Potts replaces O'Brien for the Hammers.
CHANCE! Vaz Te collects a cross from Downing at the back post and he manages to turn Bojic inside and out, and advances on goal but he can only fire his effort into the side netting.
The tempo of the game has dropped slightly in the last few minutes. The changes from both sides have disrupted the flow of the game and that will suit Sydney just fine, to allow them to try to hold out for a good win over Premier League opposition.
Downing and Potts link up well down the right and the young full-back lifts a dangerous cross to the back post looking for Vaz Te. However, Bojic does extremely well to beat the winger in the air and clear the danger under immense pressure.
Ibin-Isei and Gameiro nearly combine yet again as the Ibin-Isei tries to slide the forward beyond the West Ham backline. This time the offside flag goes up to deny the forward a chance at scoring his hat-trick, but he certainly has been the best player on the park this morning.
SUBSTITUTIONS: Fanimo and Howes replaces Downing and Adrian for the Hammers, while Jurman makes way for Gersbach along with Ibin-Isei for Burgess.
The tempo is more or less at a stand-still and Sydney seem just content to knock the ball around at the back to see out the victory. Allardyce looks very displeased in the dugout as his side look to be heading for their second defeat of the tour.
West Ham's poor afternoon is probably summed up by Vaz Te as he collected the ball on the right and just put his foot through the ball for a cross, which lands nowhere near a teammate and allows Sydney to kill more time.
There will be five minutes of added time.
West Ham win a free kick 25 yards from goal which Vaz Te decides to take. The winger's goes for goal and his effort deflects off the wall and goes wide of the target. The resulting comes to nothing and that should allow Sydney to see out the win.
FULL-TIME: Sydney FC 3-1 West Ham United
West Ham fall to the second defeat of their tour of New Zealand and that means they are yet to register a win during their pre-season campaign so far. Alarm bells could be ringing for Sam Allardyce and he will be far from impressed with what he saw this morning.
Thanks for joining our commentary this morning. Stick with Sports Mole for our coverage of Newcastle United's clash with Wellington Phoenix coming up next.
