David Moyes
You left it late did you get a bit lucky today?
Yeah. But all credit to Kidderminster they played really well. We gave them a wee bit of a good chance to get a goal in front which meant it made things really difficult we were chasing and made it a bit more awkward than we would have liked but you know, they deserve all the credit. They played very well Kidderminster and made it really tough. And, you know, we were fortunate to get through it they were unfortunate not to at least take it to penalty kicks.
What were you thinking at the end of the 90 when it was ticking away?
I thought that we were not going to get through it. I thought it was a day where everything we tried had not come off and we hadn’t tried so well with many things but what we had done just hadn’t come off. But as the game had been going on, you know, we were able to get into, create more chances and opportunities and it was whether we were going to connect with one or get one in but thankfully we did.
Did you get lucky with the flag at the end? Was it offside?
No I don’t think so. I think Tomas Soucek jumps out the way and make sure that he’s not impeding anything. So no we did not get lucky on that. Overall, do you think you might look back in May if you get to the final and think about this game? Well, two hours ago I was not even thinking about a final for sure. We’ve got a long way to go. We’ve got a long way to go before we think we’re going to get to a final. So we’ve got a lot of work to do, and we’re gonna have to improve greatly.
You talked about Declan Rice’s value in the week he showed that today.
He made a difference which he has been doing for West Ham it was there for everybody to see. We needed him and at the time in the game, it looked like nobody else could probably get the goal and it took a special player to come up with a goal.
Where does this draw rank now you have got through it?
Very highly because I think Kidderminster deserve huge credit for how they have played. They have not conceded many goals in the league games and have been doing well in the week with a bit of momentum and I think you saw them play a bit like today. But you can see the conditions are not brilliant, but that’s where the FA Cup when you come to these places. I think if the game had been at the London Stadium it would have been completely different but that’s part of the cup. It’s part of why you know there’s so much media interest on these sort of games because they can throw up shocks and for long periods today it looked like a shock.
What did you put that down to? The first half especially obviously you made changes at the break.
I put it down to Kidderminster they did well. They looked as if they were more used to it. We didn’t get to really play as well but all my praise if for Kidderminster rather than us.
Is Kurt alright?
I think he’s okay. I was a bit worried. Obviously, the plan was not to play him as long but we made changes to try and get ourselves in the cup and stay in the cup so unfortunately, I was not able to bring him off earlier.
What was said at half-time?
To tell not boys to turn up and be a bit more competitive and show that they can play at this level. Kidderminster showed that they can play against the Premier League players so we had to show that we can play against conference players and I didn’t think we’d done that.
Did you question the player’s attitude?
Not at all. You’ve not been even watching West Ham if you question the attitude. The players are great players and great attitudes and just today Kidderminster made it really difficult for us, a bit to do but conditions added to it. We gave them a lift up by gifting them a goal very early on, which gave them something to hang on to and we had to chase it a little bit after that. We didn’t chase it particularly well. As I said before all credit to Kidderminster.
Declan is now having more big moments
Yes, he is maturing as a player and having a bigger influence and impact. That’s why I said he’s special edition and we see him in that light.
Is Michail Antonio back on Tuesday?
We left London yesterday at two o’clock and Mic had not arrived back yet so that was why we did not have him today so that is not good. It’s not good the situation it would have given me a chance to choose but we did not have Mic back. I have not even seen him since he got back.
