Graham Pearcey

Date: 3 March 2001

At last, a return to good fortune. The curse of 'Manager of the Month' obviously lasts for one month only! Those who had seen the midweek game claimed Cherries had played better then, but today it was the result that counted.

No Bournemouth player had a bad game, but the first half was particularly memorable for some spirited play from Cherries throughout. Steve Fletcher was on fire for once. Elliott was on fire as always! Day showed his delight at returning to the starting line up by working really hard, and his passing was as faultless as ever.

The second half performance, in contrast, was dire and dangerous - Cherries playing far too deep until Defoe, fresh from England exploits, came onto the pitch. Day had been felled in a tackle and gone off injured, giving Hayter the chance to drop into central midfield, but it was Defoe's lively performance that brought the game back to life. He worked hard and had a few scoring opportunities.

Bournemouth's two goals, yet again, were both at the Brighton Beach end. The first, from Steve Fletcher, was from close range. The second, from Elliott, involved rather more hard work and the beating of one defender. At the very end of the first half a succession of Brentford corners kept us all holding our breaths, but we somehow held on - no doubt helped by Menetrier's safe pair of hands.

The starting line-up, with my scores out of ten :

Menetrier (8);
Broadhurst (7), Tindall (8), Howe (7);
Elliott (8), C Fletcher (6), Hughes (8), Day (9), Jorgensen (6);
Hayter (8), S Fletcher (8).

By the end the line-up was :

Menetrier;
Broadhurst, Tindall, Howe;
Elliott, C Fletcher, Hughes, Jorgensen, Narada;
Defoe, S Fletcher

My 'man of the match' : Day.

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