Bournemouth 2-1 Charlton

On the dawn of the new season fans of all clubs have the right to be optimistic. In this case, Charlton had just finished a very impressive 9th in their first season back in The Championship, while Bournemouth had just been promoted to England's second tier for the first time in 25 years. Both sets of fans could naturally be excited before this match, which was the third time the two clubs had played each other on the opening day in four years.

Walking towards the stadium, I could feel the buzz already. While in previous seasons our first home match would draw between 4-6 thousand, over 10,000 tickets had been sold already. Seeing hundreds of fans in red and black streaming towards the stadium from different directions displayed the direction that the club is headed. With a new stand, a new club shop and a fantastic squad on the books it felt like we had a proper football club. I took my  new seat in the East Stand for the first time and it was great to see how excited all the fans around me were, most of whom had been waiting their entire lifetime to see The Cherries play in The Championship. It was quite hard to believe that a year ago our first home game was a 1-1 draw with MK Dons in front of 5,407 people.

The Ted MacDougall stand completes the ground

However, despite Bournemouth's excitement and anticipation, it was obvious that Charlton were not opponents to be underestimated at all, especially with new signings Marvin Sordell and Simon Church set to be involved for The Addicks. The home side started on the front foot passing the ball neatly around the midfield and defence, trying to utilise their strength on the wings. But the visitors were also looking dangerous, with most passes aimed at trying to get the speedy Calum Harriott in behind the Bournemouth defence. Marvin Sordell had a great chance to head in a cross but seemingly miss the ball entirely, while Mohamed Coulibaly could only curl his shot wide of the post down the other end. Bournemouth had most of the ball with midfielders Harry Arter and Shaun MacDonald linking the team with incisive passing, but the aerial threat of Yann Kermorgant was keeping the Cherries' defence on their toes. The opening goal came on the 26th minute mark: Bournemouth won a corner and Arter sprinted over, he was duly given the ball and quickly whipped in a cross which found Lewis Grabban who headed the ball back across Ben Hamer and into the net.

Grabban heads home for Bournemouth

It was hard to believe that the Charlton defenders had left Grabban so wide open in the penalty area but nobody cared, it was a dream start for Bournemouth. They took the front foot straight away and it looked like a second goal was coming, with Wes Thomas coming close a few times, but the visitors saw off the Cherries attacks for the rest of the half.

Whatever Chris Powell said at half-time clearly had the desired effect on his team. The Charlton side that came out for the second half were suddenly a lot more active, efficient and dynamic on the ball, causing Bournemouth numerous problems. I could see that the equaliser was coming, although the circumstances in which it did were surprising and spectacular. With the ball down the left wing, the ball was hit but deflected off MacDonald's foot as he tried to block it, it reached Kermorgant who left his feet and hit a magnificent left-footed volley past the helpless Ryan Allsop, the score was level and it was game on.

Kermorgant got Charlton's equaliser

 But the expected push from the visitors never really came, despite the momentum being on their side. The introduction of Ryan Fraser who replaced the injured Coulibaly changed the game dramatically. Thomas had another good chance to score when he shrugged off a Charlton defender and found himself wide open in the box, but his shot was deflected and comfortably saved by Hamer. Fraser was causing ex-Cherry Rhoys Wiggins trouble down the right as he provided a constant outlet for Bournemouth's attacks with Marc Pugh doing the same down the left. Bournemouth took the lead when Arter found the inspired and transformed Grabban who turned Andy Hughes on the edge of the box before firing a rocket past the diving Hamer.

Grabban's second sealed the win

Bournemouth continued to attack with Fraser being the victim of numerous cynical fouls, although the consistently incompetent Andy D'Urso failed to book anyone for them. Then came the dreaded last fifteen minutes when a team has a one goal lead where the trailing team throws everything possible at them in search of the equaliser. Charlton abandoned playing the ball on the floor and shoved centre-back Michael Morrison up front, adopting the aerial bombardment approach more commonly seen in the Conference than the Championship. Their efforts almost paid off when Allsop rushed out of his goal to claim a cross but misjudged it, meaning Elliott Ward had to clear Bradley Pritchard's header off of the line and save The Cherries. That was to be Pritchard's last impact on the game when he was sent off for a late challenge on Fraser, an incident that looked a lot worse at the time but still probably worthy of a red card.
 From there Bournemouth were able to see out the game relatively comfortably, with the sending off really ending Charlton's hopes of drawing level.

Pritchard saw red

In summary, the match could not have gone much better for Bournemouth. They deserved to win and had the better chances, but Kermorgant's goal was proof of the quality many players in this division at have. Charlton had their spells of pressure but I'd bet that most of their fans went home disappointed in their side's display, with many players clearly not performing to their level. For Bournemouth, the defence played well and dealt all the long balls in the air superbly, and in fairness not even Joe Hart or Petr Cech would have stopped Charlton's goal. The midfield was brilliant, especially in the first half, although they clearly tired towards the end. The most encouraging display of the afternoon was Grabban's who was a transformed player, not bearing one trait of the man who suffered a long goal drought last season. Wes Thomas also made a much improved performance especially regarding his work ethic, but he really does need one to go off of his backside.Most importantly, this victory takes the pressure off as we have two tough games in Watford and Wigan next. A loss today would make it important to take points off of those two very strong teams, but thankfully for now, we can relax.

See you at Watford! 

Bournemouth vs Charlton Match Preview

And here we all are once again, the beginning of the football season; 10 months of spending our Saturday's often in towns across the country watching a bunch men kick a ball around. However this year, for Bournemouth fans at least, will be different.  We will all be watching our team in uncharted territory: The Championship. To begin life in the second tier of English football, The Cherries will begin the season against Charlton Athletic for the third time in four years. Charlton finished champions of League One in the 2011/12 season with an impressive 101 points and finished 9th last year in The Championship, meaning this is no easy match for Eddie Howe's men. The past four times the teams have met have resulted in 3 victories for Charlton and one draw- so Bournemouth definitely have a point to prove this Saturday.

Charlton were Champions in 2011

It's safe to say Eddie Howe has plenty to be concerned about ahead on the dawn of the new season. Bournemouth have suffered numerous injuries in pre-season, with star players Matt Ritchie and Brett Pitman the notable concerns for Howe's men. Although The Cherries boast a few quality replacements for Ritchie in Ryan Fraser and Mohamed Coulibaly, no Pitman would leave the home team worryingly toothless up front. While when on form Lewis Grabban and Wes Thomas are dangerous players, both have been firing blanks for a significant amount of time. New signing Mohamed Coulibaly is versatile and has been excellent in pre-season, meaning he could fill Pitman's void should it be needed, but it seems wide or attacking midfield is his natural position. Arguably, Howe's biggest decision will be which defenders he chooses for the starting line-up. Should he opt for his usual 4-4-2 formation, only two out of Cook, Elphick and Ward will start, but he could also choose to begin with 5 at the back, a formation that has been seen in pre-season. Howe has to decide whether to opt for the pairing that led us to promotion, or to choose new signing Ward. While winning this match will not decide the fate of our season, getting off to a good start could be invaluable by the time May comes.

Could Coulibaly be the difference maker on Saturday?

To me, Charlton are somewhat of an unknown quantity. I last saw them when they beat us 3-0 in August 2011, meaning it has been two years since I`ve seen them play. I`ve no doubt though that their squad has changed over that time, due to their promotion to The Championship. However, The Addicks are still managed by Chris Powell, who has had an extremely impressive stint as manager at The Valley.The Addicks also boast two former Bournemouth players in Rhoys Wiggins and Danny Hollands, who both left for the south coast for London after the 2010/11 season.

