Will defeat make Cherries more determined to succeed?

The loss against Norwich City came at a time when the league placings have not been effected too much. AFCB are still top on goal difference and the main challengers are as ever right behind the Cherries, and it is difficult for any team to get the momentum to pull away at the moment. Whether the defeat to Norwich freshens the determination and clears AFCB players' minds to concentrate on extending their lead will be the focus of the next few games.

Andrew Surman will try and make the cherries tick again against Rotherham.

We have seen that Derby were hard to dislodge from the top, AFCB now have to be equally determined to try and keep their position now as any weakness will be pounced upon by the chasing pack. The match against Rotherham will be seen by some as a formality having seen the FA Cup result their, but I expect it will be far from easy as the Millers will need to show their fans that they have character to get a result against one of the top sides. They will also have seen how Norwich frustrated the Cherries and squeezed space on the park.

Matt Ritchie though was saying all the right things in his post-match interview after the Norwich game. The players know that they have to concentrate on the next game and do everything they can to get back to the form they showed over December. A momentary blip is not a big deal, but a few games without a return will question what is not quite working? Middlesbrough fans may already be wondering why they are not keeping their consistency high and while they are struggling to pick up points as often as they were, it is a great opportunity for AFCB, Derby and Ipswich to break away a little at the top.

It's all pressure from here on in and how the players react to the odd set back and if they can get the clean sheets to keep confidence high. 

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