MK Dons 0-3 AFC Bournemouth

The Match

As the teams entered the fray I think both sets of fans understood the importance of this game, and the opening stages reflected this; Milton Keynes had most of the possession without really threatening, while Bournemouth seemed dangerous on the break but struggled to get a hold of the ball. However, good teams want the ball, they will run and they will chase, which is exactly what Lewis Grabban did and his effort paid off as he seized on a terrible Jon Otsemobor backpass to round David Martin and slot the ball into the back of the net. From the away end it felt like the ball took days to finally go in, but when it did the celebrations duly began. It seemed like a dream start for The Cherries, taking the lead only 9 minutes into an away match at promotion rivals was perfect for Eddie Howe's men.

Grabban 'grabbed' the opener

 The rest of the half was extremely similar to our home match against Crewe, as while the opposition maintained control of the ball, we were never threatened and MK's only chance came when Shwan Jalal parried Ryan Lowe's shot from the edge of the area. Bournemouth were trying to frustrate the home side and hit them fast on the break, but often the ball was given away cheaply with some players opting against the simple option. As it seemed the teams would go into half-time with the score remaining 1-0, everything changed. Ryan Lowe got in a scuffle with Tommy Elphick, then Steve Cook, then Elphick again, with the Bournemouth defenders obviously getting under the veteran forward's skin. This showed when as MK cleared a Bournemouth corner, Elphick went for the ball only for Lowe to jump in two footed, it was later put by Howe as 'a disgusting tackle'. Lowe was rightly sent off but still found the time to start a scrap on the field and kick Bournemouth right-back Simon Francis. I don't usually offer my opinion in the match report, but  Karl Robinson ahad the nerve to say our players were saying stuff about Lowe's family as he went off, an astoundingly stupid claim. Justice was served as The Cherries got a second goal straight after, Grabban beat the Dons' defenders once more and his shot was saved by Martin only for Marc Pugh to tuck in the rebound. In a matter of minutes Bournemouth had gone from on the back foot to being in cruise control, and heading into the break a man and two goals up.

Pugh scored the second

MK Dons introduced Izale McLoed in the second half as despite being a man down they knew that in order to salvage something from the match, they had to go for it. Oddly, the home side seemed more energised and broke with more pace, though they found their options limited once they got further up the pitch. When they stalled the MK attack Howe's team attacked with force and pace, numerous cross field balls were played to the dangerous Pugh and Ritchie down the left side who were causing a lot of problems. Lewis Grabban continued his hard work getting in behind, while Brett Pitman squandered numerous chances, notably a free header from six yards out. Although the home side did not look like scoring, there was always a possibility. As Bournemouth went forward with Josh McQuoid on the ball, defender Shaun Williams made a superb tackle to win the ball and start a counter attack, their best chance came soon after; Izale McLoed pounced on the rebound of a shot that hit the post only the miss an open goal from steps away. I'd later learn he was offside (for about the tenth time) but regardless it was a truly abysmal miss that summed up the day for MK. The killer goal finally came in the 84th minute; clever play from Pugh won a free-kick on the edge of the area, with players still preparing the ball was laid to Arter who smashed a rocket into the top corner. It was a wonderful finish that capped off a great day at the office for the away team and their was pandemonium amongst the travelling Cherries' faithful. 'We want four' was the cry of some Bournemouth fans and that almost came when Pitman hit the crossbar, but the game ultimately ended in a deserved 3-0 win for The Cherries.

Arter's goal sealed the win

The home fans flocked quickly but all 1446 away fans stayed after the final whistle as the players came over to join in with the celebrations, the delight on their faces showed what the win meant to everyone associated with the football club. Ei ei ei o...

My Thoughts

What a day, what a win, what a season. Before the game I thought we'd win, but to go to a promotion rival away and win 3-0 is remarkable, and today was the kind of game that can define a season. We were second best in the first half, but the encouraging thing was that despite have little of the ball, it never looked as if we would concede. This team can play with flair and creativity, but when a strong backbone is needed we become extremely hard to break down. On another day, the match could have gone another way but our tactics paid off and I think you'd struggle to find someone who could contest the result. On behalf of every Bournemouth supporter, a special mention to Izale McLeod who put in one of the worst single performances in recent memory; he missed an open goal, he fell over himself (twice) and I don't think he did one thing to help his side when they needed it the most.

Unfortunately the game was marred by Lowe's disgraceful tackle and we can only hope Elphick turns out alright- he could have easily had his season/ career ended by that tackle. Thankfully both teams managed to continue the match as the professionals they are meant to be, but there certainly are times you question what a player is thinking. . I'd also suggest to Karl Robinson instead of banging on about how much money we spent, his club should spend money on their team instead of an outrageously ridiculous stadium. He made ludicrous claims in his post-match interview that were almost disrespectful to our club, we have spent a lot, we made have got decisions in our favour, but to say our players 'conducted themselves' badly is a bit much, what evidence do you have? I think you've been eating a few too many sour grapes.

Shut up, Karl.

Player Ratings

Jalal; 7- Didn't have much to do but the one time he had to make a save he was there, kept his concentration and distributed well.

Francis; 7- Once again he worked very hard and he improved in the second half, sometimes he needs to just whack the ball up the pitch instead of playing it out.

Cook; 9- A rock. With so much on his mind he performed admirably once again, MK's forward didn't get the better of him and he consistently won the ball, a great performance.

Elphick; 9- Exactly the same as Cook, he is a leader of men and if he is injured it will be a major blow to us, lets pray for a quick recovery.

Seaborne; 7- Much better performance than against Crewe, MK got in a few times behind him early on but it's clear that he's much better at centre-back, he seems to also be building chemistry with the team.

McQuoid; 7- He's found his confidence which is the most important thing, his runs across the face of the penalty box are dangerous and while he did not always make the right decision, he was a constant presence.

Arter; 8- In the first half he gave the ball away cheaply but it's hard to fault his performance overall. A absolutely sublime goal and no matter where the ball is, he'll be chasing it, he has more energy than a Duracell battery.

O'Kane; 7- It wasn't Eunan's best game but even though his impact was not huge, he kept the team ticking and never halted nor stalled any attacks. Despite his small stature, he's turning into quite a strong player.

Pugh; 8- Almost back to his best today, Marc turned the right back inside out a couple of times and really stretched their defence in the second half, his combination with Ritchie was lethal.

Lewis Grabban; 8- This man is becoming the definition of determination. With all due respect to Lewis, I think he's not 'technically' the most gifted, but his pace and effort provides the team with a constant outlet and his goal was key to the win.

Brett Pitman; 7- Chicken had an abundance of chances today and unfortunately didn't manage to take advantage. His finishing was off today but his link up play was great, most memorable was the one-two that put Grabban through on goal.

Matt Ritchie; 8- He's ours! Matt did fantastic to come in at left back on his debut and still play so well. He added another element going forward and his crossing was superb, I can't wait to see more of him.

Matt Tubbs & Richard Hughes; N/A

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