EDDIE Howe felt the full force of Cherries' injury woes as the reserves crashed to a 4-0 defeat against Plymouth Argyle.

Howe was forced to field three schoolboys for yesterday's Pontin's Holidays Combination clash at Home Park and Cherries' lack of experience showed as strikes from Jamie Mackie, Yoann Folly, Dan Smith and Lukas Jutkiewicz eased the West Country outfit to victory.

With Billy Franks and Josh McQuoid on first-team duty following their exploits against Tranmere on Easter Monday, schoolboys Thomas Hill and Danny Ings were handed starts by Howe, while lone substitute Matt Kemble entered the fray on the hour.

Argyle apprentice Bobby Hopkinson, on a work experience deal with Cherries, also lined up for Howe's troops.

Howe said: "At one stage we were struggling to get a team together, but we managed to get the three schoolboys in at the last minute.

"It was a good experience for the lads and the schoolboys acquitted themselves really well.

"They're getting opportunities and that's what it's all about at Bournemouth. The club has to try and bring its own players through and they have done themselves no harm at all. It's great for the youth set-up."

Mackie put Argyle in front on eight minutes, after some charitable defending let the former MK Dons trainee in to smash a low drive past Cherries keeper Ryan Pryce.

Frenchman Folly, the former Southampton midfielder, increased Argyle's advantage after 38 minutes when he nodded home Smith's pin-point centre, before Smith added a third after heading Jim Paterson's teasing cross past Pryce just after the hour mark.

Mackie then turned provider for Jutkiewicz to volley home Arygle's fourth with nine minutes remaining.

Howe added: "We struggled. They were a lot stronger than we were and we struggled to impose ourselves. But we defended really well and hung in there for long periods of the game and with a little bit more belief and a bit more quality, we could have troubled them more than we did.

"I was really pleased with the attitude of the boys because it was backs-to-the-wall stuff for large parts of the game and against seasoned professionals, they did really well."

Meanwhile, Howe confirmed defender Ryan Garry could make his long-awaited comeback for the reserves against Argyle next Tuesday at Dean Court, while Neil Young (ankle) and Warren Cummings (leg) could also feature if Saturday's League One clash against Millwall comes too soon for the pair.

"Ryan might be in the frame for next week," Howe told the Echo.

"Hopefully we'll get a few players back from injury for the first-team and that should release a few players for my team. It should be a more even contest next week.

"If they (Young and Cummings) don't make it for Millwall, there's a chance they might play on Tuesday and then be in contention for the following Saturday."

Cherries Reserves: Pryce; Reeve, Queree, Rose, Newton; Partington, Hopkinson, Hill (Kemble, 60), Ings; Davidson, Hutchings.