If ever there was any remaining thoughts we could stay up – they probably evaporated today. In 90 minutes this afternoon we saw a mini history of our season. A couple of bright spots destroyed by an inability to defend set pieces and take chances and poor tactical awareness from the management team. To go 2-0 up against a team as average as Cheltenham and not come out with three points is completely inexcusable – and if ever there was an advert for how poor players at this level can be – today was it.
This afternoon we lined up with Cooper in for Hollands – and Young in at right back. This standard move always leaves us bereft of brains in midfield and slow defensively down the right – and the sooner Hollands can come back into midfield and Young move back to the bench the better for all concerned. Tactically Bond switched Gradel to the right to take on the veteran Wright and Bradbury to the left – a mistake in my book as Gradel is good enough to beat any full back and Bradbury would have murdered Wright in the air.
The game started very brightly for the Cherries with a succession of corners, bright interchange and some early chances – the best being a free header from Pearce that should have gone in and a superbly controlled volley from Bradbury that whistled just over the cross-bar. It was no surprise therefore when on the 15th min we took the lead – Bartley making the first of many lung bursting runs to pick the ball up by on the edge of the area, turning inside beautifully and being brought down. After a cricket umpire like eternity – the ref pointed to the spot and GRADEL converted the spot kick low to the right off Higgs hand.
After the goal we fell apart for 15 minutes allowing Cheltenham more and more possession and only a bright save by Stewart as Brooker crept in at the far post followed by a brilliant last ditch challenge on Lindegarrd by Gowling stopped the equaliser.
The game then descended into a bizarre sequence of head injuries – the third of which saw Pearce to depart and return with a head band – there are more head band appearances at Dean Court these days than at a Bjorn Borg appreciation event.
Just as we had started to doze off at the medical comings and goings the game sprang back to life with our second on the 38th minute. Gradel broke down the left and pinged a long cross in front of the goal for Bradbury to arrive unmarked at the far post. Every ones favourite veteran winger then turned like an oil tanker before eventually unleashing a venomous shot against the cross bar. From the rebound Bradbury played Cummings in on the left who whistled a fizzing cross to the edge of the area where BARTLEY swung a boot to loop a fortunate shot over Higgs into the top corner.
With the Cherries in total control it was just a case of seeing the match out till half time…… De Agostinos cross saw Young napping and BIRD waltzed through from the right to beat Stewart and ensure this wouldn’t happen.
HT – Bournemouth 2 Cheltenham 1
(Brief half time entertainment – Bournemouth fans who had dreamt of what a Bradbury/Fletcher partnership would have looked like were rewarded when someone parked two concrete mixers on the edge of the penalty area).
The second half started with Bournemouth once again assuming control but failing to take a series of clear chances – Bartley heading and shooting wide, the latter after a barnstorming run and Vokes headed onto the roof of the net from Gradels corner. The end of this blitz of chances saw the best – Kuffour running onto Vokes header on the 66th but although his shot was spectacularly saved by Higgs high to the right – a low one would surely have put the match beyond doubt.
In true Bournemouth style panic started to set in for the last 15 minutes – Vokes had a 20 yarder clawed away by Higgs and that was the end of our hopes. Bond disastrously switched to one up front at this point and we became camped in our box.
y whole life seems to have been spent watching other teams have grandstand finishes at Dean Court. As we sat further and further back and looked more and more tired Brooker volleyed just over, Gillespie missed the crossbar by inches with a deflected freekick and from the resulting corner BROOKER sprinted across the box completely unmarked to belt a header past Stewart in the 88th minute. We’d been there before many times and no-one in the ground was in the least bit surprised.
After that Cheltenham were reduced to ten men following a horror tackle on Bartley who thankfully looked like he survived unscathed and Bradbury blazed the last chance wide when through on the right before the ref put us all out our misery
Player Ratings
Stewart
Handled well and kicked superbly – no chance with either goal – 7
Young
Distribution poor and too slow when mattered – couple of nice tackles and a shot though to help mark 500th. – 5
Gowling
Used to look like Lennox Lewis – now looks like Leona Lewis – bizarre hair didn’t stop good aerial command. – 6
Pearce
Strong performance and better positioning. – 6
Cummings
Moving a lot better and linking well with Bradbury. – 7
Gradel
Didn’t often get better of Wright but was starved of the ball due to poor play making by Cooper – 6
Cooper
Vision slow, passing off mark – clearly a right back. – 5
Bartley
Gone from bit part to essential in 4 weeks. Aggressive, quick, energetic – made one/ scored one. – 8
Bradbury
The odd good ball and movement but dallied terribly on two clear cut chances and caught in possession a lot. – 5
Vokes
Target man play improving but needs to grab bull by horns and use power to get in on goal and crosses more. – 6
Kuffour
Non stop running and clever link play. – 7
TACTICS
Bond lost the plot moving to one up front in the second half. Acceptable if you were fortunate enough to get 1-0 up in a cup tie with Chelsea but when you are 2-1 up against an average relegation side it defies belief and got the end result it deserved. Shouldn’t have swapped the wide players either.
