West Ham United secured their fourth victory in five games with a 3-0 thumping of Middlesbrough at Upton Park on Saturday.

A great second half performance saw the Hammers score three goals in 16 minutes with Dean Aston heralding his return from injury with a simple tap-in in the 62nd minute. Though Boro managed to create a number of chances to score, they were unable to hit the target, leaving West ham with a comfortable victory.

West Ham started brightly and created their first chance in the 13th minute when Mark Noble tried his luck from 20 yards out. Noble's shot deflected off Jonathan Woodgate and very nearly sneaked into the left hand post of Mark Schwarzer.

Ashton looked to have netted his first goal in over six months, but even as he started on wild celebrations, his effort was ruled offside by the linesman. Wales hero Craig Bellamy limped off the field in the 26th minute following a groin injury.

Boro had their share of chances to score, with Jeremie Aliadiere being the closest as he controlled Mido's pass before releasing a fierce shot that went just wide of the post. However the ex-Arsenal player was withdrawn in the 30th minute with a hamstring injury.

West Ham broke the deadlock a minute into the second half when he latched onto Carlton Cole's cross and volleyed the ball past a helpless Schwarzer. Five minutes later Cole turned provider once again as his cross from the left wing deflected off Luke Young and into the net, leaving Schwarzer stranded.

Sanli Tuncay should have had pulled one back for Boro but saw his effort smash against the cross bar while his second attempt was saved in style by Robert Green. West Ham put the result beyond doubt in the 62nd minute when Ashton raced forward to meet Matthew Etherington's cross and was left with a simple tap in.

The win lifts West Ham to 6th position in the table with 10 points from 5 games while Middlesbrough drop down to 13th position after collecting 7 points from six matches. Watch live Premiership action here on free-football.tv.