Wiggins is sure to receive a hostile reception on his return

To help us gain some insight to our opponents on Saturday, three Charlton fans- Dan Fincy (@MiniFinchy), Scott Wilkes (@TheAddick95) and James Vogle (james_vogle) were kind enough to answer some questions for me.

Charlton finished a very respectable 9th place last season, and were only 3 points off the play-offs. How did you view your first season back in the Championship? 

DF: Our first season back was exceptional, very proud of how we did and if a few results went in our favour it might have not been Palace in the play-offs and it would have been us. I cant complain really we did very well and beat expectations which was very important for the fans and for the players we knew we had a good squad

SW: Incredible! Shaky start but had some great results (E.g. 5-4 win vs Cardiff and 6-0 win vs Barnsley) and finished the season the league's form team and only like 3 points from the top 6. We only spent 500k in the summer and finished a couple points off teams like Leicester and Bolton with virtually our league 1 team.

JV: Incredible! Shaky start but had some great results (E.g. 5-4 win vs Cardiff and 6-0 win vs Barnsley) and finished the season the league's form team and only like 3 points from the top 6. We only spent 500k in the summer and finished a couple points off teams like Leicester and Bolton with virtually our league 1 team.

Are you satisfied with the club's summer transfers?

DF: erm...in a bomb shell no. We only have 1 forward and only managed signings of Mark Gower and Richard Wood. Wood gives us a good back line again since we lost defender Taylor. Gower we had last year on loan and slotted in nicely so it was good to get him full time.

SW: What transfers? Only signed Mark Gower and Richard Wood, both on frees. The owners aren't giving Powell a penny to spend this summer which means we can't improve the squad and only have one senior striker. Starting the season without a no. 9 or 10.  

JV: I am not satisfied at all with our summer transfers, releasing so many players which we could of got a decent amount of money for, releasing danny haynes was a big shame as it is not his fault however he is injury prone and a club like us with our financial stability he is not worth keeping especially as 'apparently' he was demanding higher wages. The best bit of our transfer activity this summer was us releasing Ricardo Fuller, scoring 5 goals in 31 games and hardly playing at all due to lack of fitness and injuries, with him being our highest earner aswell getting 20k a week I am glad to see the back of him! However he is now re-training with us which I do not think I have ever seen before. The worst worry for me is that we now only have one striker which is our fan favourite Yann Kermogant, as good as he is, when we played a 4-5-1 last season with Yann up top on his own just simply did not work, personally I do not think a 4-5-1 ever works due to the fact that the striker is always isolated. I think that if we get another striker who is proven to score a lot of goals then I will be happy.

Are there any specific players that Bournemouth fans should be worried about?

DF:  We have a few Chris Solly our right back and Wiggins,ex Bournemouth, are both very dangerous going forward and like to create chances and are very quick. Yann Kermorgant too, he's big and and wins headers all the time.

SW: Chris Solly - Best RB in the football league

Rhoys Wiggins - Phenomenal going forward and will up his game when he's getting booed :-)

Johnnie Jackson - Captain, always likely to score

Bradley Pritchard - Never stops running, and finally adding goals to his game

Callum Harriott - Will destroy Francis (Who is the worst RB i've ever seen play for Charlton)
Yann Kermorgant - Already a Charlton legend, will win everything in the air no matter who' he's against. Warrior

JV: You should be worried about our young tricky winger callum harriott, he came through the ranks at Charlton and has had a cracking pre season almost scoring in every game, bearing in mind he is only 19 and featured regularly towards the end of last season, a very exciting prospect for the future.

How are ex-Bournemouth players Danny Hollands and Rhoys Wiggins faring at Charlton?

DF: Danny Hollands had a great season in League One and played brilliantly all season but went out on loan last season to Swindon and didn't really feature last season at all. But in pre-season Hollands has been on fire for us and has scored 3 goals. Rhoys has been unbelievable when fit. He missed a big part of last season but when he was playing you knew he was there.

SW: Hollands was class in league 1 but couldn't adjust to the league last year so went out on loan, only a back up player now. Whereas Wiggins was class in league 1 and in the championship, had a couple injuries last year though. Probably our best LB since the legend Chris Powell. 

JV: Rhoys Wiggins in my opinion is one of the best signings we made. Featuring every week and giving 100% every week, us as a club could not ask for any more, however he did miss quite a bit of last season due to a injury, but he came back more determined than ever and has come straight back in to the starting 11. Danny Hollands had a cracking first season for us being a key player in our promotion up to the championship, however last season he did not feature as he was not part of our plans due to other players playing better than him, although I do not think we gave him a big enough chance to prove himself at this level. He was loaned out to swindon playing 10 games and scoring 2 goals until it got ended shortly due to him getting injured and came back for treatment.

Finally, will you be making the trip to the South Coast on Saturday?on Saturday

DF: No Sadly not. I am on holiday but I would love to be going down, first game of the season are always brilliant and every club loves them. I am jealous of the fans going down! COYR!

SW: Wanted to, tickets sold out before I had a bit of cash on the hip. Went last time though when we won 1-0.

JV:  Yes, I will be making the trip to the South Coast saturday, I missed out on it 2 seasons back due to me being on holiday, but I can not wait for it as we always seem to play a good game of football and I like Bournemouth, they are a nice club, I simply could not miss a season opener down the sea side! Come on you reds!

Ryan Fraser- Next Big Thing?

Due to his small size, it's sometimes hard to distinguish as to whether Ryan Fraser is a Bournemouth player, or rather a ball-boy who has managed to sneak on to the pitch. However, even at the young age of 19 his record is extremely impressive.

His January 2013 400,000 pound transfer from Scottish Premier League outfit Aberdeen was a big move for the young Scot, although so far it looks like it is paying off. Born and raised in Aberdeen, Fraser rose through the ranks at his local club and went on to make 21 first team appearances for The Dons, although many of those came from the subs bench. A small, tricky winger Fraser was almost certainly unheard of by most Bournemouth fans when he made the long move to the English south coast aged only 18.

In an interview with the Scottish Sun, Fraser explains some his reasoning behind deciding to join The Cherries: 'I went down and met Eddie. He showed me to the stadium, the training ground and took me on a two-hour tour of Bournemouth.The people were nice to me and everything was perfect. I thought ‘This is definitely for me'. Fraser added: 'I see League One as a challenge that will push me. I thought about it when I first came down and I reckoned this is really good club which has got a really good chance of getting promoted to the Championship. And I could be getting a regular game to improve myself.'

However, life at Bournemouth has not been a breeze for Fraser. He has only made 5 appearances so far, although injuries and the form of Marc Pugh and Matt Ritchie have limited his chances to established a starting spot. But this summer at the 2013 Euro Elite competition Fraser was a regular for the Scotland U19 team, with coach Ricky Sbagria labelling his performances as 'outstanding'. Although Bournemouth's promotion to The Championship provides a challenging step up for a young player like Fraser, it is easy to see him becoming a key part of the team next season. As we found out this year, a few injuries to key players can have a seriously detrimental impact on the performance of the whole team. If Matt Ritchie or Marc Pugh suffer an injury or loss of form, there's no doubt that Fraser will be ready to take his chance. It's also possible that Ritchie may move on, with many clubs rumoured to be interested in the former Swindon player.

