It was worth enduring 69 tense minutes for two special goals

It was a heart stopping kind of game at the Amex. It was such a pulsating match and yet there were very few opportunities all game. For the Cherries to only have five shots in a game one would think that they had been well contained and not done enough to get the points, but Brighton stifled and frustrated and won some key battles in that first 69 minutes. It was a real scrap and as such I will be honest, I didn't much like the first half and knew that it needed something extra to win this game. 

Yann Kermorgat got the vital break through at the Amex.

Derby's are often like that and both teams had good reason to keep things tight knowing that neither side could ill afford to lose this game. The width of the Amex you would have thought would suit the Cherries game and make it difficult for the Seagulls to halt AFCB's natural wide game on the wings, but it was Brighton who used the flanks the best in that first half and they really kept winning the individual battles to provide opportunities to break on the Cherries. 

Chris Hughton's game plan of playing one up front might not have sat well with some but the extra player in midfield was a problem for the Cherries. Only by the end of the game the possession stats finally favour the Cherries and that was only 51 per cent. What Bournemouth needed was an open game and the freedom to create chances which Brighton fought so well to deny by giving the Cherries no time at all on the ball. But to do that for 90 minutes is extremely hard and the second half did see more space. For once the direct runs of players were making the chances rather than just playing a measured passing game.

When Brighton attacked like that through Carayol they nearly broke through, but did not have the quality in and around the box to score. For AFCB though the site of goal for Yann Kermorgant and Callum Wilson is a friendly site and they are enjoying a purple patch of scoring which did for Brighton in the end once Adam Smith (Smudge) had pushed them back on their heels with his forward runs. AFCB score two very special goals on the night and I do believe the result will lift the players for the remaining games, which is exactly what is needed.

Callum Wilson is back on fire when it comes to goal scoring.

Some of the remaining fixtures could also be tight and tense affairs and we have another derby against Reading next, but if the points keep coming there is no need to worry. I still hope that the Cherries will finish with a bit of a flourish and a floodgate of goals. All I know is that we will be yelling for the team and urging them on, because we know that by doing so it helps them play even better. 

I was kindly asked to talk on All Departments' website last night and you can listen back to our review of the Brighton match and thoughts about how AFCB are doing as the pressure ramps up during the run-in by visiting the All Departments' website or scrolling down the right hand panel on Cherry Chimes, until you come to the All Departments' sound bar that you can click on to listen.

Are Boro better than their league position suggests?

I have some mixed feelings about Middlesbrough. They are another ex-Premiership giant in the Championship with pretencions of being better than they really are perhaps. Give them another season though under the guidance of Aitor Karanka and they could be the ones that start to gel into a team that could well make the pace. At present though they are sometimes sloppy at the back and goal shy and on other days are well capable of beating the best in the division.

The signing of on-loan Danny Graham from Sunderland is already proving to be a shrewd move as he netted twice to give Boro a two-nil win against a Mick McCarthy Ipswich team who never give an inch to anyone. Lee Tomlin has also come into the side this January from Peterborough giving them a fresh look up front to when the Cherries last met Middlesborough at the Riverside. The player though that I see as their main danger man is Kamara. When he is on from the others around him get on board and it's important that Bournemouth keep him off the ball as much as they can.

Middlesbrough got off to a slow start this season and have certainly improved under Karnaka, but they sit just one points below the Cherries having played one more game. A win for AFCB could lift them into the top 10, while Middlesbrough will not come to Dean Court to block. Just like AFCB they may feel that a run at the play-offs is not a done deal yet and there is space for a team to still make significant progress towards that goal if they can keep a run going.

It is the away form that has been holding Boro back of late with just one win in their last six, while overall it's one win in nine for them. They simply don't travel well and that should give the Cherries plenty of optimism to head into this game with everything to gain.

This week though they earned a good 1-1 draw at home against Nottingham Forest with winger Mustapha Carayol striking first for Boro, but they could not hold on for victory. Rantie frightened the life out of their back for at the Riverside so it may be that Eddie Howe will use him again at some time on Saturday, hopefully to good effect.

Middlesborough Away Form:
WLDLL

AFCB Home Form:
DWLDW

You can back the team and place a bet on other matches by registering at Free Bet Negotiator today as long as you are over 18.

You can also view the pre-match blogger interview with For the Love of Boro by clicking on the Rival Lines tab.

Cherry Chimes talks to For the Love of Boro

Match Preview
AFCB V Middlesbrough
Blogger Interview: For the Love of Boro

Cherry Chimes has been hunting out yet another blogger this week to give you readers another Rival Lines interview ahead of the Middlesbrough game. This time we speak with James Stevenson who has updated his blog that is now called For the Love of Boro. James has been doing a lot of work on his new look site and it really looks top dollar now. But what we want to know is what he thinks of his new manager and have Boro been deceiving us all this time with their mid-table league position?

CC: Boro threatened to climb the league in early January but do you feel your players are good enough to get a top 10 place this season?

