By Danny Lewis (@DannyLewis_95)
AFC Bournemouth taught Hull City a footballing lesson yesterday as they recorded the clubs biggest win in their Premier League history.
This game saw two teams that will have been raring to go after the recent international break. AFC Bournemouth will have been keen to continue a run of form that saw them overcome Everton and draw with Watford, while Hull City will have been excited to start the official reign of Mike Phelan. Despite both teams coming into the game with optimism, the Cherries were the only ones to come out of it still smiling after they gave the visitors a real beating.
The game kicked off and AFC Bournemouth looked on top from the time the first whistle blew. They dominated the ball and when they didn’t have it, the home side’s pressing game made Hull look anything but comfortable. That quick start paid off for the Cherries, as they got in front after just five minutes. The goal came from a free kick that was won by Adam Smith, who was tripped by Ryan Mason.
Junior Stanislas took the resulting kick and his effort came off the bar and fell just outside the six yard box. Luckily for Bournemouth, Charlie Daniels was in the right place at the right time and volleyed it into the roof of the net to make it 1-0 to the home side.
AFC Bournemouth continued to dominate possession of the ball, but it was Hull who scored the equaliser against the run of play and perhaps showed just how comfortable the Cherries were getting. In the 35th minute Artur Boruc passed the ball to Steve Cook, who misplaced his pass to Hull’s Jake Livermore. The midfielder passed it to Mason, who’s shot then deflected off Cook into the far corner, giving the Bournemouth goalkeeper no chance.
However, it wasn’t long until Cook made amends for his mistake and got the home side back in front. The goal came from another Junior Stanislas free kick, which came in the 41st minute. This time the winger crossed the ball in from a deep, wide area giving Cook the opportunity to climb above everyone around him and power a header into the bottom corner to make it 2-1 to Bournemouth.
The Cherries were able to sneak one more in just before half time with a penalty. Robert Snodgrass put in an over zealous challenge on Callum Wilson and, despite the Hull man getting the ball, the referee still deemed it to be a penalty. Junior Stanislas stepped up and struck the ball down the middle to put Bournemouth 3-1 up . That score line was maintained as the sides went in at half time.
In the second half, AFC Bournemouth made a few substitutions, but that didn’t seem to weaken the side at all, showing the strength in-depth the club now has. This showed when Joshua King came off the bench to replace Jordon Ibe, who had threatened throughout the game. The Norwegian international came on in the 61st minute and it took him just four minutes to be involved in a goal. After great link up play with Adam Smith down the right hand side, the right back played the ball to the back post, where Stanislas was waiting to get his second goal of the game and make it 4-1 to the Cherries.
Bournemouth’s fourth goal was the one that really took the wind out of Hull’s sails. However the home side were relentless and in the 81st minute they managed to get their fifth goal of the game. King was instrumental again as he ran down the wing and sent in a cross towards Wilson at the back post. Hull’s poor defending played a big part in the goal, as the Bournemouth striker was completely unmarked, but the cross was pinpoint and the header was precise, leaving Marshall with no chance of stopping it.
There wasn’t much time left, but there was enough of it for Bournemouth to heap a little more misery onto Hull. With two minutes left on the clock Dan Gosling made it 6-1. Arter created the goal, as he dribbled through Hull’s midfield and then laid the ball off to Gosling, who curled a beautifully struck effort into the top corner.
Soon after the referee blew the whistle to signal the end of a record-breaking game for the Cherries, as it was the first time they won by this margin in the Premier League. The last time Bournemouth won 6-1 in a league game was against Wrexham in 2004, so this turned out to be a very memorable day for the Cherries’ supporters.
Eddie Howe had a lot of praise for his side in the post game press conference and spoke of how the vitality Stadium is beginning to become more of a fortress for his side. He said: “It’s really pleasing because last season we struggled to win here and if you don’t win at home you put a lot of pressure on yourselves when you go away from home.
“Thankfully our away record last season was really strong but the bread and butter is your home form. You’re playing in front of your supporters, so you need to hit those levels and thankfully at the moment we are.”
In their next match AFC Bournemouth will host Tottenham Hotspur, which will be a big test for them. But with the confidence that comes from their recent form and how well they are playing at home, they could manage to get a result.
Man of the Match: Junior Stanislas