Boleyn Ground Tuesday, May 18th, 2004   Division One Attendance: 34,002       West Ham United 2-0 Ipswich Town       Etherington 50, Dailly 71
2003 /04

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West Ham 2-0 Ipswich (West Ham win 2-1 on aggregate) Christian Dailly's deflected shot set up a Division One play-off final for West Ham against Crystal Palace. Darren Bent fired wide early on when well placed before Steve Lomas hit the post and Kelvin Davis produced fine saves to deny Bobby Zamora and Dailly. After the break, Matthew Etherington levelled the score on aggregate when he blasted home from just inside the box. David Connolly missed two great chances to make it 2-0 and Ian Westlake hit the post after Dailly's strike. West Ham - seeking an instant return to the top flight - began at a frantic pace in a bid to quickly wipe out Ipswich's advantage but Bent could have put the visitors in control. He found himself clear in the box after a pass from Jim Magilton only to drag his shot wide of Stephen Bywater's far post. We put on a fantastic performance... no-one can say we didn't warrant winning 2-0 Alan Pardew,West Ham boss More reaction The home side hit back with a vengeance and Marlon Harewood bore down on goal after a superb pass from Michael Carrick before firing over. Then Lomas side-footed a shot against the bar when he connected first time following a cross from West Ham's player of the year Etherington. Davis produced a world-class save to deny a Zamora header which looked destined for the top right corner after some persistent play from Tomas Repka allowed Connolly to centre the ball. The Hammers were keen to maintain the pace of the game and Dailly forced Davis into another good save with a 30-yard drive which the Ipswich keeper palmed away. A flowing move then saw Carrick cross from the left and Zamora, with his back to goal, flick a header just wide of the post. KEY MOMENTS 7 mins: Lomas hits the po