Blackburn Rovers returned to winning ways with a 2-1 victory over West Ham United at Ewood Park, handing Scott Parker his first defeat as Hammers head coach.
Tony Mowbray's side withstood sustained pressure in the second half, during which Jarrod Bowen struck the woodwork, before securing the win in front of an away following of more than 7,000 supporters.
Decisive Second-Half Double
Andri Gudjohnsen opened the scoring with a diving header, his sixth goal in five games, before former West Ham player Dapo Afolayan rifled in a low second for Blackburn.
Joel Piroe smashed in his fourth goal of the season to give West Ham hope, but Blackburn held firm to secure their fifth win in eight home matches, surpassing last season's total number of home victories.
Mowbray Praises Discipline
Mowbray praised his team's effort and tactical discipline after the match.
"Today, the work rate of the team, the commitment and the endeavour, it was positive for us," he said. "Our lads rose to the challenge against a very good team."
"We're delighted. That's a tough game. I can feel their quality, their power and their strength."
He added: "We scored at good times. I thought we always carried a threat. Whilst they had the ball a fair bit, I think it's not wise to go and chase and hunt down good football teams who can pick the right pass and get through you."
"I thought we were pretty disciplined today. We had some counter attacking threat. I was happy enough at half-time but said 'let's be a bit braver, let's make sure they feel our quality', otherwise you never get them off your back."
Parker Left Disappointed
Parker cut a frustrated figure after West Ham's winless run stretched to four games, leaving him without a victory in his two matches in charge.
He felt Max Kilman was fouled in the build-up to the second goal but accepted his team's failure to score while on top proved decisive.
"Very disappointing," said Parker. "I thought we dominated first half, without really creating too much. Second half, came out really sharp, really bright and didn't manage to score the first goal."
"Their first goal gives us a bit of a hill to climb. The second goal is obviously a foul."
"We're bitterly disappointed because the result hasn't gone our way. There are certain things that were big improvements. I've had one training session, 45 minutes yesterday. I see a committed group at this moment in time."
"A lot of work to be done but I'm looking forward to it."
