Match Day Bournemouth v Watford, Saturday 21st January 15:00

[SALTIRE]

Match chat.

 

[Super_horns]

I'd take a 0-0 here!

 

[AFCB_Mark]

Yaaaay it's the social media bitchfest derby. Although given both clubs are on a strange run it's probably a bit more muted than recent years.

Which Bournemouth will show up for this, and for how much of the game until the other half shows up and takes over? Will it start great and turn shit, or start shit and turn great? Only one way to find out!

Some real contrasts going on with us at the moment, even ignoring the patterns of goals in our games. On the plus side we've seen really good things lately from Ryan Fraser and Junior Stanislas, now our first choice wide men. Get Wilshere feeding into them, that's by miles our best hope at the moment, we know that trio will create problems. On the negative side, where do we start. Boruc is having a funny patch, we've got a selection crisis at centre back, Adam Smith is shocking, Drew Surman is shocking, Arter unusually quiet, and Afobe for all his work off the ball is lacking confidence in front of goal. Please can Dan Gosling start Eddie. Even a half fit Lewis Cook might have more impact? Josh King up front?

I'd take a 0-0 here!

0-0 mate? You're having a laugh! There's more chance of Trump declaring world peace.

 

[Super_horns]

Well we won't score unless you do for us!

 

[AFCB_Mark]

That team is very attack minded, even more so than usual, and very lightweight. Surman and Wilshere in midfield, loads of skill but if Watford get stuck in we'll have little answer. Loads of pace going forward, that's clearly the intention.

 

[Super_horns]

Blimey scoring from 2 set plays!

Gomes likes playing Bournemouth.

 

[AFCB_Mark]

Frustrating but about fair result.

Gomes and Deeney are always unbelievable against us. If they played Bournemouth every week they'd be considered world class. Gomes has been injured for weeks too hasn't he? Just got fit for us, obviously.

First half Watford were largely the better side. As I worried, we were so powderpuff in midfield where watford not only had an extra man, but had 3 brick shit houses easily able to bat the continued useless Surman off the ball. Watford could have gone in 2 goals up, but fortunately it was only 1.

If we had a keeper and central defenders capable of facing set pieces without a shitting ourselves, we'd be ok. But two routine balls into the box = two goals for Watford. Boruc suicidal for the second, because the first was so poorly dealt with he felt he had to.

Smith had a poor game, except one moment of brilliance to setup our first.

Massive handball penalty shout for us, in which Kabasele miscontrolled a bobbling ball, it looks to be going through to King for an easy finish, except his arm prevents it. It all happened very quick, but without that arm King scores. And from the resulting clearance we work it back to Fraser who curles a nice effort into the far corner, but for Gomes, several times Fraser's nemesis, to touch it past the post. Wonderful stop.

Our second was weird, Watford defender goes down seemingly time wasting so it looked, but we carry on and pop a ball into the hole left by said defender, Afobe latches on with a lovely finish. The defender gets subbed shortly after, so injury after all? Or saving blushes?

Both teams pressing at the end, we had the ball in the net but disallowed for handball. Not even sure we needed to handle it, think we could have got it back to Daniels with a header instead.

But a fair result.

 

[Super_horns]

Probably time wasting.. or trying too.

Gomes went off injured last week but hasn't been at his best.

 

[PDS]

Yet another example that you can have all the possession and pretty passing moves you like, but that doesn't matter if you let in something so simple as a near post corner and header. Massively frustrating.

I think a draw was fair in that it was two teams who really cannot defend, both sides looked low on confidence and I feared the worst when we conceded the second. Our goals came from nice passages of play, but again you work so hard to do that and concede from two bloody corners.

I think this will be seen as a decent point should we beat Palace a week on Tuesday. If nothing else that second half performance should give us some confidence, and slotting Francis back in at centre half should at least give us a tad more experience and focus.