BOURNEM’TH 2
PARDS: THIS LOSS WAS TOUGH ON US
Foster 5, Nyom 6, Dawson 7, Evans 7 (Phillips 76), Hegazi 7, Gibbs 7, Yacob 7, Livermore 8, Brunt 7 (Field 81), Rodriguez 8 (Robson-Kanu 85), Rondon 7. Subs not used: Myhill, McClean, Burke, Krychowiak. REFEREE: Graham Scott 6. WHERE there’s life there’s hope but Alan Pardew knows only too well that his West Brom side are fast running out of both.
For 75 minutes here on the South Coast, the Baggies were the better side.
They had taken a deserved lead through the hard-working Jay Rodriguez early in the second half and, as time ticked on, you wondered if maybe, just maybe, a victory here would kickstart another great escape.
They have done it before, remember, in 2004-05, when they became the first side in the Premier League era to beat the drop having been bottom at Christmas.
But then Ben Foster failed to keep out a speculative shot from Jordon Ibe which bounced awkwardly in front of him. And when Junior Stanislas wrapped his foot around a delicious free-kick from 20-plus yards late on the visitors wore the look of a group of men accepting of their fate.
Foster bowed his head, while Jake Livermore shook his in disbelief. That’s 24 points they have thrown away from winning positions this season and it’s why they know their football club will be playing in the Championship next season.
Even the most optimistic of Albion fans must accept that the 10-point deficit between themselves and safety will not be overcome with seven games remaining.
And Pardew certainly knows that is the case.
“If you look at our record since the start of the year you’d have to say, ‘Yes’,” he said, when asked if the gap was too big with so few games remaining. “But of course we have to keep battling on.
“This defeat is tough for us, tough for my players in particular – in terms of the game plan and delivering it, I couldn’t have really asked for more. But we made a couple of errors and got punished for it, and that’s kind of the story of our season.
“It was galling because obviously without it being our last chance, it’s getting near being last-chance saloon, so we needed to get something.
“And it’s such a galling way to end the game, him putting it in the top corner like that.”
Galling for Pardew, but not for Bournemouth boss Eddie Howe and Co who are edging closer to safety.
“Another comeback,” said Howe, whose side have won 16 points from losing positions this season.
“Trust me, we don’t want to do it that way but I will take any way at this stage of the season. We didn’t play well but football has a strange way of working.” Asmir Begovic saved well from Salomon Rondon’s first-half header and Stanislas’ free-kick was saved by Foster at the other end. Soon after the break, Rodriguez put the visitors ahead when Rondon nodded down Kieran Gibbs’ cross – and West Brom wondered if the green shoots of recovery were starting to show. Their hope would last less than 30 minutes, though, with Ibe’s shot beating the despairing Foster. And their misery was compounded when Stanislas, who had missed a second free-kick from a similar position, found it third time lucky when he curled a gem into the top corner. “This result was huge,” added Howe. “It was always going to be tough, we had to find a way to win and we did without playing well. It moves us closer.” Sadly for West Brom, it moved them closer too. Pardew added: “I keep saying to my players: ‘Keep fighting. Show pride in what you do’. “That’s what I’m going to do until such time as I’m told not to.”