Matthew Etherington is determined to keep his place in the West Ham midfield as Freddie Ljungberg and Scott Parker edge closer to full fitness.

Ljungberg and Parker were close to playing against Reading at the weekend, with Etherington seizing his chance to impress in their absence by scoring a brace at the Madejski Stadium.

"There is a lot of competition for places here at the moment and the manager brought in a lot of good quality over the summer so we all have to work that much harder to win our place in the team," said Etherington.

"I got my head down over pre-season and worked hard, came off the bench against Manchester City and got my place in the team and now I just need to make sure I keep it."