AFC Bournemouth 2 (Grabban 26,66) Charlton 1 (Kermorgant 49).
Kevin Nolan reports from Dean Court aka Goldsands Stadium.
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A marvellous strike from Yann Kermorgant -already streets ahead as Charlton’s goal of the season- went to waste down on the South Coast as Bournemouth’s Lewis Grabban trumped the Frenchman’s ace by adding a brilliant 25-yard blockbuster of his own to his first half opener.
Kermorgant’s spectacular rifle shot four minutes after the interval was one of too few bright spots in an otherwise disappointing afternoon near the sea. Some bright spot it was though. So let’s talk it up.
Charlton were deservedly trailing to Grabban’s 26th minute header when spirited ex-Addick Harry Arter’s clumsy foul on Bradley Pritchard near the halfway line set the wheels in motion for Kermorgant’s ultimately fruitless heroics. Chris Solly’s deeply flighted free kick was retrieved beyond the far post by Rhoys Wiggins, whose cross deflected off a defender and reached the Breton level with his left hip. Keeling over in textbook style, Kermorgant’s vicious volley, struck necessarily with his “wrong” foot, was rippling the net almost before Ryan Allsop moved a muscle.
It was a strike of power and majesty but mattered little in the overall scheme of things. The truth is that, while far from outclassed, the visitors were given a hard time by Eddie Howe’s eager beavers, who deserved all three points. Faster to the second ball, more committed to potentially painful challenges, willing to go that yard further, the Cherries were impressive. The only stain on their escutcheon was the predictable booking collected by Arter, who followed a gratuitous foul on Solly by grousing about it to spot-on referee Andy D’Urso. But Arter’s lapse into villainy paled into insignificance alongside the savagely out-of-character assault launched on substitute Ryan Fraser by Pritchard seven minutes from time. No doubt there had been a spot of “previous” between the chaps but Pritchard’s lunacy was impossible to excuse. His dismissal footnoted a thoroughly depressing defeat.
Roared on by their enthusiastic following, Bournemouth sustained a high tempo throughout, faltered slightly after Kermorgant pegged them back but reasserted themselves and cruised home. The groan with which their supporters greeted the announcement of six added minutes turned into a purr of approval as Eddie Howe’s men handled the extra burden with ease.
In Grabban, meanwhile, the Cherries were led by a centre forward on his game and hungry to hit the ground running in early August. They were more than holding their own despite early half chances falling to Callum Harriott (sliced carelessly wide) and debutant Marvin Sordell (a dangerous header deflected off an unwitting defender) when Grabban opened his account.
A left wing corner conceded by Solly was taken quickly by Marc Pugh to Arter, a ruse already tried once before but still slipping under Charlton’s radar. The busy midfielder chipped over a measured cross, which Grabban’s clever header sent back over Ben Hamer into the opposite corner.
It was no more than Bournemouth deserved and Wes Thomas should have immediately doubled their lead but made a scuffed mess of converting Pugh’s perceptive pass. Grabban was typically more accurate before the break but Hamer was alertly positioned behind his snapshot.
Missing the steadying influence of injured skipper Johnnie Jackson, the Addicks improved briefly following Kermorgant’s equaliser. A goal of such stunning quality could hardly fail to galvanise a struggling side and, anyway, the bristling Kermorgant was far from finished. His cross from the right touchline, curled in deliciously with the outside of his right foot, picked out Pritchard but was headed narrowly but wastefully over the bar. Hardly renowned for his heading ability, Pritchard was wretchedly unlucky later in the half when he nodded over the poorly placed Allsop during a penalty area free-for-all but saw his effort booted off the line by Elliot Ward. By that time, Grabban had all but put them in their place with a truly superlative winner.
Moving from left to right some 25 yards from goal, the Cherries No.9 delayed his shot until time and space were ideally aligned, then blasted an unhibited rocket beyond Hamer’s desperate right hand and unstoppably inside the left post. It was a goal worthy of winning any game. So was Kermorgant’s typically venomous volley but, as regretfully stated, it amounted to nothing in concrete terms. So the honours stayed down beside the seaside, leaving Charlton to re-group and try again. There’s absolutely no call to panic. It’s early days and that’s one thing their manager miserably fails to do anyway.
Bournemouth: Allsop, Francis, Daniels, Cook, Ward, Coulihay (Fraser 55), MacDonald, Arter, Pugh, Grabban (PItman 90), Thomas (Surman 85). Not used: Flahavan, Elphick, Harte, O’Kane. Booked: Arter.
Charlton: Hamer, Solly, Morrison, Dervite, Wiggins, Pritchard, Gower (Stephens 77), Hughes (Green 77), Harriott, Kermorgant, Sordell (Church 65). Not used: Pope, Wilson, Evina, Cort. Booked: Kermorgant. Sent off: Pritchard.
Referee: Andy D’Urso. Attendance: 10,108 (1421 Charlton).
Good call Kev. “Don’t panic Mr. Mainwaring!” was the watchword from the classic ‘Dad’s Army’. But what a disappointment. There I was at Dean Court celebrating my birthday on the 1st and my wife Pauline to mark hers on the 7th and the Addicks barely showed up apart from Solly and that goal moment from Yann which could have been momentous if it had resulted in a draw or an ongoing victory.