And there's the half-time whistle.

Middlesbrough have perhaps played the better football, but it's the Hammers - and Andy Carroll - who have been clinical in front of goal to take the lead at the Riverside.

Image source, PA

That's got to hurt for Middlesbrough. They really looked on top towards the end of the first half and looked the more likely to go in with the lead at the break.

But with Andy Carroll lurking, West Ham have a man who can make a goal out of very little.

Slaven Bilic will be delighted.

Sue Smith
Former England forward on Final Score

Valdes has to at least push that around the post.

Carroll was the first to react and that is a sign of a striker on form.

Boro were forced to soak up a bit of West Ham pressure after their equaliser, but have started to assert themselves on this game again.

Adama Traore is the danger man down the hosts' right, with Aaron Creswell struggling to get close to him at the minute.

Great play from Adama Traore. He throws a shoulder one way and goes the other to drift past his marker and fire a low ball across the face of goal, but Sam Byram scrambles it away for a corner at the back post.

Boro can't make the set-piece count, and it's well defended by West Ham.

Another fantastic tackle from the Boro backline. Bernardo in Bobby Moore fashion stands up a flying Manuel Lanzini and pokes a toe in at the vital moment to come away with the ball.

He thinks he's got the ball again as a pass comes into Michail Antonio, but the Boro defender sends the West Ham man sprawling and the visitors win a free-kick.

Image source, Reuters

Brilliant tackle from George Friend as Andy Carroll was about to pull the trigger after good work from Michail Antonio.

The forward was ready to swing a big left boot at it inside the box, but Friend recovered to wrap his foot around and hook clear to keep this one level.

Well, well. We asked for goals, and we've had couple of crackers so far.

Plenty to admire in that Andy Carroll opener, if pure power and bullet headers are your thing, but that Boro equaliser was something else.

There must have been five or six players involved. One touch football, inch-perfect passing, and a neat finish to boot.

Middlesbrough are enjoying far more possession here. They've had nearly 60% of it in the opening 24 minutes, but their patient approach play is giving West Ham time to regroup.

Alvaro Negredo attempts to improvise from a George Friend cross and play his strike partner Cristhian Stuani in with a chest pass, but it meets a wall of West Ham defenders.

Adama Traore, reportedly a target for Chelsea, looks a nuisance when he gets on the ball for the hosts.

He scampers forward down the right and sends a deep cross into the penalty area. Cristhian Stuani meets it, but again West Ham have bodies back and hack the loose ball clear.

Image source, Reuters

I was praising George Friend a minute ago, but he gives the ball away to Sofiane Feghouli inside his own half and the West Ham winger can drive forward into space.

He gets a return pass from Michail Antonio, but sees his shot deflected wide for a corner.

More Andy Carroll problems for Boro? Not this time - it's headed away and Sam Byram blazes over from way, way out.

Andy Carroll is back inside his own box to head a deep Middlesbrough free-kick away this time, but it only falls to Calum Chambers on the right.

The on-loan Arsenal defender chips one into the box and Alvaro Negredo climbs, but he can't get any real purchase on that header.

The Hammers eventually scramble it away for a corner.

Sue Smith
Former England forward on Final Score

When Carroll is fit you see what he can do. 

That was a bullet header. Carroll seemed to just rise above everyone.

Both sides boast attacking left full-backs here, and with the way Boro have set up George Friend is almost playing as a wide midfielder.

He has plenty of license to bomb forward and does so, but finds plenty of Hammers defenders back behind the ball after a neat bit of footwork inside the opposition half.

Image source, Reuters

It already looks like West Ham will try and pick Middlesbrough off on the break. Boro's passing is slick and pretty to watch, but it's the Hammers' direct approach which creates the first chance.

They get the ball wide to Aaron Creswell, who whips a low delivery across goal only for Michail Antonio to slice wide with a side-footed volley.

Right then, we're under way. It's looking pretty bleak at the Riverside, let's hope this one hots up with plenty of goals.

How Boro fans would love ANY goals, to be honest...

They've scored in just two of their past seven league games.

A quick look at recent meetings between the two...

• West Ham have won four of the last five league meetings with Middlesbrough, drawing the other.
• There have been only two away wins in the 23 Premier League matches between Middlesbrough and West Ham.