Ashton on target in home debut

West Ham 2 Sunderland 0

Dean Ashton started to pay back his hefty £7m transfer fee with a goal on his home debut to help sink 10-man Sunderland at Upton Park.

The England Under-21 international – signed in a club-record deal from Norwich last month – was on hand to sweep the ball home at the far post with just nine minutes to go to finally break the Wearsiders’ resistance.

There was still time for Paul Konchesky to make it 2-0 with a low strike from the edge of the box, which crept under Kelvin Davis as the Hammers made it six straight wins on Alan Pardew’s 100th match in charge.

The Black Cats had secured the Championship title here last April but were always up against it this afternoon following the early dismissal of full-back Stephen Wright for two bookings.

After a 18th Barclays Premiership defeat, Mick McCarthy’s men remain rock bottom, with little hope of hauling themselves out of trouble to avoid a swift return to the Football League next season.

Wright – on his first appearance since the opening day of the season following a spate of injury problems – was first cautioned after just six minutes for bundling over Nigel Reo-Coker as the Hammers captain looked to sprint away down the left.

Sunderland’s tall striker Kevin Kyle got clear down the opposite flank but his low shot from the edge of the area lacked any power with which to test Shaka Hislop.

After 18 minutes Sunderland forced a corner on the right and it needed a good defensive header from Ashton to clear at the far post before Wright’s afternoon was cut short five minutes later.

The former Liverpool defender made another rash challenge on Matthew Etherington, and given the earlier caution, referee Rob Styles had little option but to show the right-back a second yellow card.

With his team now facing an uphill battle, McCarthy made a tactical change, replacing Anthony Le Tallec with Nyron Nosworthy.

West Ham stepped up their pressure with the extra man, and peppered the Sunderland penalty area from both flanks.

But to their credit, the Wearsiders continued to battle away, trying to deny the home side any space with which to pick out a telling pass.

After 31 minutes Julio Arca tried his luck from the halfway line but although Hislop was well out of goal and would have struggled to have made it bac, the ball flew off target.

Despite their numerical advantage, West Ham were struggling to make headway in the final third, as Sunderland got plenty of men behind the ball.

The visitors soaked up plenty more pressure around the edge of their own penalty area, but went into the break on level terms.

Veteran striker Teddy Sheringham was sent on for Bobby Zamora at the start of the second half but the change did not make an instant impact as the tempo showed little signs of improving.

After 52 minutes on-loan Argentina full-back Lionel Scaloni tripped Arca and was booked on his first appearance in English football following his transfer deadline day switch from Deportivo La Coruna.

In a rare moment of action at the other end Nosworthy was released down the right and his pass back to the penalty spot was met by the advancing Kyle but his first-time effort flew high into the stands.

It needed a fine save from Davis to keep the scores level after 65 minutes when Reo-Coker’s cross from the right picked out Ashton on the edge of the six-yard box.

He powered a header goalwards which the Sunderland keeper acrobatically tipped over one-handed at full stretch.

Marlon Harewood was sent on for Hayden Mullins in the 73rd minute and the Hammers substitute soon had an effort ruled out for offside after Davis had saved from Ashton.

But Sunderland’s brave resistance was finally broken with just nine minutes left when Harewood got clear down the right and his low cross was parried by Davis straight into the path of Ashton who swept the ball home at the far post.

The former Norwich man should have had a second moments later but stabbed Paul Konchesky’s near-post effort wide from six yards.

But the Hammers did make it 2-0 when left-back Konchesky, with three minutes left, sent a 25-yard effort goalwards, which squirmed under the Sunderland keeper.