Fraser in action for Aberdeen

I think that we'll see a lot more of Ryan next season. Wes Fogden is not a natural 'winger' meaning that although he's ideal to bring on when you need a tireless worker, Fraser is a more obvious fit into Eddie Howe's style of play. His speed and direct style may have more of an impact in The Championship, where Bournemouth are no doubt going to utilise more counter-attacking play than before. It's noticeable that all 3 teams promoted from The Championship (probably out of our reach) had dangerous wingers at their disposal, such as Craig Noone, Wilfried Zaha and Robbie Brady. It's important that Ryan is developed with patience, but I hope, and think that he will become an important player for us next season. 

Jonathan Meades

Jonathan "Jon" Meades signed for AFC Bournemouth from Cardiff City in the summer of 2012, following a successful trial period at the club. However, Meades hasn't made a competitive appearance for Bournemouth this season, spending the entire season on loan at AFC Wimbledon, joining ex-Cherry Warren Cummings at the League Two team. Dons fans Alice was kind enough to answer a few questions for me on the Bournemouth loanee:

Meades during a pre-season friendly

Firstly, could you introduce yourself briefly?

Of course, I'm Alice, a lifelong Wimbledon fan luckily (or unfortunately) born into a Wimbledon supporting family. From the Premier League to administration, re-birth in the Combined Counties to the Football League in 9 years - I've seen it all. Currently studying Journalism at the University of Westminster. 

Despite being our player, most Bournemouth fans have never seen him play. Was he a regular for you this season?

"Jonathan Meades; AFC Wimbledon Young Player of the Year" says it all. When he signed on loan in October his first game was a 3-0 loss at Exeter and he looked like just another average young loanee. But we soon saw his potential, he played week in week out as we fought hard to stay in the football league. Whilst out injured for 2 (I think) games we saw a massive void; and ironically lost both. And no-one can fault his one and only goal vs league Champions Gillingham. 

Most Bournemouth fans know him has a left back. Has he only played there or has he filled various positions over the season?

Meades is a player you can build a squad around. We signed him as left back cover and but the boy has more positions than kamasutra, towards the end of the season he was our midfield wingman. He could fill any position you wanted him too and he sure wouldn't let you down, well we didn't see him in goal but I'm sure he could do that too! 

Jonathan has not played too much football outside of League Two. Do you think he's capable of playing at a higher level?

He stood out in League Two. Not only because our team was fighting at the bottom, but because of his pure class. He is a step above the rest and I don't doubt he could do a job higher up. Billy Knott who came on as a substitute for Sunderland today (Sunday) vs Spurs was also a loanee at Wimbledon who won Young Player of the Year like Jon - which says a lot about the young players we rate highly.

Lastly, there has been speculation regarding his future. With it looking unlikely he will stay at Dean Court, can you see him returning to AFC Wimbledon next year?

I know Neal Ardley will offer Meades a deal, there is no doubt. But it looks unlikely he will take our offer, he said at the end of last season we were a "possible option". There have been rumours that Portsmouth and Oxford have offered him terms and Ardley spoke this week saying he (Meades) had received and "unbelievable offer". John Sullivan, a keeper we had on loan this season also turned down our offer to sign for Portsmouth, so it is clear they will be a huge driving force this season. After all, we are the small fish in a big pond nowadays!

Every Wimbledon fan would join me in wishing Jon well wherever he plays next season, he has fantastic talent and played a huge part in keeping us in the Football League. He always gave a hundred percent and will always be held in high regard by all Dons fans.

Meades helped AFC Wimbledon escape relegation to the Conference this season

-----------------------------------------------

Thank you Alice for answering the questions, I think most Bournemouth fans will have learned more about our own player from reading this than they gathered over the whole season! Jon has evidently had a successful season and it's shame we'll likely not see him play at Dean Court. You can follow Alice on twitter - @afcw_alice

AFC Bournemouth Summer Strengthening

With Bournemouth's promotion to the Npower Championship for the 2013/2014 season, it's no doubt that boss Eddie Howe will be busy planning how to build a team capable of holding their own next season. Although the Cherries finished second in League One this term, they were arguably the most technically proficient and skilful team in the league. While undoubtedly the quality of football in the Championship is higher, teams also cannot rely on purely being based on physicality, a la Sheffield United. To ensure survival (and maybe more) Howe will know that he must make a few quality additions to his team for next year to build on the promising group already at Dean Court.

It's fair to say that the nucleus of the Bournemouth team is likely good enough for the step up, making this summer more about fine tuning rather than whole sale changes. In goal the team are settled, with Ryan Allsop making the number one shirt his own towards the end of the season, while Shwan Jalal and/ or Darryl Flahavan will back up the young stopper. Yes, Allsop is inexperienced but he was calmness personified during the run-in, making a few brilliant saves too, so we can feel comfortable with the twenty year old donning the gloves next season.

However, the same cannot be said for defence. In Simon Francis, Tommy Elphick, Steve Cook and Charlie Daniels we have four quality defenders that are reliable and trustworthy. But the depth at full-back is non-existent, and only Stephane Zubar and Miles Addison provide cover for central defence. I have my doubts over whether Zubar and Addison are good enough for the next level, and would not be surprised to see at least one of them depart. Our lack of depth in defence was worryingly exposed in February and March when injuries to Daniels and Elphick resulted in a five match losing run that almost derailed the season. After Daniels returned against Oldham, and Elphick against Colchester, Bournemouth won 7 matches in a row, only letting in five goals during that span. Not many possible additions have been linked with a move, but a couple of weeks ago there were whispers of Tranmere left-back Zoumana Bakayogo making the move south this summer.

Could 'Zoom' be playing in red next season?

Moving on to the engine of the team, the midfield is extremely unbalanced, a lasting mark of the Paul Groves era. The number of wingers at the club is incredible (I count six) and there is no need for such a high amount to remain. Marc Pugh, Matt Ritchie and Ryan Fraser are all certain to stay at the club- barring any stupendous offers- leaving Josh McQuoid, Wes Fogden and Donal McDermott as the 3 in limbo. Ritchie and Pugh combined for a total of 11 goals and 13 assists, while the latter three's total amounts to 8 goals and 7 assists. Personally, I would let McQuoid and McDermott leave as both need regular first team football, but keep Fogden for his unbeatable work ethic. There are some exciting wingers available, such as Alan Judge and Febian Brandy, but will Eddie feel the need to strengthen this position? In the central midfield Shaun Macdonald, Harry Arter and Eunan O'Kane all had fabulous seasons, and while their overall contribution cannot be accounted for, the trio produced 13 goals and 12 assists, despite all suffering injuries at some point this season. Richard Hughes provides top-level experience, but I'm doubtful he will play a huge role on the pitch next season. This means we could likely do with one quality addition here, Simon Ferry and Marlon Pack are noticeable names on the market, but I think we could do with an energetic, determined ball-winner coming in. Undoubtedly next season we'll have to put on a few 'backs to the wall' performances, hence why a player of this sort could make a difference.

A better version of Marvin Bartley would help

Lastly the Bournemouth front line, is possibly the area of the team that needs strengthening the most. Pitman's quality cannot be denied and he is a lock to be starting the first game of the season, leaving one spot (depending on the formation) up for grabs. Lewis Grabban was fantastic this season, he contributed 13 goals and 8 assists, but his constant running and ability to split defences provided a different element to the Cherries' attack this season. While Lewis certainly deserves his chance next season, I believe that quality competition is certainly needed if only at least to challenge him and Brett. Unfortunately, I do not think Matt Tubbs is good enough and would be better off getting first team football elsewhere, because he's good enough to start at other clubs. The situation with Frank Demouge is a mystery, but perhaps his form on loan at Roda JC will convince Eddie to give him a second chance, while we'll hopefully never see Wes Thomas in a Bournemouth shirt again. Obviously, every team needs a good forward and it's not easy to find quality goal scorers without laying out a huge fee. Rumours have linked us to Westbourne's own Charlie Austin, but that seems extremely far-fetched. There are numerous quality players out of contract this summer that I think could improve the team; Will Grigg, Harry Forrester, Davide Somma and Will Hoskins are just a few of those.

