Ian Harte

Last week Ian Harte became Bournemouth's second signing of the summer, joining fellow defender Elliott Ward on the newly promoted club's books. Aged 35, Harte is certainly a very experienced footballer, boasting a career that has seen him play in the Premier League, World Cup and La Liga. Harte has earned 63 international caps in his career and The Cherries are his 7th club since he began his career at Leeds United.

Harte scoring vs Spain in the 2002 World Cup

To gain an insight into the player we have signed, I found a Reading fan (@Jamie_Hodder21) who was kind enough to answer a few questions for me about Ian Harte.

Firstly, could you briefly introduce yourself?

Hello, my name is Jamie Hodder im 21 and I'm a Reading Season ticket holder. Been a life long fan of the Royals. My Grandad took me to my first ever game and since then I've been hooked. The last 7/8 years have seen us become a stronger side and promotion contenders year after year. Just hoping the next 7/8 years we can see ourselves cement our place in the Premier League. 

Ian Harte spent 3 seasons at Reading, would you consider his spell at the Madjeski successful?

Over the 3 seasons Harte spent at the Madejski I think the majority of Reading fans would definitely see his spell as a successful one. Brian McDermott took a risk bringing him to Reading as many people doubted him at this level considering his age. While at Reading he saw himself get to a Play off final, become a League Winner and obviously make a return to the premier league which showed all doubters he could do it. He quickly became a fan favourite and his performances were fantastic. 

Harte is a veteran of the game now, but do you think he is still capable of playing at this level?

Ian Harte as you said is a veteran of the game. He has been around a very long time and probably knows the game better than anyone. As he is approaching the later years in his career it is obvious to see his lack of pace which will be seen as a weakness and many wingers may try and exploit this. Having said that, his experience can make up for it and you may see him give himself a few yards to position himself then make the tackle. In the Premier League where the wingers and forwards are world class, his positioning couldn't help him. He was torn to pieces in some games he just couldn't keep up, but looking at the championship this season, I could still see him doing a very good job. But only time will tell! 

Are his set-pieces as good as they say?

Ian Harte's set pieces. They talk for themselves. They are probably not AS good as they used to be, but if you have a decent striker on the end of it, he will put the ball in the right place every time. In our promotion winning season in 2011/12, his set pieces were vital, he came up with many balls into the box that caused alot of trouble for defenders, not to mention the goals he scored straight from free kicks (Middlesbrough away a personal favourite). His penalty taking is also a highlight although i do remember him missing a few! Give him the chance to put a ball in the box and he will punish you. I think you'll be surprised at the amount of chances you'll make from his magical left foot. 

Finally, will you be making the trip to Dean Court this season?

Yes I definitely plan on coming down for the Game at Dean Court. Sadly many of our fans are annoyed that its on a night, many of us wanted a weekend at the beach! But that aside I think you'll see a good atmosphere when we come down. Looking forward to it as I've never been to Dean Court before. I'm sure Harte will get a superb Reception both times we play you! Good luck for the season!! 

Welcome to Bournemouth, Ian.

Elliott Ward

The time between the last match of the season and the first friendly is a very difficult time for any dedicated football fan. A lack of events and news resorts fans to get their excitement off any rumour floating around on the internet, regardless of its source and how realistic it is.That's why when Elliott Ward became Bournemouth's first signing of the summer on Tuesday, many Bournemouth fans were happy to enjoy some real news. There were hundreds of rumours as to whom Eddie Howe might sign in preparation for life in The Championship, but I don't think anybody had even suggested the idea of Elliott Ward making the move to the south coast.

Welcome to AFCB, Elliott.

Ward joins Bournemouth boasting an impressive career to date. He started out his career at West Ham, where he made 18 appearances, including three in the Premier League, with a loan spell at Plymouth Argyle in between. Following this was a 1 million pound move to Coventry City where he played 116 times, while also having loan spells at Doncaster Rovers and Preston North End. In 2010 he joined Norwich City, where he became a regular in a team that won promotion out of the Championship, but Ward spent the majority of last season on loan at Nottingham Forest. Standing at an impressive 6 foot 3 inches, he has scored 21 goals over his career, and has appeared in 245 games since his debut in 2004. He has been a part of two teams that have won promotion into the Premier League, has played in said league for two teams and has never played below the Championship in his career; quite an impressive signing for a club that only 3 years ago was banned from signing anybody.

