Town and West Ham played out an entertaining 0-0 draw in Portman Road’s only friendly of the summer. Jack Marriott and Cameron Stewart went closest to breaking the deadlock for the Blues in the first half, while former Blue Aaron Cresswell hit the bar on his return to his old club.

Dean Gerken started in goal for the Blues with Elliott Hewitt at right-back and Tyrone Mings on the left. Second-year scholar Matt Clarke, 17, was at the heart of the defence alongside Christophe Berra.

New signings Stewart and Alex Henshall took the right and left wide roles respectively with Cole Skuse and first-year pro Teddy Bishop at the centre. Up front, Frank Nouble, facing his old club, partnered Marriott up front.

Cresswell made a quick return to Portman Road having joined the Hammers from the Blues earlier in the month, while former Town loanee Mark Noble also started for the visitors.

The Hammers created the game’s first opening in the fifth minute, left winger Matt Jarvis was found in acres of space and sent in a cross which Cheikhou Kouyate nodded over at the far post.

West Ham continued to threaten and in the seventh minute Cresswell’s long ball found Carlton Cole, who teed-up Jarvis on the edge of the box but the midfielder, who played for Mick McCarthy at Wolves, blazed over.

Town’s first chance came in the 10th minute, Marriott picking up a loose ball midway inside the Hammers half but scuffing his 20-yard effort wide.

But the visitors were still having the best of it and in the 12th minute Stewart Downing hit a left-foot shot from 25 yards just over Gerken’s crossbar.

Two minutes later, returning former Blue Cresswell came close to a goal when a cross from the edge of the area took a deflection, left Gerken flat-footed but struck the top of the bar.

The Blues broke immediately, Nouble sending Henshall away down the left. The summer signing from Manchester City crossed towards Marriott, but the ball was nodded away ahead of the frontman.

Town should have gone in front in the 20th minute when Mings cut the ball back from the left to an unmarked Stewart, who hit his shot straight at Nouble.

Stewart might have done better two minutes later when found by Marriott as he broke into the area but his first touch was too heavy.

Improving Town were inches from going in front in the 26th minute when Marriott burst past James Collins and into the area on the right. The 19-year-old hit a low cross-shot just beyond the post and ahead of the diving Nouble.

Three minutes later, only a last-ditch Hewitt challenge diverted Mo Diame’s shot after Noble had found him with a cross from the left.

West Ham were by now again looking the more threatening side and on 34 Mings did well to get in ahead of Cole after Cresswell had sent in a teasing ball from the left, then following the resultant corner Noble curled an effort narrowly wide.

Two minutes before the break Jarvis was again found in space on the West Ham left but scraped a weak shot straight at Gerken. Just before the whistle, Diame hit a 20-yard strike which deflected wide.

The only surprise at half-time was that neither side had managed to break the deadlock given the number of chances at both ends.

Marriott, a threat throughout, will feel he should have done better with his chance as will Stewart.

Unsurprisingly, Premier League West Ham had most of the better chances but without Gerken having been forced into a serious save.

As at Shelbourne on Saturday, Mick McCarthy fielded an entirely different XI in the second half with new signing Bartosz Bialkowski in goal, Jonny Parr at right-back, Ben Wyatt on the left and Tommy Smith and Luke Chambers at the centre of the defence.

In central midfield Freddie Veseli partnered Luke Hyam with Jay Tabb on the left and Paul Anderson on the right. Paul Taylor and Daryl Murphy were up front. West Ham also switched their entire XI.

Veseli, who spent last week on trial at FC Luzern, struck the second half’s first serious effort but his edge-of-the-area strike looped over Adrian’s cross-bar.

Town had started the second period on top but just before the hour mark Seb Lletget struck a shot from the edge of the Blues box, Bialkowski saving comfortably to his left.

An unmarked Chambers headed Anderson’s 62nd minute corner over the bar, the centre-half clearly feeling he ought to have done better. A minute later, Parr crossed from the right and Murphy flicked a header to Adrian.

For the Hammers, Lletget flicked a 67th minute header wide from Joey O’Brien’s right-wing cross.