Will Grigg bagged 20 goals for Walsall this year

In short, if I were Eddie Howe my shopping list would consist of two forwards, a central midfielder, a full-back and a central defender. Thankfully, Bournemouth fans know how successful Howe has been in the transfer market regardless of funding available, so hopefully a few exciting additions will be wearing the famous red and black stripes next season.

If you were manager, what positions do you think Bournemouth need to strengthen, and are there any players worth looking out for?

Bournemouth 3-1 Crewe Alexandra

AFC Bournemouth returned back to Dean Court for the first time in 10 days when they lost to Wigan Athletic in the FA Cup hoping to get another vital 3 points against Crewe Alexandra. Since the last home league match against Swindon, The Cherries lost their first match since early October in a disappointing 3-1 defeat at in-form Walsall, but Eddie Howe's men quickly recovered to win 2-1 away at Hartlepool last Tuesday. With the match at Crewe in December, it was the first time Bournemouth had come up against the League One new boys this season.

The Match

Bournemouth made two changes to the team that one at Hartlepool, with Brett Pitman and Steve Cook replacing Richard Hughes and Charlie Daniels respectively. With the ever present Daniels missing the match, loanee Daniel Seabourne shifted to left-back to fill the gap left, while Pitman started up front with Lewis Grabban. Bournemouth knew Crewe were a young side who like to play good football, but The Railwaymen also boast a surprisingly noticeable height advantage in their side.

The starting spot is now Jalal's to lose

Howe's men started our the game on the front foot, Josh McQuoid earned his side a corner early but despite neat play Harry Arter could only blaze the ball over the bar when given the ball just inside the area. Crewe however push on from there, Byron Moore was enjoying success down the right wing against Seaborne but couldn't provide any of the visitors front two with a chance to score. The deadlock was broken after only 8 minutes, when Marc Pugh received the ball inside the penalty box, a neat turn had seemingly found him a way through before he was (seemingly) tripped by a Crewe defender. Despite Lewis Grabban scoring from the spot in mid-week, Brett Pitman stepped up and his shot went in off the left post to give Bournemouth the lead. The home team soon retained the ball and when given the ball on the left wing, Pugh turned the right-back Mellor inside out numerous time before it seemed he was fouled once more, Arter picked up the loose ball and he too was tackled but the referee did not award The Cherries a second penalty in quick succession (it should be noted following this Pugh was limping and struggled throughout the rest of the game). The home side's positive play was then put to an end by a resolute Crewe team, The Alex ascended and took control of the game, displaying some of the football that has earned them their respected reputation. When Bournemouth managed to get hold of the ball possession was quickly given away, with Harry Arter the notable culprit of a few misplaced passes. Bournemouth's few chances came on the break, and Pitman glanced a header but the ball went just wide of the left post, inches away from hitting the net. Fortunately for Bournemouth, Crewe did not manage to carve our any clear cut chances in the half , with the big framed Matthias Pogba the player looking most dangerous on the ball. With the half in its final seconds Eunan O'Kane broke through with the ball and released Grabban through on goal, the forward took it past the goalkeeper Steve Phillips and as fans rose out of their seats in expectation, the ball hit the side netting!

Pitman grabbed the opener

The home team started out much brighter in the second half, Howe would state in his post match interview he was frustrated with negative passing in the first half, and his team were now much more forward thinking on the ball. With the visitors now having to push up a bit in search of an equalizer, it left more space for the dangerous Cherries' attack to do some damage. Newly confident Josh McQuoid went on a long run, speeding past numerous Alex defenders before laying off to Pitman, whose curling effort went high and wide into the North Stand. Crewe though managed to maintain hold of the ball well despite Bournemouth's improved performance, but still struggled to break through the Bournemouth backline. If anyone was going to worry the visitors it was McQuoid, and he floated in a a high cross for Pitman who seemed to hang in the air as he jumped, but his header was well saved by veteran Phillips. It was the trio of Pitman, Grabban and McQuoid that were constantly providing a threat to the visitors; neat link up play between the former two gave Grabban space in the area once more, but his shot was stopped by Phillips who at that point was keeping his side in the match. The second goal finally came when Arter found space just outside the box, his low shot was parried by Phillips, McQuoid quickly reacted to pounce on the ball, he turned and crossed for the waiting Pitman who hit the ball in the empty net. The scenes were jubilant and it seemed Bournemouth could now step out of first gear and see out another win at Dean Court, as the second goal usually kills a team off. The third goal should have come when Phillips parried out Simon Francis' stinging cross right onto Arter's head, but the ball went over the bar and into the stand. In face of all this pressure, the visitors suddenly burst into life and made a game of it when the visitors took advantage of a mistake by Francis; the Bournemouth right-back misjudged a header allowing Pogba to break into the box and drag a shot/cross across the face of the goal before Colclough tapped the ball into the net. It seemed the home team's momentum had been lost and we were in for a very nerve-wracking final fifteen minutes. Thankfully our worries were soon oppressed when substitute Wes Fogden strode into Crewe's box and was fouled by Abdul Osman, leaving the referee to point to the spot once more. Brett Pitman sealed his hat-trick and a win for The Cherries with his second penalty of the day.

Colclough scored for Crewe

My Thoughts

Today was a vital three points, having suffered our first set back in a while at Walsall the team has recovered to win two straight games. Crewe were certainly one of the better teams to visit Dean Court this year, had they been more lethal with the ball the scoreline could have been entirely different. That said, even if we had a bad first half we were vastly improved in the second half, and given the amount of chances missed we could have easily score 6 or 7 goals today.

 Josh McQuoid was almost a different player today, after Pugh's knock our left-side wasn't providing a threat but McQuoid really took the game to Crewe with his pacey runs. If his goal at Hartlepool has given him the confidence boost he needed, then hopefully he'll rediscover the form that made him sought after by Milwall in the 2010/11 season. Arter and O'Kane once more had good games, in the first half they let opponents run through too easily but whenever they have the ball it feels like they may create a chance soon. Brett Pitman also deserves praise, I get frustrated with his "style" sometimes, but the deal with playing him is that he can go 89 minutes without doing anything, then score the goal that wins the match. He seems to be striking a partnership up with Grabban too, hopefully something that they will continue to build upon going forward.

In defence, Seaborne stepped in well to replace Daniels at left-back and we now know we have a solid option if we ever need it. While he doesn't have the attacking threat (he is a centre-back), he defended well and nullified the threat of Moore in the second half. Steve Cook performed admirably considering he's been at court all week, while Tommy Elphick was his usual solid self. Francis covers a lot of ground, granted he needs to improve his distribution, but aside from the mistake he once more had a good game. This was the first time I've seen Jalal start in the league in a long time, and while some may disagree, he still does not fill me with confidence. David James had to be dropped, but if Jalal does not start dominating his area more I think it won't be long before we see Allsop starting.

Player Ratings

Jalal-7; Shwan did not have much to do today but I thought his distribution was much improved from before. My main concern is that he never comes for crosses or corners, he MUST learn to do this.

Francis- 6; As I said previously, he worked extremely hard and did well for most of the game. Sometimes he needs to just whip in the ball instead of trying to do that extra thing, and he made a bad mistake that led to the Crewe goal.