Ward helped Norwich gain promotion in 2011

Where Ward fits into the side is another matter though. No Bournemouth fan can dispute the superb performances of Tommy Elphick and Steve Cook last season, and both deserve their chance in the Championship. However, Ward will have come here for first team football and I'm sure that is why Eddie has brought him to the club. This means we have (at least) 3 quality centre-backs, with question marks surrounding the others in the squad. At the very least Ward will provide competition for Cook and Elphick, but it seems we have signed a player good enough to start for most in this league. We also should not underestimate the value of his height- he scored 3 times for Forest last season and while be a dangerous weapon attacking corners, and very helpful when defending them. In a league that will no doubt be more skilful, but also tougher physically adding imposing players will certainly aid our cause.

Ward spent last season on loan at Notting Forest

As I've never seen him play, I asked around on twitter and a few kind Nottingham Forest fans were kind enough to tell me about our new signing.

Sean Trowell @trowelly87

He started off playing like Bristol Rovers manager John Ward and only ever thumped it long, however he was much improved after xmas. For someone with a head as big as his (literally) he should score and win more headers, overall a useful Championship defender.

JJ Miller @Miller10

I thought he was class, started off slowly and a lot of fans didn't rate him but he won them over by the end. Not the quickest player but he's as strong as anything and a very good defender, reads the game well and can tackle. Very, very good in the air both defensively and from set-pieces. Very good signing for you especially on a free. Surprised we didn't try and get him.



Based off these opinions of fans who watched him over all of last season it seems we have an impressive signing joining the team. Thanks for reading!

Cherries Blunt The Daggers

Report

Bournemouth's fine form continued this afternoon in the first round of the FA Cup against League Two opposition Dagenham & Redbridge. With a special offer of 10 pounds for adults and 1 pound for kids, a good sized crowd of around 5,800 turned up to watch a fine display of football from The Cherries. Approximately 150-200 Daggers fans made the (relatively) short journey south, although it probably felt a lot longer on the way home.

On a cold but clear afternoon Bournemouth headed into this game full of confidence on the back of 3 wins and a draw in their past four games. Under new manager Eddie Howe the side has completely transformed, notably scoring 10 goals in his 3 games in charge. Howe made three changes to the team that lined up at Carlisle on Saturday, as Jalal, Cook and Tubbs replaced James, Addison and Barnard respectively. The game started out quite scrappy, with Dagenham gaining quite a firm foothold in the match and limiting the Cherries' chances to get the ball forward. When Bournemouth actually got the ball, the Dagenham players were keen to pressure them and limit their time to make a decision and create something. The first half wasn't a good advert for lower league football, with a lot of hoofing and hit and hope passes being played by both sides. Bournemouth had a couple of corners, but seemed determined to make a short corner routine work, but unfortunately each time it came to nothing. The first real chance fell to the in-form Josh McQuoid, who ran in from the right side of the box to meet a cross, only to tamely volley the ball wide of the posts. However, it was to be McQuoid who broke the deadlock after 30 minutes, good work from Lewis Grabban resulted in him passing it to the onrushing McQuoid, who hit the ball into the net with a left footed strike despite the desperate attempts of the Dagenham defenders. As the half progressed, Bournemouth started to dominate proceedings, with Dagenham seemingly happy to keep 10 men behind the ball and get to half-time. Despite all the possession, Bournemouth were struggling to undo a stout Daggers defence and the teams headed in at half-time with the score 1-0.