Two minutes later, Murphy picked up a loose ball midway inside the West Ham half before playing it wide to Taylor. The former Peterborough man chipped a cross towards Veseli at the far post but Josh Cullen got in ahead of him to nod behind.

Bialkowski did well to keep the scores level in the 72nd minute, making a superb reaction save from Lletget after the visitors had worked an opening inside the box. Moments later, the Polish keeper was caught somewhat late by Kevin Nolan.

As the game moved into its final 10 minutes Ricardo Vaz Te grazed the top of the net with a freekick from distance, then moments later, the former Bolton man somehow mis-hit the ball wide from eight yards under pressure from Wyatt, having been found by sub Paul McCallum’s cut-back from the left.

Despite the lack of goals, it had been an entertaining game with the draw probably the right result. Both sides had chances in either half with Marriott and Stewart having the Blues’ best before the break.

In the second half, Town had more of the ball and created most of the early chances but new signing Bialkowski was the busier of the two keepers and will have impressed his new fans with his display.

Town first half: Gerken, Hewitt, Berra, Clarke, Mings, Stewart, Skuse, Bishop, Henshall, Marriott, Nouble.

Town Second half: Bialkowski, Parr, Chambers, Smith, Wyatt, Anderson, Hyam, Veseli, Tabb, Murphy, Taylor. Subs: McQueen, Lawrence, Crowe.

West Ham first half: Jaaskelainen, Demel, Collins, Tomkins, Cresswell, Kouyate, Noble, Diame, Jarvis, Cole, Downing.

West Ham second half: Adrian, O’Brien, Reid, Chambers, Page, Cullen, Poyet, Vaz Te, Nolan, Lleget, Zarete (McCallum 78). Referee: Darren Deadman. Att: 8,976 (West Ham 1,920).

Photo: Ian Summers

Photo: Action Images

runaround added 21:47 - Jul 16 Sounded like a good run out & nice to see some of the youngsters do well
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LeonB22 added 21:50 - Jul 16 Good work out. Great to keep a clean sheat. Marriott looking like he could be the ideal partner for Murphy whilst Dids is out. The more the kid works & plays the sharper he'll get and be.
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StuartBrett8 added 21:58 - Jul 16 Sounds like all 22 did well, and we have a decent squad even without new additions... but hoping for a few more quality signings :)
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bluelady added 22:14 - Jul 16 Verseli looked pretty good in the centre, needs games but def showed promise. Sadly Taylor was lacking today but tbf didn't have much service. The young centre back first half and left back second half did not look out of place at all, the shappings of a decent squad
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TractorBoy666 added 22:29 - Jul 16 I was quite impressed with Wyatt at RB today, thought he did great! Marriott looked good up front and Stewart has got a good touch on him. All in all I thought we did well tonight, but you can see we need McGoldrick back as we didn't get many shots on target. Also Bart did great in goal, the save with one hand was a very good save and his kicking was also very good.

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bluelady added 22:39 - Jul 16 Wyatt played left back?
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StochesStotasBlewe added 22:48 - Jul 16 Thought the young uns did well tonight. Henshall put in some decent crosses. All in all a good work out & a fairly entertaining game.
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TractorBoy666 added 22:51 - Jul 16 bluelady - did he? Apologies, I'm guessing that was Parr I was watching then!
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Jimmy86 added 22:52 - Jul 16 Went to the game and for me Nouble was poor and hasn't kicked on since last season, he didnt win much in the air and besides running around a lot he did very little. Going to be a massive season for him and we really need better if we are going to make that top 6. Bishop looked tidy and tried to make things happen, stewart and henshall were always a threat and I was impressed with wyatt, the scums loss is our gain. Veseli looked pretty good in midfield and passed the ball quite well. The bart man also had a good half and was confident in claiming crosses. Hope taylor continues to knuckle down as there is def a player there for sure

