B for belated and BEAT THE DROP

I am very late in getting to say this, but, can you believe it? Can you believe it? Sunday's magnificent 1-0 victory over Manchester United and the completion of West Ham's stunning run to safety leave me, even five days later, in disbelief.

West Ham's game was the featured live game on Fox Soccer Channel Sunday morning. I was glad for that, as going to the Globe at 8:30 a.m. on Mother's Day probably wouldn't be the best tribute to Mom. I plopped down in front of the television in my West Ham hoodie about 20 minutes to 9 a.m. The Marquette Grad was very sweet, leaving me to watch the match while she walked to the bagel shop and got us breakfast. In contrast to the Wigan fixture a week earlier, I was strangely relaxed for West Ham taking on the Premier League champions on their home ground with the entire future of the club up for grabs. Relaxed isn't really the right word, actually. I was tense, but not nervous. Maybe, subconsciously, I was banking on Manchester United not having much to play for on Sunday, particularly with the FA Cup final scheduled for Saturday. Maybe, too, I expected Sheffield United to at least win a point at home against Wigan. That was probably it more than anything.

From the initial few minutes of the game, it seemed to me that the strategy was similar to the approach the Hammers took at the Emirates: Play safe, avoid giving up a chance in the clear, focus on the clean sheet. If we manage to score a goal, the Hammers seemed to be saying, that would be nice, but it's not necessary. In this case, that was literally true, as a draw guaranteed safety. I understand the strategy, but I find it nerve-wracking to watch because so many good chances result. Against Arsenal, it was up to Robert Green and his friends -- the posts and crossbar -- to keep a clean sheet. Working together, they did just that. Sunday, Green had a human helper -- midfielder Yossi Benayoun. Twice Benayoun cleared a ball off the line, one with a header off a play that resulted from a corner kick. TMG's favorite Hammer also got in the act, as Jonathan Spector came on in the 29th minute to replace George McCartney, who appeared to have an injury in his upper leg. Spector immediately blocked a shot and was himself down for a moment.

Then, again like the Arsenal match at the Emirates, a goal just before half came the way of the Hammers. Instead of Bobby Zamora chipping one over Jens Lehman, this time, Zamora was a helper to -- who else? -- Carlos Tévez on a beautiful 1-2. Tévez is simply amazing. I was bracing myself throughout the match for a brilliant stretch of play from Man U that would overcome that goal and bury the Hammers. The Red Devils had so many chances, but they couldn't connect, fortunately, on too many of them, and Green and Benayoun took care of those that they did. But throughout the game, Man U kept the pressure up. In the short time that I have been watching football, no substitution has ever scared me as much as the triple Sir Alex Ferguson made with about 30 minutes left -- Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and Cristiano Ronaldo. The game that really shifted my interest in football into a higher gear was the Man U game at Upton Park. I caught the last 15 minutes or so live, and I was riveted watching the Hammers keep the Red Devils at bay. Watching them defend a 1-0 lead for three times as long on Sunday was fraught with a lot more tension than that December match, when I was a barely interested fan drawn in more because a good friend rooted for West Ham than anything else.

Since Sunday, I've traded a few emails with my friend Phil. They were not the most erudite emails that we have traded. "HAMMERS BEAT THE DROP!!!" I wrote to Phil. "Can you believe it?????" Phil wrote back, and then later, an email consisting solely of the phrase "TEVEZ IS MY BOY!!!!" repeated 37 times. TMG and I also received an email from her sister in London with the subject line, "This is huge!," and a link to a Reuters account of Sunday's action in the Premiership that led with West Ham's victory and featured a photo of Tévez celebrating his goal. TMG's sister was disappointed to learn that the English season is over because she is visiting Chicago next week, and she was hoping to go to the Globe with us. Not that we need the excuse of a West Ham game for day drinking. I think it would be fitting if we hoisted a morning pint to the Hammers next Saturday.