IF ANDONI Iraola is in his element when he has chaos on the pitch, Cherries’ recruitment team must be at their best when there is drama on deadline day.

Cherries have become accustomed to late finishes in the transfer market in recent years, but Friday’s offering perhaps tops the lot.

Jamal Lowe and Kieffer Moore, protagonists in this year’s pantomime, had been last-minute arrivals on the two deadline days during the promotion winning season from the Championship.

Jack Stephens arrived as a late reinforcement to the shell-shocked Cherries side Gary O’Neil was picking up off the canvas this time last year, late attempts to bolster the squad further falling short.

2023’s first window back in January saw a flurry of activity capped off with addition of Illia Zabarnyi and the departures of Ben Pearson and Siriki Dembele.

Of course, the nature of the transfer window sees everything exaggerated and embellished, but since the arrival of Bill Foley, Cherries have not only thrown their weight around in the market, but frequently punched above it.

Let’s set the scene. With Cherries set to play Brentford 16 hours after the window closed, the team were in a hotel in London.

Before he could get on the team bus, Lloyd Kelly had seen a bid rejected by the club from Tottenham Hotspur, the stance firm despite the pressure of the £20million on offer.

As you can imagine, London is a central hub for a lot of transfer business. Cherries are no exception, with the majority of their deals in recent years taking place in the capital, especially medicals.

With a hotel already to hand, Cherries made it their base of operation for potential transfers, the recruitment team bunkering down as Patson Daka and Luis Sinisterra undertook their medicals there.

Any further business ahead of the deadline seemed dependent on outgoings, but Cherries were proactive.

When it became clear that Leeds were open to allowing wantaway winger Sinisterra to leave, Cherries sounded out a move.

It had been a summer of uncertainty for Leeds and their stars following relegation from the Premier League, clauses inserted into contracts that allowed numerous players to leave on loan.

The Colombian had threatened legal action over Leeds’ interpretation of a release clause in his contract, a similar scenario that provided Cherries with a headache when they tried to sign Tyler Adams earlier in the window from the Yorkshire side.

He trained with Leeds in the morning, and as he drove away from Thorp Arch, he told awaiting fans that he would not be leaving.

By the end of the day, he would be wearing red and black.

A deal agreed in principle, Sinisterra flew down to London, fans tracking his plane on flightradar24.com, a deadline day tradition.

His medical was then completed, a social media post planned playing on the friendship forged between Marcos Senesi and the Colombian at Feyenoord.

But shortly after, the silence from Leeds was concerning. The mood dropped, and with it, confidence of the deal being completed.

The Whites would only allow the deal to go through if they could find a replacement for Sinisterra, and could not source one from elsewhere.

Leeds had been in this situation last deadline day, Jack Harrison having completed a medical and shot promotional footage ahead of a move to Leicester City, only for the deal to collapse as there was no-one available to replace him.

In the case of Sinisterra, Cherries intervened, proposing a loan swap that would see Anthony head north for the season.

Transfer deals are a fickle beast at the best of times, but the addition of another moving part in the form of Anthony complicated matters even further.

In the end there was agreement, on paper, from all four parties, even if it took two deal sheets and half a day to come to.

By the end of it, Leeds were stating they had actually been after Anthony all along, perhaps saving face after their manager’s press conference quotes that indicated a confidence Sinisterra would stay at Leeds beyond the deadline.

For Anthony, it represents how ruthless football can be. A standout performer in pre-season and just months into a five-year deal, the former Arsenal man now finds himself back in the second tier.

Cherries clearly feel that Sinisterra is an upgrade on Anthony – why else make the swap.

It is hard to sell the stint at Elland Road as another step in his development, considering he is just six months younger than the man who has temporarily replaced him at Vitality Stadium.

Of course, footballers develop at different rates, Anthony battling back to earn a spot in the Premier League following release from Arsenal at 16, Sinisterra now an established international with seasons of continental football under his belt.

How he responds to the perceived slight could be decisive in his own future, be it at Dean Court or elsewhere.

Negotiations for Sinisterra dragged on all day, and as that move was rumbling on, two other deals sprang to life before petering out.

Cherries had maintained after signing Adams that any further business would only be provoked by others going out the door.

Kelly was deemed too valuable to let leave, Spurs’ first and only bid rejected out of hand.

Moore had made it clear that he was after more regular game time, and Cherries would not stand in his way if a suitable offer came their way.

It had been very clear that Cardiff’s money troubles would scupper any return for the Welshman, Cherries having plucked him from south Wales in a deadline day raid of their own in January 2022.

Norwich City’s name was chucked out, before Millwall became apparent frontrunners.

A rough loan move was agreed between Cherries and the Championship outfit, but before anything concrete could be set, the deal was over – Moore had no interest in a switch to the Den.

To be fair, Millwall’s strike force is certainly not lacking, with gametime not guaranteed due to the competition of Kevin Nisbet and Tom Bradshaw.

In the meantime, Cherries were finally making good on their interest in Patson Daka. Leicester were willing to let the Zambian go, initially on loan with a view to a permanent move.

A medical was passed, but eventually Cherries pulled out of the deal on their own accord. The club had doubts on the move as a whole, but it is possible that Moore remaining at the club contributed to the transfer being called off.

Cherries still had space in their 25-man squad for the Premier League for both Moore and Daka, and a loan move for their towering striker would have made little impact to the finances required to bring the Zambian in.

At the end of the day, Iraola seems content with the Welsh international, and has been impressed with what he has seen in training and pre-season.

Signing Daka and pushing Moore further down the pecking order would have led to a disgruntled player, and as Leeds have demonstrated, it is preferable to avoid that scenario.

It feels rude to relegate anybody to a footnote, but Lowe’s part in deadline day proved exactly that. His move back to Swansea was relatively straightforward.

It started off as just a six-month loan, but has ended up morphing into a switch for the full season – which will see out his contract with Cherries.

The only hold up was the bureaucracy caused by England and Wales being separate countries, thus requiring international clearance.

Lowe had been a background character this pre-season, sent to train with the development squad after being deemed surplus to requirements.

As such, his move away had little bearing on Cherries’ incomings.