The second half saw the introduction of former Bournemouth goalkeeper Jordan Seabright, who made his Dagenham debut replacing the (possibly) injured Chris Lewington. As many expected, Bournemouth were started out the second half with an attacking edge to their game, and they tried to break down the hard working Daggers. Seabright was involved early and even made a couple of good saves to keep Dagenham in it. The second goal came following a fantastic through ball to Francis, whom was denied one on one by a great save from Seabright, but the ball unfortunately fell to Marc Pugh who sprinted to the thunder the ball into the back of the net. Around 3 Dagenham players flung their bodies at the ball but they could not stop Pugh's placed finish from close distance. Facing an exit from the FA Cup, John Still's men tried to push on forward but found it difficult to maintain possession against a confident Bournemouth side. Bournemouth were able to push the ball around of both sides of the pitch, stretching a tiring Dagenham side as the Cherries looked for a third goal to kill the game off. The third goal came twenty minutes after the second in the 79th minute, as that man Josh McQuoid struck once again. A cross from Simon Francis came to the waiting McQuoid, who hit a peach of a volley past the diving Seabright and into the left corner of the goal. By then the game was pretty much over barring an Arsenal-esque recovery from Dagenham. In fairness, Dagenham did have a 5 or ten minute period where they had Bournemouth defending, but it never felt like there was a real threat present. Substitute Wes Fogden finished off the scoring with a classy goal in the 90th minute; after receiving the ball and attacking down the right wing, he cut into the penalty box, took the ball onto his left foot and shot the ball right into the bottom left hand corner of the goal. 4-0, thank you and goodnight.

McQuoid grabbed a brace today

My Thoughts

Today I had the rare pleasure of sitting in the North Stand as the FA Cup ticket thing meant my Main Stand Season Ticket wasn't valid, and what a great game to be there. It's interesting having a different view because I can see what different players do, what they contribute and different elements of the tactics being employed. I was very impressed with the defence today, Cook is very composed on the ball yet also strong when attacked, and I think he deserves a chance over Addison. Once more Daniels and Francis were outstanding, their attacking threat is very important to our game and they impressed me today going forward. The midfield was efficient as it has been in the previous games, although I felt the centre of midfield was missing in the first half. MacDonald had a great second half though, Pugh set up numerous chances and McQuoid of course delivered a brace. Some may disagree with me but I was disappointed with Tubbs' performance today, he seemed to go missing in the first half and the defenders seemed to have the better of him throughout. In contrast, Lewis Grabban had his best performance of the season; he turned defenders inside out, constantly won headers and held up the ball whenever he got it, more of the same please Lewis!

With all due respect to Dagenham- who are a club I have the utmost respect for- today was a game we should have won, and the players duly delivered. Scoring 16 goals in the past 5 games is very encouraging, and it feels like Eddie has once again brought the attacking, fast paced style back that Bournemouth fans love. Yes, the team will face tougher challenges this season but they did well to break down an organized and strong opposition who had come with a very defensive mentality. Eddie Howe certainly faces a selection dilemma for Tuesday, when struggling Shrewsbury make the trip south to Dean Court. Lets hope we get a favourable draw tomorrow, remember we are number 11.  Up The Cherries!

Shrewsbury await on Tuesday

The Public Image of a Football Club

In modern football, the way that a club is viewed by the general public is often determined by how said club are portrayed by the media in their respective nation. In a society were televisions and the internet over-rule newspapers, people on one side of the world can be made aware of an event that took place on the other side of the world within seconds. This advancement in technology, has obviously had a major effect on football.

As a support of AFC Bournemouth, I can safely assume that a lot of people in Great Britain think that our club is a bit of a joke, thanks to the theatre act that is Eddie Mitchell. Via Youtube, Sky Sports News, and other sources people all over the globe could stumble into a video of a drunk chairman offering to fight fans on a football pitch, and that will decide the opinion this previously neutral viewer will have. Another example is that of Crawley Town, who have been hated by many this season due to the antics of their now ex-manager Steve Evans. A convicted crook, Evans has been known to make outlandish statements in the media and often act very eccentrically during matches. But now he has left Crawley to join Rotherham, will Crawley rid of their negative status in the footballing world and pass it on to Rotherham?

In my opinion, people are too quick to form a judgement on a club based on the people that represent the club that are featured in the media. It is certain that if the fans of clubs were the ones shown in the news, rather than people such as the manager or the chairman, everybody would more aware about the true values and foundations that each football club is based upon. Maybe I wouldn't think all Chelsea supporters were a bunch of glory hunters if Roman Abramovic wasn't the only representative of Chelsea i'm ever exposed to? I think that each and every football club has unique features that make it great and interesting, whether that be the success of Manchester United, or the compact feel of going to watch Macclesfield play at Moss Rose.