Elphick- 7; Calm on the ball and dealt with any threat that came his way, the Crewe front two never really seemed to take Clayton and Pogba (besides the goal) out of the game.

Cook- 7; See above.

Seaborne- 6; Playing in a position that is not natural to him he didn't cope well with Moore at first, but performed much better in the second half. He will never provide the attacking threat of Daniels though.

McQuoid- 8; My man of the match, he used his natural abilities to his advantage today and gave the left-back a tough time. His reactions to make the second goal were fantastic.

Arter- 7; Sloppy on the ball sometimes and earned another stupid yellow card, but he is a good tackler and is never afraid to take the ball up the pitch himself.

O'Kane- 8; When MacDonald is fit will he be dropped? I cannot see that he will yet, on numerous times he provided an outlet and also played good balls to create chances, a completely different player nowadays.

Pugh- 6; He started of brilliantly but after that tackle he faded and was clearly hampered by an injury, thankfully he managed to continue on and hopefully he'll be ready for next Saturday.

Pitman- 8; Can I argue with 3 goals? He never seems to actually play that well, but I suppose if three goals isn't a good match, then what is?

Grabban- 7; His pace provides a contrasting element to Pitman that always surprises opponents, had he been less selfish and more clinical he would have ended up with a goal and an assist.

Bournemouth End 2012 In Style

Bournemouth 3-0 Crawley

Following a comprehensive 3-0 Boxing Day victory over Yeovil Town, Eddie Howe's team headed into the match as the most in-form team in League One, having gone undefeated in their past 14 matches. Their opponents were Crawley Town, who after two promotions sat one point behind Bournemouth in their first season in League One. In the return fixture in October Crawley won 3-1 in what turned out to be Paul Groves' last match in charge of Bournemouth, leaving many Bournemouth fans hungry for revenge. Returning to Dean Court for the first time since he left in the summer was Shaun Cooper, a Bournemouth regular from 2006-2012. Despite a congested fixture list, Eddie Howe only made one change to the side that won on Boxing Day, with Josh McQuoid replacing Wes Fogden on the right wing.

It's fair to say that Bournemouth don't always start matches at their best, as evident in the home matches against Oldham and Yeovil. However The Cherries came flying out of the gates today, putting the Crawley players under lots of pressure and Marc Pugh enjoying notable success down the left wing against David Hunt. For all the possession, Bournemouth could not muster a clear chance, and the first real opportunity fell to Shaun Cooper who almost scored on his return with a half-volley from outside the penalty area that just went past David James' left hand post. Crawley began to come more into the match, looking towards the in-form Nicky Adams for inspiration, but fine Bournemouth defending halted any Crawley attack before they had the chance to develop. The opener came after 16 minutes, when centre back Steve Cook whipped in an inswinging cross from the left side and Crawley captain Gary Alexander headed a finely place header into the top corner of his own goal. The weather once again proved an obstacle for both teams as heavy rain poured down for a good twenty minutes, but Bournemouth managed to maintain control of the game, with a few brief Crawley purple patches in between. Slick passing left The Cherries' leading scorer Lewis Grabban through on goal from a tight angle, but he could only drag his shot wide of the goal. Thankfully, the second goal came when innovative thinking from Brett Pitman resulted in him shooting in a free kick in off the post before Crawley were ready. Crawley manager Richie Barker and his players were clearly far from impressed, venting their frustrations to the officials, ultimately to no vaial. Half-time came at the perfect moment for Barker's men as Bournemouth were in full attack mode and it seemed that they would grab the killer goal at any moment.

Gary Alexander scored an own goal

Barker clearly gave his players strong words at half-time as Crawley began to work much harder, making it increasingly difficult for Bournemouth to regain their first half momentum. Both sides worked and fought for little reward, with Crawley substitute Billy Clarke in the thick of any attack for the Red Devils. Bournemouth almost killed the game off when Steve Cook was left unmarked from a corner, but he could only head the ball straight at the Crawley goalkeeper. With time ticking down, it seemed like Bournemouth were going to grab yet another win, but their opposition were not going to let the game go without putting up a fight. With around 15 minutes left the dangerous Clarke found himself one on one with David James, but the veteran goalkeeper made a fantastic save to maintain the clean sheet, and probably ensure the 3 points went to the Dorset outfit. With the game in its final ten minutes, and the Cherries making a few changes it seemed that Howe's men were happy enough to let the game slowly filter away. Then Lewis Grabban, who had shifted out to the right wing, hit a stunning diagonal pass over Claude Davis to Eunan O'Kane, whose first touch was weighted to perfection and he placed the ball under Jones and into the net. At 3-0 any chance of a Crawley revival was gone, and Bournemouth secured their twelfth win in fifteen games.

Eunan O'Kane grabbed the final goal

My Thoughts

Today we faced a strong team that were notably better than our opponents on Boxing Day, but yet again we managed to defeat them without ever leaving first-gear. Admittedly at times there were worries in my mind, but it must be said that for all its attacking prowess this team also has an incredibly strong backbone. When Crawley pushed forward we could rely on our defenders to make crucial tackles, or as mentioned, David James consistently makes good saves. There is an abundance of confidence in this team, and the spirit is there once more that links the player together, thus making them want to work hard for each other. Our central midfielders today worked unbelievably hard, no matter where the ball was Harry Arter or Eunan O'Kane would be somewhere near it, and the whole team fed off of their energetic style. Even Brett Pitman was sprinting around the pitch and making tackles, if that doesn't show the commitment in the team then I don't know what does! It's noticeable how comfortable each player seems on the ball, from Elphick to Pugh, each of them is composed and aware of the options around them, resulting in an attractive but efficient style of play. Today we also threatened (and scored once) from set-pieces, I don't remember the last time we scored from a corner, but today we actually looked like we might do so. In conclusion, it was another great all-around team performance, and once we took the lead it never really seemed like victory was in doubt.

On Tuesday we face arguably our toughest challenge since we played Doncaster away in Brentford. They are on an eleven match unbeaten run and currently reside in fourth place, one above us. With the way this team is playing we should head to Griffin Park with the intention of taking all three points, but Brentford are obviously going to provide an extremely tough test for us, so I would be very happy if we came away with a point. Anyway, when we last played Crawley we were 21st in the league, and now we're fifth, these are very promising times for AFC Bournemouth. Here's to a great 2013.

Next Up: Brentford FC

Bournemouth 3-0 Yeovil Town

Belated Christmas Present For The Cherries

For the first time since 2007, Bournemouth had a Boxing Day match at home to look forward to with Yeovil Town making the short journey to the Goldsands Stadium. Since Eddie Howe's return Bournemouth were unbeaten for 13 games, but Yeovil headed into the match only 2 points behind the Cherries, having beaten Oldham 4-1 on Saturday. Highlighting the importance of the match, it was announced before the game that all home seats had been sold.

