LOAN star Andrew Surman dedicated Saturday’s victory at Reading to the hordes of Cherries fans before hailing the “togetherness” of his temporary club.

A healthy contingent of 2,338 supporters – Cherries’ largest away following of the season – were in good voice as Eddie Howe’s men gave the travelling Dean Court faithful plenty to cheer, orchestrating a fine 2-1 win at Madejski Stadium.

The success ended a run of turbulent results which had seen Cherries sink into the Championship’s bottom six, but Surman claimed he always felt the squad’s steadfast belief would help them catch an all-important break.

Surman told the Daily Echo: “Coming back, I soon realised there was a lot of togetherness in the squad and throughout the club.

“You need that when you are on a bad run. It was a massive win for the players and staff but for the fans as well because so many travelled up again.

“Every week, both home and away, we get great support so it meant a lot for us to give the fans something to cheer about. Everyone could see and hear how much it meant to everyone in the stands.

On Cherries’ recent form, Surman added: “Even when we were not picking up many points, we still believed in what we were doing and that we would get it right.

“I think we knew our luck would change if we kept it together.

“There have been plenty of positives during that run, even if we have struggled at some points.

“We needed that bit of luck with the first goal and, on another day, it might have gone past the post or over the bar.

“When you play at Reading, you have to expect them to be dangerous going forward. We expected to come under a bit of pressure and it was all about weathering that.

“It was good to take the lead rather than having to chase a goal.”