FTLOB: Definitely. Although I think top ten is probably the limit now. We have never been good at stringing results together one after another and to get up towards the play-offs at the end of this season we will have to do that. So I can't see it happening. The players are good enough on their day to cause any team in the Championship problems. But they struggle to play at a consistently high level and we haven't got a 20-goal-a-season striker to bail us out of trouble when we need a goal to win a game or save a game when the team isn't performing. Hence why we have drawn so many matches - most commonly with a goalless scoreline.

CC: What have you made of the management style of Aitor Karanka?

FTLOB: He is still finding his feet and I think it would't be fair to be too critical too early. He needs time to build a team that suits his style and he made a few inroads in January. However the major changes look likely to happen in the summer. He has a formation that he likes to play and he has stuck with it since he arrived no matter if we win, lose or draw. His decision-making during a match at times can be a little puzzling. For example against Forest on Tuesday, having taken the lead, he tried to defend it with half an hour still to play by taking off Emmanuel Ledesma and bringing on Dean Whitehead. This ultimately backfired as Forest equalised. I suppose the defensive side of his management style comes from the fact he himself was a centre half. It could be that it is something we are going to have to get used to. Certainly a change from Tony Mowbray who was keen to play open, expansive, attacking football.

CC: Karanka recently accused the players of over confidence but do you agree with him?

FTLOB: Not really. We have players who play well when they are on form but I think to accuse them of being over-confident when our season has been so up and down and no player has been particularly consistent was a little harsh a must say.

CC: Were you pleased to see Lee Tomlin come in to the squad from Peterborough?

FTLOB: I didn't know a great deal about him. But having played at this level before and done relatively well for a team like Peterborough who, while they have been relegated on the occasions they have made it to the championship in recent years, did score a lot of goals in this division, I am hopeful he can replicate that form for us. Some around the club are saying he could be the Championship's best 'Number 10' but we will have to wait and see about that.

CC: Who has been you best player so far this season?

FTLOB: Before the turn of the year I would definitely have said Albert Adomah. However his form has slightly deserted him. Shay Given was immense during his loan spell and despite an ever-changing centre-back pairing the defence has been resolute since Karanka took charge. Ben Gibson continually impresses me at centre-back and is a shoe-in for our young player of the season. But the player that has been running rings around teams at the moment is Mustapha Carayol. A burst of pace and a bundle of tricks - he may not have been our best player overall this season but he is certainly our key player right now. If he plays well there's a good chance the team will too.

CC: When AFCB came to the Riverside stadium we had a high scoring 3-3 draw but you have had a lot of 0-0 games of late why do you think scoring has become so difficult for your team?

FTLOB: Karanka knew the best way to arrest our slide down the table was to stop leaking soft goals and that's what he has done. It has meant sacrificing some of the attacking play we had become accustomed to under Mowbray, however it needed to happen. But yes it has been frustrating that we haven't scored many goals. We are still lacking up front to be honest. Danny Graham finally got his first couple of goals at the weekend against Ipswich but he often gets isolated up front on his own so goals are hard to come by. And the options are limited with Kei Kamara the only other experienced forward we have. If Graham and Tomlin can form an understanding hopefully the goals will start flowing again before the end of the season.

CC: Is Shay Given a big loss to the team?

FTLOB: Without a doubt yes. You can't buy experience and Shay has been there and done it. He was top class for us and we were all sad to see him go. We moved fast to replace him with another goalkeeper, Tomas Mejias, who made his debut against Sheffield Wednesday but then got injured. Luckily we have an abundance of riches in the goalkeeping department. Although it has been a surprise that Karanka currently prefers Dimi Konstantopoulos over long-time number one Jason Steele, who has just returned from injury

CC: Is it annoying to see Steve McClaren doing so well at Derby County or do most Boro fans wish him luck?

FTLOB: I think we have moved on from Steve McClaren. He will quite rightly be remembered for what he achieved with us and of course we will be forever grateful. We know he is a good coach and during his career he has proved that, even if he didn't with England. Derby have a good manager and I wish him and them well. We can look back on the good old days with fondness but right now it is about striving to get them back.

CC: Do you expect an exciting summer with plenty of new players coming in or do you think Boro have to get their youngsters through to the first team?

FTLOB: Our young players will always have a chance to show what they can do. But we haven't had too many that have gone on to star in the first team recently like so many others have done in the past. This season only Ben Gibson has made any sort of impression. Quite a few are at a crossroads in their careers so this summer will be make or break for them. A lot may depend on the changes Karanka makes. He wants a small squad - quality over quantity - and has already shown that if he doesn't feel a player is ready they will be allowed to go out and gain experience on-loan. Our squad lacks strength in depth and I'm sure this is something he will address in the summer.

CC: Another set of great answers from James. You can read more about his opinions at For the Love of Boro which talks about Boro's recent goalless run before the Ipswich game and Lee Tomlinson. It looks like Middlesbrough are still a team that are evolving and like Bournemouth are striving for that golden word - consistency.

Mike Dunne has been busy recording another Kangaroo Court on the Bournemouth win at Blackburn. You can visit his site to listen at All Departments or listen while on Cherry Chimes by visiting the right hand panel and scrolling down to the All Departments sound bar.