Tough times were expected for Cherries

There was no surprise that the Cherries found it hard going at Manchester City. This season was always going to be the hardest that the team and the manager had embarked upon in recent years and it is no disgrace that they made some mistakes against such a strong team. If the setting was not an issue, there were other circumstances that made the game harder than it might have been. An injured keeper, key match decisions that went against the team and a Man City team looking to make a statement without some of their usual match winners.

Defeated but there's no time to be down. 

There is no time to look back though or at least not for long. AFCB have Spurs coming to visit next and the problems that surfaced against Man City will hopefully not re-occur. The Cherries are going to have to find ways of competing with these teams and staying in games. A big scoreline like the one last Saturday was likely to come at some stage and now it is time for the reaction.

The difficulty is that much of the unfortunate injuries and disruptions to the team could not have been foreseen. AFCB have had more than their fair share of misfortune and they have to fight even harder now to keep ahead of those teams below them. That means playing with even more fight at home and picking up the points to keep them in this league. If they can survive this season they will be far more prepared for such difficult times in the future, but right now they really need a bit of good fortune.

It's not that the Cherries are playing particularly poorly, but there is a feeling that they have something better in their locker and without the mistakes they could take games away from more of these teams than has been shown so far. The Cherries need a stimulus to think positively and push ahead. It is important that AFCB believe that they can beat Tottenham and to really put their best game forward to receive the much needed three points.

All Departments rakes over the 5-1 defeat at Man City as AFCB fall to 17th in the table. To listen visit the All Departments website or scroll down Cherry Chimes until you get to the All Departments' sound bar.