Curbs ready to shoulder criticism

ALAN CURBISHLEY believes the 15 years of praise he had as Charlton manager will sustain him through all the criticism he is enduring at West Ham.

Curbishley does not expect the good times to suddenly start rolling again just because his side contrived a highly flattering 4-1 win over Blackburn at Upton Park on Saturday to register their best start to a season for nine years.

Had they lost, especially to Paul Ince’s rugged Rovers, there can be little doubt that Curbishley would now be a giant step nearer losing his job – no matter how strange that sounds.