Trevor Sinclair gave West Ham a Premiership lifeline as the Hammers earned a vital victory over Middlesbrough.

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The tension at Upton Park was relieved after 76 minutes when Glen Johnson pulled the ball back for Sinclair to sweep home the winner.

The Hammers are now four points behind Bolton with three games remaining, and three adrift of Leeds who face Fulham on Tuesday.

West Ham had played much of the game like a team who had already resigned itself to relegation.

Although the Hammers dominated much of the possession, Boro goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer was rarely tested and the home side were lucky to go in for half-time still on level terms.

David James made the most important save of the opening half, tipping the ball over the bar when his own defender Tomas Repka sliced a clearance in the wrong direction six minutes before the break.

And a minute before the break Juninho's free-kick from five yards outside the area was saved but not held by James at his near post.

Massimo Maccarone forced the ball back across the face of goal but Rufus Brevett managed to hook it clear.

KEY MOMENTS 39 mins: James saves from Repka's miss-hit 44 mins: Brevett hooks Maccarone's effort clear 64 mins: Steve Lomas hits the post 76 mins: Sinclair breaks the deadlock with the winner

The Hammer's only real chance of the half fell to skipper Joe Cole.

Cole caught Middlesbrough by surprise with the visitors' defence all up field for a corner.

Cole raced clear and found himself one-on-one with Schwarzer, only to shoot narrowly wide from the edge of the box.

The home side had the first opportunity of the second 45 when Sinclair was tripped by Franck Queudrue to concede a free-kick on the right flank.

But, much to the disgust of the Upton Park crowd, no one could convert Cole's cross.

Things nearly got worse for West Ham after 63 minutes when Jonathan Greening delivered a low cross from the left, but Gareth Southgate's shot went narrowly wide.

West Ham's luck was then summed up a minute later at the other end. Ferdinand found Sinclair with a clever pass to the right and met the return cross with a looping header.

The ball dropped for Steve Lomas but his shot hit the near post and Boro scrambled the ball away.

But the Hammer's luck finally changed 15 minutes from time when Sinclair's well-struck shot from the edge of the area gave Schwarzer no chance.

West Ham: James, Johnson, Pearce, Repka, Brevett, Lomas, Cole, Cisse, Sinclair, Les Ferdinand, Defoe. Subs not used: Van Der Gouw, Hutchison, Dailly, Breen, Garcia.
Booked: Brevett.

Middlesbrough: Schwarzer, Cooper, Ehiogu, Southgate, Queudrue (Stockdale 53), Greening, Boateng, Wilkshire, Juninho Paulista (Job 46), Christie (Ricketts 72), Maccarone.
Subs not used: Jones, Doriva.
Booked: Queudrue, Greening.

Attendance: 35,019

Referee: A Wiley (Staffordshire).