Goalkeeper Thomas Myhre made a reflex save on a shot by Teddy Sheringham in the 83rd minute, denying the West Ham striker a goal on his 40th birthday in a 0-0 draw with Charlton on Sunday.
Only the second outfield player to take part in a Premier League game at age 40, Sheringham came on as a halftime substitute for Dean Ashton.
A corner was flicked on by Hammers defender Anton Ferdinand to Sheringham at the far post. He did well to shoot from 6m, but Norway 'keeper Myhre blocked the ball with his arm.
PHOTO: AP
The chance came during a spell of West Ham pressure.
In Sunday's other game, Middlesbrough won 1-0 at Manchester City.
Two minutes after coming on as a substitute, West Ham's Bobby Zamora almost scored in the 79th with a powerful header from a corner -- only for Radostin Kishishev to clear off the line.
Israel midfielder Yossi Benayoun almost won it for the Hammers in the third minute of injury time, but he headed too high from a corner.
Although West Ham moved above Wigan into eighth place, the draw hurt the team's chances of finishing high enough for a spot in next season's UEFA Cup.
At the City of Manchester Stadium, Lee Cattermole gave Middlesbrough the lead three minutes before halftime when he ran between two City defenders to head in a left-wing cross from Stuart Downing.
League leader Chelsea saw its advantage cut to seven points on Saturday when it drew 0-0 with relegation-threatened Birmingham and second-place Manchester United won 2-1 at Bolton.
Liverpool strengthened its hold on third place by winning 2-0 at West Bromwich Albion, and fourth-place Tottenham lost 3-1 at Newcastle. Spurs are now only two points ahead of north London neighbor Arsenal, which defeated Aston Villa 5-0.
Last-place Sunderland earned a rare point from a 2-2 draw at Everton, but Portsmouth won its third game in a row with a 3-1 victory at Fulham to move above Birmingham into 18th place.
Sunderland has 11 points and is almost certain to be relegated. West Brom, though out of the drop zone, is level on points with Pompey and two ahead of Birmingham -- but they have played a game less.
Paul Hartley scored three goals against his former club to help Hearts outplay neighbor Hibernian 4-0 and reach the Scottish Cup final.
In the final on May 13, the Jambos will face division two champion Gretna, which upset division one Dundee 3-0 on Saturday. Gretna could be on course for an appearance in next season's UEFA Cup after only four seasons in the Scottish league.
In the Scottish Premier League, Krys Boyd scored three goals to lead defending champion Rangers to a 4-1 victory over Dundee United.
Croatia striker Dado Prso and Boyd scored two goals in a minute during the first half to put Rangers in control at Tannadice.
Boyd added two more in the second half, sandwiched by a reply by Collin Samuel. The result moved Rangers within three points of second-place Hearts, although the Jambos have a game in hand.
In a one-sided match at neutral Hampden Park, Hibernian finished with nine players after the second-half ejections of Ivan Sproule and Gary Smith.
Hartley scored in the 28th and 59th minutes, and Sproule was then sent off for stepping on Saulius Mikoliunas' back when the Lithuanian midfielder was on the ground.
Edgaras Jankauskas made it 3-0 three minutes later and Hartley added the fourth from the penalty spot in the 88th after Smith had hauled down a goalbound Michal Pospisil inside the area.
The result gives Hearts, which is second in the Scottish Premier League, a chance of winning the cup for the first since 1998. Hibs hasn't won the trophy since 1902.
If Hearts finishes second to capture a place in the qualifying round of the Champions League, Gretna would go into the UEFA Cup even if it loses in the final.
David Villa and Miguel Angel Angulo scored two goals each to help Valencia down Cadiz 5-3 and climb into third place.
The win at Mestalla stadium was Valencia's first in seven matches and lifted it above Osasuna, which lost 4-0 to visiting Getafe.
Villa scored the first goal in the second minute when he headed into an empty net from Ruben Baraja's deflected cross.
After midfielder Enrique Ortiz leveled for the visitors in the 12th minute, Angulo chipped in Valencia's second goal in the 32nd and defender David Navarro headed in the third four minutes later.
The 2002 and 2004 champions extended their lead in the 57th through Angulo's shot and although Cadiz midfielder Jonathan Sesma scored in the 64th, Villa scored to take his season tally to 18 and restore Valencia's three-goal cushion a minute later.
Cadiz, which is facing a return to the second division after a year's absence, didn't give up and Sesma ended the scoring with a free kick in the 79th.
Osasuna, which is hoping to secure a Champions League debut next season, fell behind in the 35th minute through forward Veljko Paunovic's header. Midfielder Angel Vivar Dorado doubled the lead following a counterattack three minutes later.
Fiorentina stayed one point ahead of AS Roma in the Serie A after a 1-1 draw.
Luca Toni put Fiorentina in the lead after 50 seconds, but Leandro Cufre equalized in the 72nd minute. The draw gives Fiorentina 61 points with six matches to go.
Both teams are trying to claim fourth place in Italy's top league and the last berth for next season's Champions League.
Defending champion Juventus holds a commanding lead in the league with 79 points, nine ahead of second-place AC Milan and 11 more than Inter Milan.
Toni scored the opening goal at Artemio Franchi stadium with a right-footed volley shortly after kickoff for his 26th goal of this season -- equaling the club record set by Gabriel Batistuta and Kurt Hamrin.
Chile midfielder Luis Antonio Jimenez set up the goal for the league's top striker.
Roma, which was missing several injured players, attacked for long periods and was denied of a 36th-minute goal when Fiorentina goalkeeper Bogdan Lobont made consecutive saves on short range attempts by Simone Perrotta and Rodrigo Taddei.
Cufre, an Argentine defender, celebrated his 100th Serie A match with a second-half goal, kicking the ball in after a save by Lobont.
Roma coach Luciano Spalletti said that Toni was offside when he scored.
Also Sunday, Chievo Verona stayed in sixth place with a 2-1 win over visiting Livorno; an own-goal in injury time by Massimo Oddo helped Empoli draw 3-3 at Lazio; Udinese beat Parma 2-0 for its first victory in 15 matches; Sampdoria ended a six-match losing streak with a 1-1 draw with visiting Cagliari; 10-man Palermo was held to 1-1 draw by Ascoli; and Reggina drew 1-1 with Siena.
Hamburger SV moved into second place, winning a foul-plagued match against 10-man Schalke 2-0.
Rafael van der Vaart and Ailton scored the goals for Hamburg, which is seven points behind leader Bayern Munich and close to clinching a spot in next season's Champions League.
With three Champions League berths at stake, Bayern has 66 points with six rounds to play. Hamburg is next with 59 points, followed by Werder Bremen with 56 and Schalke with 52.
Bayern drew 2-2 against last-place Cologne on Saturday, raising the possibility its big lead could disappear if it doesn't win at Bremen on Saturday.
Portugal striker Pauleta scored three times in the first half against his former team, and Paris Saint-Germain beat Bordeaux to all but assure Lyon of a fifth straight league title.
Pauleta improved his league-leading tally to 20 goals with two headers and a penalty, while Edixon Perea scored for Bordeaux, which slipped 12 points behind standings leader Lyon with only six games remaining.
Lyon, which won 1-0 at Troyes on Saturday, has 72 points from 32 matches, while Bordeaux remained in second with 60 points and Lille stayed in third with 54.
FC Porto won its fifth straight and stayed two points atop the first division, beating a nine-man Gil Vicente 3-0. The victory improved Porto to 66 points, two more than Sporting, which beat Guimaraes 1-0 on Saturday.
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