Ritchie is pedaling his way to the top

It was quite apt that Matt Ritchie was on the cover for the Watford programme. In his interview in the Matchday programme, with Alex Smith, he comes across as a player that knows you don't get anything without hard work, and that coming from the lower leagues has given him great passion for the game and the desire to take his talents to the highest level and that's hopefully with AFCB.

Matt Ritchie has really upped his game this season.

In that interview we also heard how Matt uses his cycle riding to escape from the pressure of everyday football and that he likes nothing more than getting on to the saddle. It appears that that is just the thing he is doing this season on the pitch as well, as he has found his seat in this side and is fast pedalling his way up the goal scorers chart as well as providing a staggering number of assists. What may have interrupted his stay at the Godsands this January window was some interest from Fulham, but it is great to hear that he never even entertained the thought of being anywhere else and that he wants promotion with the Cherries more than anything.

You probably saw that in Ritchie's goal celebration against Watford. He always likes to punch the air with delight and he really likes to show the crowd exactly how he feels when he scores. At Swindon I would say that he was a star player and at AFCB his qualities are no less admired, but he has matured into a team player that can often come up with moments of brilliance to help others as well as burst the net himself. I only now believe that Eddie Howe is getting the best out of Matt Ritchie who had a difficult first Championship season with injury, but he looks much more that player special player again who is unstoppable when he is on top form. All I can say to Matt is keep pushing the pedals round because we are all enjoying the ride!

Extra thoughts
It was great to hear Elliott Ward had scored in the 1-1 draw for the AFCB Development squad against a Portsmouth team yesterday. Apparently Callum Buckley at left back is a hot prospect too, according to Kris Temple, so we'll look out for him. Well done to AFCB Ladies on winning promotion as Hampshire County Div 3 Champs! 

As to Harry Redknapp's resignation at QPR, I guess he will always be linked with a role at AFCB once that job was over, but I just hope he gets his knee sorted and can come down and see AFCB play a bit more now.