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GerkensBeard added 22:56 - Jul 16 Really impressed by tonight's showing, first half thought young Teddy Bishop was brilliant first half, loved putting a tackle in and looked to start moves, shows a lot of promise!!! Henshall hid away, Nouble was Nouble and I thought Clarke and Hewitt are a way off. Really impressed with Stewart so much pace and promise every time he gets the ball, an excellent signing and thought Marriott done well. Second half was impressed with Bart, back four was more solid second half to no surprise and would've like to of seen Parr left back but wyatt did well. Was very impressed with Veseli in the centre, didn't realise it was even him and with more games he looks like he could make it in that role, natural footballer!! Taylor and murph however did not get much service with the less flair players in Anderson and Tabb on the wings rather than Stewart and he shall first half. And Jesus obviously I know how good Cressy is when he was here but he even stood out tonight for West Ham, just looked sheer quality, other than that West Ham were pretty poor. Really can't wait for the Fulham game now!!

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bluelady added 23:13 - Jul 16 Tractorboy through us too with him playing right back. Thought he looked good as did Wyatt at left back
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Jimmy86 added 23:22 - Jul 16 Gerkens beard, I personally think henshall did pretty well down the left side, had pace to beat his man and put in some good crosses, thought clarke looked shaky, even next to berra and although hewitt is good going forward he was beaten too easily
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chrisw2045 added 23:32 - Jul 16 My opinion on tonight: Gerken - Assured Hewitt - Did ok Berra - Very Solid Clarke - Gave ball away a few time but big solid lad Mings - Good game Stewart - Little bit quiet, surely more to come Skuse - did not do too much Bishop - Going to be a top player, so assured and confident on the ball, exciting future Henshall - Very pacey but in and out of game Marriott - Bright and ran past Collins as if he wasn't there but finishing lacking tonight Nouble - Lively but no end result Bialkowski - Great save and good kicking Parr - Looks a great signing playing at right back Chambers - Solid Smith - Solid Wyatt - Surprisingly did good Anderson - worked hard as usual Hyam - typical physical performance Veseli - looked decent in the middle Tabb - can't see him featuring much this season Murphy - stong Taylor - lively and skilful and seems to be working harder for the team

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GerkensBeard added 23:48 - Jul 16 Yeah I should of added that he put a couple of good balls in, he was up against a pretty good right back in demel tho, yeah you can tell Hewitt is still inexperienced as his positioning was poor at times and was beat very easily, but yet again that side first half played basically against their best XI. So they all done well in reality
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battyblue added 05:35 - Jul 17 I don't want to get on Franks back before a ball is kick in Ernest but i don't think he has moved on from last seasons poor showing and i just hope if he cant make that step up Mick will send him out on loan and not persist with him weak after week like last season,on a brighter note i thought Jack Marriott looked unfazed and am sure given the chances Frank has had will score goals at this level, also impressed with most of the newcomers i hope they will be let off their leashes this season and i believe portman road will be a happier and fuller place good luck to Mick and all the squad for the coming season.

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blockb_steward added 09:30 - Jul 17 Actually really enjoyed this, I went to see how the newbies bedded in. Town played particularly well in the first half and showed some nice attacking flair particularly on the left hand side with Henshall and Jack Marriott running straight at the opposition defence. On this showing, Town have a bit of strength in depth which is nice to know. It was a shame things changed around at half-time but most of the squad got a run out which was the whole point of the exercise I guess. Great save from our new keeper 2nd half...he's going to be quite a character by the looks of him.

