Two in two again... now let's buck the trend

Since New Year's Day, victories and defeats have gone in two by two for Kevin Bond's charges.

And the roller-coaster ride never looked likely to end once David McGoldrick had given them an early lead on Saturday.

The Jekyll-and-Hyde sequence has seen Cherries scale the heights and plumb the depths in equal measures.

And the inconsistency has never been more evident than in their past four games - abject defeats at Blackpool and Northampton followed by superb victories over Millwall and now Tranmere.

With no rhyme or reason behind the bizarre series of results, will manager Bond take his squad to Rotherham full of trepidation?

"We might not bother going," joked Bond. "We might as well stay at home and save ourselves a bit of travelling money!

"In all seriousness, we'll be trying our level best to get something from the game, rest assured."

Should Cherries finally buck the trend, they could conceivably secure their League One status in their next two games, with Bradford their next opponents at Dean Court.

And with potentially awkward visits to Carlisle, Nottingham Forest and Port Vale to close their away programme, Cherries would do well to hit the safety net sooner rather than later.

But if the manner of their latest triumph is anything to go by, Bond's charges could savour the cigars and brandy earlier than most would have anticipated.

Ronnie Moore's play-off chasers were put to the sword as Cherries emphatically registered their first victory over Tranmere since October 1990.

Almost 19 years ago, a side managed by Harry Redknapp - and including Bond at the back - won the day thanks to an Andy Jones goal.

Since then, and before Saturday, the two clubs' paths had crossed on no fewer than 10 occasions, with Cherries mustering just five draws.

And for the record, James Hayter's second-half penalty was the first goal scored by a fully-fledged Cherries asset against Tranmere for almost four years.

Co-incidentally, their last goal against the Wirral outfit had been scored by a Saints loan player, with McGoldrick following in the footsteps of Matthew Mills.

"It was a terrific win against a side that I was really worried about," enthused Bond, who named an unchanged starting line-up for the first time since early November.

"Tranmere never know when they are beaten and are a strong side with some really good, experienced players. But I thought we thoroughly deserved it and it was a good, all-round display."

A tentative opening saw the two sides engage in a game of cat and mouse before Cherries took the bull by the horns.

They signalled their intent when Hayter's effort was scooped behind by Tranmere goalkeeper Gavin Ward before Shaun Cooper's drive flashed wide from the resultant corner.

And the breakthrough soon followed when McGoldrick displayed some excellent close control and beat Ward from close range to open the scoring after 13 minutes.

The Saints loan star netted after chesting down Steve Fletcher's cushioned knockdown from Josh Walker's precision cross from the left flank.

"David and Fletch worked well together up front," acknowledged Bond. "They combined well for the first goal.

"When Fletch is at it like he was today, he's almost unplayable, just because of his sheer physical presence, while David can be hard to handle in a different way. He doesn't get nervous in front of goal. He thrives on it and took his goal really well."

Despite being short on goalmouth action, Cherries' slick passing and movement enlivened the first half, and, but for a touch of good fortune, they could have been out of sight at the break.

Referee Rob Lewis waved away a decent claim for a penalty after Walker had gone to ground under an Ian Goodison challenge, while a hairline decision denied them a spot kick after Goodison had fouled Fletcher right on the 18-yard line.

And Ward's instinctive save prevented McGoldrick from doubling Cherries' lead in the 37th minute after Darren Anderton and Hayter had combined to create the opening.

The sum total of Tranmere's threat in the first half saw Shane Sherriff's clipped effort sail over the top, with Neil Moss kept busier during the warm-up.

Cherries all but secured victory following a baffling incident shortly after the restart.

Initially, Sherriff inexplicably escaped unpunished after he had scythed down McGoldrick on the edge of the box, the Tranmere man clearly the last line of defence.

But justice finally prevailed, albeit in controversial circumstances.

Anderton's free kick ricocheted off the wall and into McGoldrick's path, the striker denied a certain goal by Ward's miraculous point-blank save.

However, as Cherries tried to claim that the ball had crossed the line, referee Lewis caused total confusion when he pointed to the penalty spot.

And having been the linesman who ruled that Pedro Mendes's now-legendary effort had not crossed the line at Old Trafford in January 2005, Lewis could be forgiven for turning a blind eye.

It later transpired that the official had penalised Goodison for hauling back McGoldrick as he took aim, the Tranmere skipper cautioned for his misdemeanour.

As the visitors continued to remonstrate, Hayter waited patiently to take the spot kick and eventually converted confidently by sending Ward the wrong way.

Bond conceded that the penalty award may have been "fortunate", while his opposite number was positively perplexed.

"It was harsh, to say the least," said Ronnie Moore. "It was a tremendous save from Gavin and how the linesman then gave a penalty was beyond me."

Moore's anger turned to incandescence when Goodison received a second yellow card after tangling with McGoldrick in the 66th minute.

"I honestly thought he was going to book the lad (McGoldrick) for diving. I think the referee got carried away with the crowd. It was a bizarre decision to say the least."

Sandwiched between Hayter and Walker just failing to hit the target in the closing stages, new loan signing Luke Summerfield went close on the stroke of full-time, the youngster showing his class with an excellent piece of individual skill which ended with Ward saving low down.