Curbishley vows to keep Hammering on

Alan Curbishley is hoping to be given enough time by Eggert Magnusson to turn around West Ham United's flagging fortunes in the wake of their 4-3 defeat at home to Tottenham Hotspur.

The Hammers have won just one match in the Premiership since Curbishley succeeded Alan Pardew in December and find themselves ten points adrift of the relative safety of 17th-placed Manchester City with just nine games to go.

But Curbishley is refusing to throw in the towel and told reporters after seeing his men slump to their sixth successive league defeat: "We have got to keep going... We are a big club in the bottom three, we are on the back foot and fair game at the moment."

He added of his future at Upton Park: "When I came in at Christmas I said to the chairman it was a long-term situation and we both agreed on that. I'm looking forward to the rest of the season, trying to stay up and turning things around in the summer."

Mark Noble, starting his first Premiership game of the campaign, and Carlos Tevez had given the east Londoners the perfect start only for ex-Hammer Jermain Defoe and Teemu Tainio to restore parity in the second half.

Substitute Bobby Zamora looked to have sealed a priceless victory for the east Londoners six minutes from full-time only for Spurs to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat thanks to late goals from Dimitar Berbatov and Paul Stalteri, via a Robert Green blunder, to boost their hopes of a top-six finish.

Curbishley continued: "I think we're in a position where we've got to win and sometimes, even in a winning position you don't know how to win any more. I'm sure they worked as hard as they can.

"We scored three goals and haven't taken anything. It is a massive disappointment. But we have got to keep going. We can't give up."

West Ham, who travel to Blackburn Rovers next, still have to face Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United as they battle to beat the dreaded drop.

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