MANAGER Eddie Howe watched Cherries fritter two valuable points and then described Rotherham’s late leveller at Dean Court as “a killer blow”.

Steve Cook’s second-half header had looked destined to win the day for Cherries, only for Millers substitute Jordan Bowery to equalise in stoppage time.

Howe told the Daily Echo: “It was a tough one to take for us because when you work so hard for your goal, dominate the ball and there are only seconds left, you expect to win. I don’t think they had had a shot on target before they scored.

“It was a tight game. We knew about Rotherham’s threats and how they played. They put the ball in the box and will ask questions of you at the heart of your defence. For 90 minutes, we answered all those questions handsomely.

“It was an individual error, we switched off and conceded. That is what we have to work on to make sure it doesn’t become a habit for us.

“There was some dispute over the corner which led to the goal but it is one of those things. The referee had a 50-50 call to make and we thought it was ours. That doesn’t mean we have to concede from the corner and we should have defended it better.”

Howe added: “I was disappointed with the first half. We were at home and the onus was on us to take the game to Rotherham and, although we dominated the ball, we wanted to be more efficient with it.

"We wanted to be more creative and more of a goal threat but were too slow in our build-up play and too negative with our passing.

“We saw a much-improved second-half performance where we really went at them. It was still in the same controlled way but with a more positive outlook and it should have seen us win the three points.

“For all our possession and some chances early in the second half, we felt the goal was just reward. The only criticism was probably trying to protect the lead too early and we certainly weren’t encouraging that from the sidelines.

"It is a difficult one for the players when the scoreline is 1-0 but I thought we sat too deeply and invited pressure and, ultimately, paid the price.”

Asked whether he had sensed any anxiety in the crowd during the first half, Howe replied: “If I was a supporter, I probably would have had the same feeling.

"I just wanted to see a bit more urgency and a bit more positivity in our play. My feelings were exactly the same and I thought we saw a much-improved second-half performance.

“I think there is a delicate balance between keeping the ball and not looking a goal threat, and felt we just tipped over that balance slightly in the first half because, at the end of it, you need something otherwise it is pointless.”