In front of an unusually packed Dean Court it was Yeovil who actually started the brighter team with their midfield winning the battle against the Cherries midfield which seemed to be missing the injured Shaun MacDonald. Bournemouth seemed to be struggling to get into a groove, as the hard working nature of the Glovers stopped the Cherries passing the ball around. Adding to this was the adverse weather conditions arguably working in Yeovil's favour, as a strong wind swept towards David James' goal, James also let the ball slip out of his hands twice, but Bournemouth's defence cleared before Yeovil's forwards had the chance to put the ball in the net. Yeovil's only real chance of the first half fell to the in form Paddy Madden who was let through after the ball went straight over the Bournemouth backline, but Madden mishit the ball and it rolled far and wide of the goal. Bournemouth tried to exploit the wings, particularly with Marc Pugh down the left, but Eddie Howe's men only looked dangerous when they whipped in crosses; Grabban and Pitman worked hard but couldn't manage to get on the end of any. Pitman did almost break the deadlock, but despite being merely yards out from the goal he could only hit a tame left footed shot right at Marek Stech. Bournemouth also had a major penalty claim turned down when Steve Cook was blatantly pushed by a Yeovil player in the penalty area as he tried to attack a free-kick, the referee did not agree and ordered play to continue. However the breakthrough came after half an hour, Grabban's pace got the better of the Yeovil defence as he released Pugh down the left, and he in turn crossed the ball across the face of goal for the onrushing Grabban to blast the ball home. The lead did not bring Bournemouth much joy and Yeovil probably felt slightly aggrieved to head into half time facing a 1-0 deficit.

Lewis Grabban grabbed the opener

Eddie Howe's men usually seem to transform in the second half, likely due to attacking the noisy home fans in the north stand. Bournemouth did manage to gain control of the match but still found it difficult to breakdown the Yeovil team, and they did not create any clear cut chances. Yeovil then had a brief purple patch, when it began to seem as if Bournemouth would struggle to hold on to the lead for the rest of the half. Dominic Blizzard found space on the edge of the area to fire at shot but David James made a good save to preserve the Cherries' lead. Following this, the visitors should have been killed off when a suicidal backpass left Grabban one on one with the goalie, but instead of passing to open team mates the increasingly confident Grabban took a shot, but it was saved by the very reliable Stech. Thankfully, the wasted chance would not come back to haunt Bournemouth as questionable Yeovil substitutions helped Bournemouth take complete control of the game. The second goal came when two Yeovil defenders let a Simon Francis cross go straight through them, leaving Harry Arter on the edge of the box to control and smash the ball home into the top corner. The second goal is always extremely important, and it seemingly killed off the hopes of the resilient visitors. More chances came Bournemouth's way, notably when at full stretch Pitman could only slide and just miss an open goal from substitute Josh McQuoid's cross. With ten minutes left Yeovil tried in vain to spark a revival when they had 3 corners in a row, but thanks to superb heading from Steve Cook and co. David James was not tested. Almost inevitably the third goal came when a penalty was awarded due to handball after the ball hit Luke Ayling's outstretched arm. Brett Pitman grabbed the ball and claimed the penalty as his despite the passive protests of designated penalty taker Charlie Daniels. Thankfully Pitman cooly slotted the ball home; 3-0, thank you and good night. Knowing the game was over almost half the visiting support left the stadium to gleeful chants of 'cheerio' from the home fans.

Brett Pitman got his first goal on home soil since his return

Thoughts

I was surprised by how well Yeovil played in the first half as they were terrible when we played them earlier in the season, but I thought they more than matched us for the opening 45 minutes. The first goal made a huge difference as it meant Yeovil had to push up, leaving their slow defenders exposed to the pace of the tireless Grabban. What worries me is that the loss of MacDonald leaves us very lightweight in the midfield, and if I was Eddie I'd be very tempted to drop either Fogden or O'Kane, as Yeovil's midfielders seemed to overpower them in terms of physicality. Against the top teams in this league sometimes it is necessary to have a ball-winner in the middle.

Enough with the negatives, in tough conditions we managed to resoundingly beat a good team, and if not for the fantastic efforts of Marek Stech it could have been 6 or 7-0. Though Addison was getting better, Steve Cook played fantastically and he seems to have built a very solid partnership with Tommy Elphick. When the pitch is in better condition, the technical ability of our players will become more prominent, as some of the balls being played are pure class. My man of the match today was Lewis Grabban, yes he did make some bad decisions but he ran his socks off for the team. His pace was a constant worry to the Yeovil defence and his confidence has skyrocketed since Eddie's return. If Brett rediscovers his old form then I think we could have one of the best forward lines in the league, especially with McQuoid and Tubbs coming off the bench. 14 games unbeaten is an amazing record, especially when we've won 11 of those and drawn only 3. We now are one point off the play-offs and 7 off the automatic places, so there is no reason why we can't push on even further. Yes, the run has to end at some point but there is no reason why that has to be in the near future.  Next up we face another tough outfit in Crawley, who beat Portsmouth yesterday after going through a barren spell of form.

Ex-Cherry Shaun Cooper and his Crawley side are next for Howe's team

The Return Of The King

2 weeks ago Bournemouth lost 1-2 at home to Walsall, the club was in disarray and the fans were left with an extremely bitter taste in their mouths. Flash forward two weeks later, the return of Eddie Howe and Jason Tindall is marked by a dominant 2-0 win over Leyton Orient, with fans going home very, very happy.

I haven't wrote match reviews for about 3 weeks because of how utterly dispiriting the performances have been, I can't say I even cared anymore, it was so depressing watching that team play. But today was different, the magic of AFC Bournemouth had returned following a 15 month absence. The pre-game was focused around the return of Bournemouth legend Eddie Howe, who has been poached back from the club he departed to, Burnley. A rapturous applause from the largest home crowd of the season set the tone for what followed.

The Match 

Bournemouth lined up 4-5-1, with Lee Barnard leading the line by himself, though Pugh and Grabban occasionally made it into a 4-3-3. Leyton Orient brought a decent following of 499 to the south coast, but their fans had little to cheer for as Russel Slade opted for the "park the bus" tactic. The opening 20 minutes was rather dull, with Leyton Orient's tactics of having ten men behind the ball constantly frustrating any attack Bournemouth tried to produce. However, with the atmosphere a bit flat, Bournemouth started to pick themselves up a little with some neat passing. Marc Pugh was a consistent threat down the left wing, reminding many of his dynamic performances when Eddie Howe was boss during the 2010-11 season. Even though players found themselves in space often, and an abundance of corners, Bournemouth simply lacked that cutting edge, with Grabban often being the culprit of bad control. Even though Bournemouth dominated possession, there were not many chances to talk about barring the many corners, though they were easily dealt with by Ben Chorley and Nathan Clarke in the Orient defence. Unfortunately, Richard Hughes pulled a muscle towards the end of the first half, and was replaced by Lorenzo Davids, a man with a lot to prove.

The second half started in much the same manner, but there was one vital difference from the first half. The crowd had awoken, "Eddie Howe's Barmy Army" was belted out from the fans in the north stand, who amazingly managed to keep the chanting going for around 20 minutes. Bournemouth began to look far more dangerous, the impressive Davids notably hit two superb long range cross field balls finding Grabban in space down the right side. Following around 4 corners in a row (I lost count) Bournemouth finally broke the deadlock, as Simon Francis' corner ricocheted around the Leyton Orient box, somehow finding it's way into the back of the net with Grabban seemingly having the last touch. This goal was significant, it symbolized a fresh start to the season and the joy on everyone's faces (Players and fans) was there for all to see. On the back of the momentum, Bournemouth quickly grabbed a second as Marc Pugh seized on a sloppy pass by Alsopp in the Orient goal, he teased the lunging Orient defenders before almost stumbling into the net along with the ball. Orient's extremely unambitious tactics had yielded them no return, Slade tried to switch things up, bringing on Ryan Brunt for the lethargic Symes and teenager winger Moses Adabujo in a hope to spark a comeback. Slade's substitutions returned nothing, their team struggled to string passes together and 90 minutes of chasing a ball is extremely tiring work. Bournemouth comfortably saw out the final 20 minutes with no defensive worries, but no real further chances that would have increased the winning margin.

