High spirits as we hunt for first home win (From East London and West Essex Guardian Series)

High spirits as we hunt for first home win

2:51pm Thursday 23rd August 2007 in West Ham By Guardian-series

WE kick-started our season at Birmingham on Saturday. It was good to get a win.

It was a good all-round team performance and something we can build on.

Personally I was definitely feeling a lot more confident on the pitch.

We always knew it was going to be a hard game, because we had to go there and win. We didn't want to get left behind like we did last year.

I said last week that I guaranteed we would improve at St Andrew's.

I think that comment showed the confidence I have in all the players in the club and the confidence they've got in me, to trust me to speak for them like that to guarantee that as a team we would definitely be better.

It shows the great team bonding and a great togetherness which can take us to good things this season.

We got another great addition to the team in Kieron Dyer as well - one that is going to benefit us this year.

I know Kieron through my brother and other people.

He's a quality player and I'm happy to be playing with him and happy that he's a part of the squad.

There's more Premiership experience in the side now which is good to bring on youngsters like myself and Mark Noble.

Me and Nobes and Jonathan Spector are the youngest players in the team now and having those senior players in the squad is definitely going to help us.

It makes for a good mix in the dressing room as well.

It's fun winding some of the older boys up, but they know how to wind up the young ones as well. That's one thing that this club has always had since I've been around the first team is a great spirit and togetherness.

Once we start winning a few more games, there will be some more pranks, I can tell you. Nigel Reo-Coker's not at the club anymore and his clothes used to get hung up on the rack all the time, so that doesn't happen anymore, but there will be a wind-up soon and when it comes out you'll be the first to know.

The atmosphere here is really good at the moment.

There are quite a few people absent from training this week, away on internationals.

But that's a great thing too because it shows we've bought a lot of international players who will inject quality into the side when they come back.

On Saturday, we've got Wigan. It's always tough when they come to Upton Park, but we've got to go out there confident, build on the win that we got at Birmingham and take it to another level.