Toffees strike late to deny Hammers victory

WEST HAM were denied the chance to climb off the foot of the Premier League table by a late Marouane Fellaini goal as Everton rescued a draw at Goodison Park after the visitors had twice led.

Fellaini struck in stoppage time to cancel out Frederic Piquionne’s 84th minute header, which had given West Ham a 2-1 advantage.

Jonathan Spector had blasted the away side in front midway through the first half after he slammed home from a Luis Boa Morte pull-back.

That seemed to have been enough to take all three points, with Everton pressing in the second half but failing to create any clear-cut chances.

But Diniyar Bilyaletdinov levelled the scores 13 minutes from time with a superbly struck volley from the edge of the box, following Fellaini’s nodded knock down.

Piquionne then struck with a terrific header from Wayne Bridge’s pin-point cross that looped in under the crossbar.

However, just when it seemed that the Hammers had secured a precious three points in their battle against the drop, Fellaini was allowed to take a ball down on his chest, turn and crash a shot past the outstretched hand of Robert Green, who had earlier brilliantly turned a Louis Saha effort round the post.