 My Thoughts

How nice it is to return home on a Saturday evening with 3 points in the bag. For the first time in a very long time the players can hold their heads high, knowing the deserved the win because of their effort throughout the match. Eddie and Jason's return is going to turn this club around, but credit to Dennis Rhodes and Chris Hargreaves for changing the team, installing some passion and belief in the short amount of time they had. The defence was very solid throughout, Elphick and Addison won everything while Daniels and Francis provided support down the wing. The midfield was lacking in the first half, but Davids changed the game in the second half with his calm touch and quality passing, while O'Kane looked far more comfortable (and far more effective) in a central attacking role. There was always an option out wide in Grabban or Pugh, though the delivery sometimes lacked in quality. Up front Barnard was far too often left isolated, his touch was first class but it wasn't often that he actually got involved in the game.

In summary, our ego-maniac chairman has eaten a healthy portion of humble pie and brought back one of the club's best ever managers. The crowds will begin to increase and the atmosphere will certainly return. We face a very tough test at home next week to league leaders Tranmere, who have flown out of the traps to start the season. Eddie has his first week now to assess and work with the players, and hopefully we will soon see the passing, attacking football that has been so dearly missed return to Dean Court once more.

Bournemouth's new management team are introduced to the crowd

Swindon Town 4-0 AFC Bournemouth

Cherries Rocked By The Rockin' Robins

Report 

AFC Bournemouth slumped to their second defeat of the season this afternoon at The County Ground as they were thumped 4-0 by a confident Swindon team. The defeat leaves Bournemouth 17th in the table after gaining a mere 8 points from their first 8 games.

Bournemouth made three changes to the side that faced Brentford on Tuesday as the injured Pugh, Arter and Francis were replaced by Fogden, McDermott and Cook respectively. Swindon started the game on the front foot, with wide man Matt Ritchie in particular looking dangerous. After having control of a lightweight Bournemouth side, Swindon broke the deadlock just after ten minutes. Bournemouth's insistence on passing out of defence produced a mistake as Fogden failed to control Cook's pass, Matt Ritchie intercepted the ball on the edge of the area and smashed a rocket past Shwan Jalal and into the back of the net. Paul Groves once again tried to make a diamond midfield work, but yet again it failed to produce good results. As the commentator on BBC Wiltshire said, "if you come to Swindon you must play 4-4-2 and try to match them". Grabban and Tubbs were often left isolated up front and could not make an impact on the game despite running around.  The second goal came once again through Swindon's width, the ball found it's way to Gary Roberts who hit a curling cross from the left hand side, the ball somehow evaded all of Bournemouth's defenders leaving Andy Williams with a simple header. Bournemouth's best (and only) chance of the match fell to Matt Tubbs, the ball was played over Swindon's defence and Tubbs hit a low shot, but goalkeeper Wes Foderingham made a great save low to his right hand side. The teams went in at half time with Swindon looking increasingly comfortable, basking in their 2-0 advantage.

Groves made two changes to begin the match, with Josh Wakefield and Josh McQuoid replacing Donal McDermott and Wes Fogden. The visitors finally started pressing forward a bit, but a few sub standard corners aside, they never really looked like threatening Swindon's goal. The game began to have a feel of a training match, Swindon's players looked calm on the ball and played some nice, neat passes in short space. The third goal game when Matt Ritchie hit a low driven free-kick from the outside the right side of the Cherries penalty area, it amazingly went through everyone in the box and hit the back of the net before Jalal had time to sufficiently react. "Groves out" started to belt out from the visiting supports, alongside "you're getting sacked in the morning". With 10 minutes to go and the game looking bleaker by the minute I decided that it was time to go, so unfortunately I cannot comment on the fourth goal, but it was scored by Birmingham loanee Adam Rooney.

My Thoughts

Where to begin? It is simply beyond my understanding how a team that has cost so much money can play so appallingly. I have seen some bad times as a Bournemouth fan, but I do not remember walking away from a game this demotivated. I think this feeling is also held by many fellow Bournemouth supporters, there is simply something missing within the club. The team plays without passion, without fire or flair, there seems to be a constant lack of determination to push on and win the game. Today it was boys vs men, we were absolutely outclassed by a Swindon team that did what we should have done in all four of our home games. I don't like giving anyone abuse, but it is time for Groves to go, the results and performances have been completely unacceptable. Miles Addison's post match interview clearly shows that there is disarray in the dressing room, and this all just comes back to the leadership of the team. We can't play a diamond midfield with 3 lightweight players in it, McDermott, Fogden and O'Kane all get easily muscled off the ball constantly, and Partington isn't exactly a ball winner either. Addison and Elphick seem to have a lack of understanding when playing together, and the ball constantly gets past them. Grabban and Tubbs did nothing when they got on the ball, Tubbs has now missed two one on one's, and Grabban can't beat a man to save his life. We seriously need a man (like Di Canio, not as nutty though) to come in and give this team a kick up the backside and whip them into shape.


Anyway, thanks very much for reading once again and Up The Cherries...

Former Cherries target Matt Ritchie grabbed two goals

Bournemouth vs Brentford- Preview

Background

AFC Bournemouth go into this game on the back of a draw to Hartlepool, and the frustration is beginning to show. Manager Paul Groves and Chairman Eddie Mitchell have come out in the press to criticize the Dean Court boo boys, who apparently are in the wrong. The visitors, Brentford, lost away to Leyton Orient on Thursday night in front of the Sky Camers.

Bournemouth News:

The Cherries come into this game with a largely healthy squad, as long term absentees Charlie Sheringham, Stephen Purches, Darryl Flahavan and Franck Demouge are the only players unavailable for selection. On Saturday, Richard Hughes dropped out of the squad with youngster Joe Partington replacing him in the defensive hole of the midfield diamond. Hughes however, should be in contention to return to the starting line up on Tuesday. Bournemouth's options have significantly increased with the returns of Wes Fogden, Josh McQuoid and Hughes who all have been regulars since their respective recoveries from injury. Groves might be inclined to make a tactical change to the diamond he has been favouring recently as the width of Marc Pugh made a noticeable difference against Hartlepool.

Here's my preferred lineup (4-1-3-2):

--Jalal--

--Francis--Addison--Elphick--Daniels

--Hughes--

--Pugh--MacDonald--Arter--

--Grabban--Tubbs--

The Visitors:

Brentford make the short trip south sitting comfortably in tenth position having amassed 10 points from their opening 6 games. They have had an inconsistent start to the season, with 2 wins, 1 draw and 1 loss in their previous four matches. Under boss Uwe Rosler Brentford have gained a reputation for playing football the right way, and will no doubt set up in a more positive manner than Hartlepool did on Saturday. The only absence for The Bees will be midfielder Adam Forshaw, a recent signing from Everton, who is a doubt due to an abdominal problem.

Here's how they lined up against Leyton Orient:

--Moore--

--Logan--Dean--Bidwell--Craig

--Forshaw--Douglas--Diagouraga--

--Donaldson--Hayes--Forrester

My Prediction:

It's hard to get a true feel for this game considering how well we played against Yeovil, but so abysmally against Hartlepool. Groves is certainly under major pressure to start delivering the results, but I just feel that at some point we are due to thrash a team, or be on the end of a thrashing. If my line up prediction is correct, the return of Daniels and Pugh could bring some much needed attacking width to the side, and Pugh is always a nightmare for full-backs. That said, Tuesday will not be the day that we thrash someone, but I have confidence in the team to produce in the result. Brentford are clearly no pushovers, but I think their ability to play football in a passing manner may actually be a disadvantage for them. I predict a 2-1 win to The Cherries, with Tubbs and Arter grabbing the goals.


