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Wednesday night's 3-1 Subway Players Cup victory over Southampton was about much more than three points for West Ham United. It was an evening that showcased the strength of Rita Guarino's squad, highlighted the Club's emerging talent and provided several players with memorable milestones in Claret and Blue.

The Hammers recovered from an early Southampton goal to secure an impressive comeback victory at Victoria Road, with Oona Siren scoring twice and Leila Wandeler adding a well-taken header to complete the turnaround after the visitors had been reduced to ten players before half-time.

While the result strengthened West Ham's position in the Subway Players Cup group, much of the post-match attention centred around three debutants handed opportunities by Guarino.

Defender Niamh Peacock and midfielder Sienna Wareing were both named in the starting XI for their first appearances in Claret and Blue, while academy graduate Sude Oztas was introduced in the closing stages to make her senior debut after impressing with the first-team group in recent weeks.

Guarino was delighted to see all three grasp their opportunity.

"I’m very happy for Niamh, Sienna and Sude," They’re three young players, so it’s very important that after many training sessions, they had the opportunity to play and they played well."

The Italian was particularly pleased with Oztas' impact after coming off the bench.

"She’s a talented player. She deserved a goal, but I’m very happy for the way she came into the game."

Although pleased with the victory, Guarino felt the scoreline could have been even more convincing after her side created numerous opportunities throughout the contest.

"I think we created a lot of chances and clear opportunities, especially in the first half, I’m happy with the three points, but we need to finish our chances better. It’s something we need to improve, to be more clinical."

"The goal we conceded was a mistake that happened during the game, but I liked the way we played. We created a lot, we fought for every single ball and I liked that the players who haven’t had many minutes gave us more support."

One of those players was Peacock, who looked assured throughout the 90 minutes alongside Laia Codina at the heart of the defence.

The Spain international praised her young defensive partner after the final whistle.

"All the credit to Niamh, Usually when you have a new relationship in a game it can be difficult, but I didn’t have to think, it was just normal communication between centre-backs. She played really well, she did amazing."

Reflecting on wearing the armband, Codina added: "I always try to be an example, a leader, through how I train and act every day. If today it was by wearing the armband, I’m proud of it, and proud to get the win for the team."

For Peacock, it was a night she will never forget.

"I’m ecstatic, I feel like it’s been a long time coming but I’m just thankful to the girls and the staff for putting their trust in me, and to get the three points is a bonus. My family have been there the whole way for me, and for them to be here tonight, it means everything to me."

Peacock also paid tribute to Codina's influence.

"It makes it so much easier to do my job knowing I have her there. Learning off her every day is amazing, and it’s amazing to be here with her."

The defender was equally pleased to see fellow debutants Wareing and Oztas enjoy their own special moments.

"I’m really proud of them. I feel like we’ve come through this journey together, and it’s great to see them blossom like that."

Goalscorer Wandeler echoed those sentiments after helping put West Ham ahead in the second half with a well-placed header from Inès Belloumou's cross.

"We were pushing a lot, At the start of the game we made a mistake and we wanted to score goals. We went close in the first half, but spoke at half-time about how we had to push for it to go in."

"We knew we were going to have the ball and we wanted to play these types of crosses. We practiced a lot of crosses and being in the right areas, and tonight we made it happen."

The Swiss forward admitted Southampton's red card did not necessarily make life easier for the Hammers.

"It can sometimes be harder playing against ten players, but we pressed more and were more aggressive."

Like Guarino and Peacock, Wandeler was thrilled to see three young teammates enjoy their moment in the spotlight.

"I’m so happy for them. They’ve all worked so hard since pre-season, so they deserved it and they all put in really good performances."

With five points from their opening two Subway Players Cup fixtures, West Ham have made a strong start in the competition. More importantly, Wednesday's victory offered further evidence of the depth developing within Guarino's squad, with experienced internationals and emerging young talent combining to produce another encouraging performance.

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