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hadleighboyblue added 12:15 - Jul 17 Don't normally like friendlies , but this was good . Thought the youngsters did well , stand outs for me were the new keeper and Veseli - PLEASE MM give him a chance in midfield , he looked good and think he could be part of a good partner with Hyam .
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jas0999 added 12:17 - Jul 17 Another good work out, but still think we are a striker and a Jonny Williams type player away from being serious challengers this season. Defence looks good.
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BigHibbs added 13:16 - Jul 17 Sadly I thought the best player In the town team in either half were the players who I know will never play in the first team :( hewitt in the first half who it's obvious Mccarthy doesn't like and vesseli who I thought complemented hyam and looks a good partnership :(
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BlueandTruesince82 added 14:01 - Jul 17 Whether we need a striker depends on how you view Marriot, We Have MCG (Injured but looks like he shouldn't miss to much of the season). Murph, Taylor, Nouble and Marriot. Now I will admit Nouble still needs much improvement but in theory he is like for like with Murp, holding the ball up and bringing players around him into the game. Taylor is like for like for MCG Which leaves Marriot (who I have never seen play) who sounds to me like a poacher who can beat the offside trap as something different. I agree a creative MF in the middle to play with Hyam/Skuse is maybe needed but if WW can step up to the plate and offer what we sore glimpses of last season more consistently than that might not be such an issue. The defence looks for the most part solid, good comp, Hewitt and Wyatt looking like they are up and coming, Mings and Chambo offering CB cover and LB and RB respectively plus my 1st choice pairing of colossus's Berra and Smith and 2 decent (remains to be seen if better than that) and on the whole reliable looking keepers. To me the wings look good, Henshall and Stewart add pace and hopefully trickery and Anderson and Hunt offer more industry for physical games or a change if we need to snuff out a game. Skuse or Hyam in the middle competing for 1 spot which just leaves the creative spark in the middle, maybe WW can step up, maybe Verseli can prove MM wrong but to me that's the main priority now, a new jonnyesta or better, actual johnnyesta. I understand those who would see FN replaced with A.N Other striker but to me hes 5th choice anyway, this eason makes or breaks his town career

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jas0999 added 17:20 - Jul 17 Blueandtruesince82 - I take your point about the striker situation, but with SEB leaving we are a man down. Okay, he wasn't great, but an option nonetheless. I'm not convinced Taylor is a striker. He was utilised out wide by Jewell. Murphy isn't prolific, whilst Nouble ... Well least said about his goal scoring record the better!! Marriott is an unknown. He didn't excel nor was he favoured than any more than a sub at division one level. With concerns over McGoldrick, I think we lack a natural goal scorer. A Nouble / Murphy forward line is not good enough in my opinion. We have tough games in August and simply can't see them scoring enough goals!

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blueboy1981 added 17:38 - Jul 17 People singing Veseli's praises - not surprised at that, he's another player with much potential and needs games. Hope he get's them this season - as for Nouble,other than his running - not much else, and there won't be.
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BlueandTruesince82 added 19:07 - Jul 17 Jas yes I understand where you're coming from but MCG wont be rushed back and he is training, Murph whilst not prolific has improved no end under MM, I never rated him under Keane or PJ and he certainly stepped up to the mark in MCGS absence last season. An awful lot of pressure must have been on him to that and he responded really well. Marriot is an unknown but then you could say the same about Rhodes or Wickham when they came on the scene. I don't know if he is ready for the 1st team but I trust MM to decide when he is and whilst he didn't get a goal last night he seemed to be in all the right places which is a good sign. Taylor I think probably is a striker or at least someone who can play off one, he can play as a winger and I think has been over used there. I would stick him up front and say prove a point, get goals. I'm still not convinced by his attitude but maybe a lack of interest over the summer has given him a kick up the proverbial. Nouble, yes must do better, but we have seen it in him and as I say this season will make or break him here and maybe his career. Lets not forget McQueen who could be a dark horse more one for the future but none the less. Don't get me wrong I welcome a new striker especially one with a goals in him, but Chops had that and look what happened, for me another CM with defence splitting pass in him is priority number 1 and a striker no 2. But look at it this way it seems likely that the squad will be supplemented with a couple of loan players and if all we are really looking for is a striker and a midfielder...... plus 1 or 2 more perm additions (dare we dream). I think its a tough league this year so I'm trying to keep expectations in check but I like the look of the squad and I think if we could get the 2+2 mentioned above and good ones who knows. Not been this excited since ME bought the club and gave Magilton loads a money (I know people disagree on that bit)

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jas0999 added 20:04 - Jul 17 Blueandtruesince82 - you make an excellent argument. However, my opinion remains the same. We need a replacement for Williams and a striker!
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