Thanks for reading, and as always, Up The Cherries!

March Pugh is a possibility to return

AFC Bournemouth 1-1 Hartlepool United

Cherries Drown In The Pool

After the impressive win against Yeovil, I, among many, had confidence that we were witnessing the start of something special. Today proved me wrong, extremely wrong. A home game against a Hartlepool side that hadn't started off too well had a win all over it. However, as I said to my cousin before the game, these games are always the trickiest.

The Cherries remained unchanged bar Richard Hughes dropping out of the squad with youngster Joe Parting regaining his place in the starting lineup. Hartlepool, as expected set out in a very defensive style, with only big man Steve Howard remaining up front. The game started off very blandly, it was a non-event and both teams looked absolutely devoid of any inspiration. Hartlepool were happy to sit back as The Cherries passed around their defence trying to emulate Spain, and then hit a long hopeful ball that would always come to no result. The only chance of the first half came when Wes Fogden headed it just over the bar, though Scott Flinders likely had it covered. A lack of width was extremely noticeable, as the diamond formation meant only the full backs provided any attack from the outside.

The second half continued in much the same manner, a double change bringing on Pugh and Daniels somewhat lifted the team, but again the attacks came to little fruition. Hartlepool's big defence constantly got rid of any incoming balls, with Josh McQuoid and Lewis Grabban having little impact on the game. The north stand soon started chanting "We Want Matthew Tubbs", and Paul Groves gave them what they wanted; Tubbs replaced McQuoid with 25 minutes left on the clock. Unsurprisingly, the sub had little effect and it began to look like a 0-0 draw was on the cards. Then, as luck would have it, the first time Hartlepool dared venture into Bournemouth's penalty box, Shaun MacDonald gave away an unnecessary penalty. Penalty specialist (haha) Shwan Jalal failed to save Simon Walton's spot kick, and the boos soon echoed around Dean Court. Bournemouth's first real chance came soon after, Daniels whipped the ball in and Flinders could only parry Grabban's volley, up stepped Matthew Tubbs; the chance to prove Groves wrong, ignite the game once more, only he headed the ball wide of the open goal. Minutes passed, with Bournemouth looking increasing puzzled as to what to do next. People were leaving, "Groves Out" was ringing out of the north stand, but in the 92nd minute, the goal finally came. Fogden brought down a pass, took it past a man and slipped it through to Tubbs who happily placed the ball past the helpless Flinders. Game over, 1-1.

Getting a last minute goal is always delightful, but for me it only glossed over how poor the team was today. We had all the possession, but very rarely even looked like scoring. Without Hughes the team looked lost, and there seemed to be no game plan as to how to attack Hartlepool effectively. Personally, I thought we only looked dangerous when Daniels and Pugh came on, as they added an attacking width we so desperately needed. Against Brentford I hope Tubbs replaces McQuoid, and the midfield is changed around a bit. Three words sum up this game perfectly, NOT GOOD ENOUGH.

Ratings:

Jalal: 6- Nothing to do, hopeless on penalties, only marked down due to below par distribution.

Francis: 6- Defended okay but his crossing was woeful, not the same player as he was against Yeovil.

Addison: 6- Dealt with Howard comfortably and not at fault for the goal.

Elphick: 7- Same as Addison, but he gets a higher rating because he doesn't spend half the time whinging at the referee.

Cook: 4- People might disagree, but after playing so well against Pompey and Yeovil I thought he was off the pace today. Bad crossing and constantly gave the ball away.

Arter: 5- Energetic, but didn't do much.

Partington: 7- Calm, collected, and a balanced player to have on the pitch.

Fogden: 6- Didn't do much except setting up the goal, barely noticeable.

MacDonald: 6- Was great in the last two games but an off day for him today in my opinion.

Grabban: 6- He tried, had a bit of pace and put in a couple of good balls. Still needs to do more to justify a place though.

McQuoid: 4- Shouldn't have even turned up, poor.

Tubbs: 7- Scored a goal that has saved Groves for another week, and was the only one to get in scoring positions.

Daniels: 6- Provided width and made a couple of good runs but took a few heavy touches, still getting back to form.

Pugh: Constantly beat his man and was exactly what we needed, hopefully back to his old self.

Goalscorer Matt Tubbs

Yeovil 0-1 Bournemouth

After four long, painful matches, AFC Bournemouth finally secured their first win of the season on Saturday at close southern neighbours Yeovil Town. Yeovil, had come into the game joint second, having 3 games and drawing one so far. However, their small squad appeared to haunt them yesterday, as they were second best to a rejuvenated Bournemouth side throughout.

The opening minutes were typical of a match, nobody willing to make a risky move, hoping to make it through the beginning without letting in a goal. Yeovil soon pressed forward though, and a Tommy Elphick mistake let Sam Foley dribble the ball into the penalty area, only to drag his shot just wide of the post. As the game settled down, Bournemouth retained possession often and passed it comfortably along their defence, wearing down Yeovil's forwards, James Hayter and Rueben Reid. Crosses were whipped in by Simon Francis, Grabban and McQuoid tried to get on the end of them but to no avail. A clattering tackle by Byron Webster on Wes Fogden just outside the box gave Bournemouth a free-kick in a prime position. Experienced midfielder Richard Hughes stepped up, and used his left foot to blast past Marek Stech and into the top corner. Gary Johnson, clearly unimpressed with his team's display, made a double substitution,  not waiting for half-time to make the change. The remainder of the first half saw the Cherries continue to press, and Josh McQuoid almost doubled their lead, but Richard Hinds made a heroic block to keep the deficit to one. Ed Upson hit a volley just over the bar, but the teams went in with the Cherries leading 1-0.

Many, including myself thought half-time might be a chance for Yeovil to regroup and come out with all guns blazing. This was not to be the case, as Yeovil continued their lackluster performance, with James Hayter often stranded up front with no help or support. The Glovers tried to push on, but they often gave the ball away, with the main culprits being the central midfielders. When Bournemouth got the ball back they often found Yeovil with only two or three defends back, leaving miles of space for Grabban, McQuoid and Fogden to exploit to their advantage. Numerous chances came Bournemouth's way, notably when Fogden nor McQuoid could manage to score even in a 3 on 1 situation. Though Yeovil never actually looked like scoring, a 1-0 lead is never secure, and as the Cherries continuously missed chances fans grew increasingly frustrated. Paul Groves brought on Joe Partington, Wes Thomas and Marc Pugh but none of them could score that vital second goal. Unusually for a 1-0 game,  Bournemouth did not face a barrage of attack in the last ten minutes from The Glovers, and all three 3 points ultimately went back to the seaside.

Bournemouth's performance was very impressive, they won all challenges, passed well and looking a constant threat when they went forward. The worrying part is though, that two games in a row we could have scored 4 or 5 goals, but easy chances were completely wasted by the forwards and midfielders. One thing certain with this team is that we can easily control and dictate games, but eventually our lack of finishing may come back to haunt us. That said, it could just be bad luck, and one team is about to get thumped, such is the mystery of football. Groves has clearly got the side playing better, and with Harry Redknapp in as an advisor, the sky is finally clearing.

On the other side, Yeovil will be hoping to improve on that performance for their game next week against MK Dons. Bournemouth fans know what it's like to have a young, thin squad and it can often be challenging to keep up with the amount of fixtures. This will likely have just been an off-day for Gary Johnson's men, and as they have proved so far this season, they are more than capable of having a successful year.