Sears may have played only a bit-part role in the Londoners' season, but he was one of the team's best performers during Saturday's 3-0 defeat to Chelsea. The youngster gave England left-back Ashley Cole a difficult time at Stamford Bridge in what was his seventh Premier League start of the season. The forward spent the first half of the season on loan at Scunthorpe, where he failed to find the net in nine games, and has rarely lived up to the hype that surrounded him since his debut goal against Blackburn three years ago. The 21-year-old admits being a frustrated spectator during the Hammers' woeful season has left him desperate to play some part in helping them avoid relegation. "It is never easy playing against Chelsea or Cole but it was a good opportunity for me to play as I have not played for a long time," Sears said. "I've not been playing and it has been frustrating. My last game was against Burnley (in February) but I feel that I have been doing well. I think I've impressed in training and have been working on my game so hopefully that was my reward for the gaffer to give me the nod. "We have four games to go and I want to play in all of them. I would be lying if I said I didn't. I feel that I have something to give. The gaffer knows what I can do and how I can help out the team and it would be nice to feel that I can." West Ham are currently in the midst of an injury crisis that is threatening to hamper their bid to usurp the two-point gap that separates them from safety. Matthew Upson and Scott Parker were absent on Saturday while Mark Noble had to come off with a stomach injury that could rule him out of part of the team's run-in. Right winger Gary O'Neil is also out with a serious ankle injury, but Sears is confident he can fill the gap left by the former Middlesbrough man. "I feel that I can stretch teams," Sears said. "The gaffer looks at me as having a bit of pace and I am a young lad and he knows that I have high energy levels and that I will work hard for the team. That is obviously a good thing for me. "Gary has been doing very well on the right but he has got injured so this is my chance to get in and stake my place."