Until next time,

Max


Oh...here's Eddie Mitchell being his oh so charming self.

Premier League Final Predictions

Note: These predictions will only cover the top four spots, and the bottom three.

1. Manchester United- A team that looked unlikely to win the title earlier in the season, their strength in depth and vast experience has shone as the season has progressed. Alex Ferguson has made clever moves this season, he brought in youngsters such as Phil Jones, while also bringing back old heads in Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs. Even without the large budget of their city neighbours, Ferguson has put together a balanced squad that has only performed better as the season progressed. While it's not yet set in stone, Machester United do not have difficult upcoming games, and it's my belief that they will clinch the title at Eastlands in front of the Manchester City fans.

2. Manchester City- The sun has set on Roberto Mancini's time at Manchester City. While he brought them an FA Cup win and Champions League qualification, for the money spent his return has been below-par. In my opinion, the season was lost because of his failure to control his squad and command authority over them. It is beyond belief that he would let Carlos Tevez play for his team again, though it shows how desperate Mancini has begun as the points have dried up. The other liability has been, of course, Mario Ballotelli. As I watched the Arsenal game today, I was baffled as to how Mancini could possibly leave that man on the pitch. He has extreme immaturity issues that have caused him to be sent of 4 times this season, and always remain in the spotlight for the wrong reasons. Though Roberto Mancini claims Ballotelli will never play for Man City again, I think Mancini won't be the one in charge to make that decision.

3. Arsenal- This has been a controversial season for Arsene Wenger and his men. The loss of key players at the beginning of the year, coupled with a few disastrous results (8-2) saw many calling for the long time manager to be sacked. While Arsenal fans will always want more than a third or fourth place finish, with their budget, this is realistically the best that the team can achieve. I like the way the Wenger manages his side, he develops young players and also lets star players leave when they are on the way down after reaching their peak (Viera, Henry). Arsenal's form has picked up towards the end of the season, and results against teams like Manchester City and Spurs have proven the team's ability.

4. Tottenham Hotspur- It is noticeable to everyone that Spurs' form has gone downhill since Redknapp has been linked the England post, and involved with court cases. Honestly, I thought that this year would be their most successful yet and that Bale, Van Der Vaart and Modric would lead their team to a second or third place finish. While the wheels have slightly come off, Tottenham are still a good bet to finish third or fourth and achieve their goal of Champions League qualification. To become an elite team, I think they need to strengthen their forward line. While Adebayor and Defoe are good Premier League strikers, they don't score enough to outscore teams like Manchester United and Manchester City. It will be interesting to see what happens to them if Redknapp does ultimately leave.

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18. Blackburn- I had a really tough time choosing the final team to go down this season, but after examining remaining schedules I thought that Blackburn had too much of a challenge to stay up. Their other main competitors (Bolton has a much easier schedule, Wigan looked brilliant against Chelsea) seem able to do enough to stay up. Blackburn have never been a good side since Steve Kean took over, and while they have improved recently, it is tough to see where the points will come from. The one thing in their favour is that in Junior Hoilett and Yakubu they have two goal-scorers, but they might be relying on them too much. Should it come down to the final day of the season, a home game against Chelsea won't be easy for them.

19. QPR- Currently sitting outside the relegation zone on goal difference, QPR are a team that I could see staying up or going down. However, their remaining fixtures include Spurs, Chelsea and Manchester City who all still have something to play for. The team has been let down by their big money signings such as Djibril Cisse and Joey Barton. Promoted teams often make the mistake of signing big name veterans to aid their cause, but it is the young, determined players that are much more useful (see Swansea and Norwich). It will be close, but QPR should be returning to a league much more suited to a club of their size next season.

20. Wolverhampton Wanderers- It is safe to assume that Wolves are dead and buried at the bottom of the Premier League. Since firing McCarthy after a devastating 5-1 home loss to rivals West Bromwich Albion, things have gotten even worse under interim manager Terry Connor. They have barely gained a point since he took charge, and the only reason his team has gained headlines is the wife of one of his players question his team on twitter. Wolves should be back up soon, as they have always been a yo-yo club.