Hammers in trouble, says Pardew

West Ham 1 DerBy Tom Collomosse

Grzegorz Rasiak's double strike handed the Rams a 2-1 victory their first win at Upton Park since 1976, which enabled them to move above the Hammers into eighth place on goal difference.

And Pardew whose position is now clearly under threat is looking ahead to next Saturday's FA Cup fourth-round match against Sheffield United with trepidation.

"I am not going to hide from the fact that we have got ourselves into a hole," said Pardew.

"We've lost three league games on the spin and the pressure on me and on the team is increasing, and it doesn't make it comfortable.

"I will look for character in my team to find who will be up for the challenge because it is going to be a tense atmosphere next Saturday. But that is of our own doing: we've made our bed, so we have to lie in it."

Pardew whose team lie ninth was furious that Derby goalkeeper Lee Camp was not sent off by referee Lee Mason shortly before half-time.

With the score at 1-1 thanks to Carl Fletcher's equaliser, Camp denied Marlon Harewood a clear goal-scoring chance by body-checking the West Ham striker just outside the penalty area but Mason showed only a yellow card.

Derby boss George Burley did not believe the decision was as clear-cut as his West Ham counterpart.

"Those decisions can go either way," he said. "Perhaps it could have been a red card but the referee made a very quick decision.

"Sometimes you get the breaks, sometimes you don't. We were denied a blatant penalty in our 2-0 defeat by Sunderland last weekend."

Burley is out of contract in the summer and has been linked with the West Ham job but he maintained his wish is to stay at Pride Park.

WEST HAM: Walker, Repka, Mackay, Fletcher, Powell, Rebrov (Sheringham 65), Mullins, Williams (Noble 7), Reo-Coker, Chadwick, Harewood.

DERBY: Camp, Kenna, Mills, Taylor, Bisgaard (Tudgay 73), Jackson, Bolder, Huddlestone, Rasiak (Junior 89), Smith (Reich 73), Idiakez.

Referee: L Mason (Lancashire).