SKIPPER Tommy Elphick has defended Cherries’ game-management tactics and strongly refutes claims they are cheating.

Cherries were booed by sections of the home crowd for the way they ran down the clock during yesterday’s 3-1 win against Wigan at the DW Stadium.

And tempers flared on the pitch when Cherries’ perceived time-wasting resulted in a skirmish involving players from both camps in the closing stages.

Elphick told the Daily Echo: “We are wising up a bit. Perhaps in the past, we have been a little naive in wanting to score every time we got the ball. I thought our tempo in the game was good and we slowed it down and quicken it up when we wanted.

“It is all part of managing the game. The longer we stay on top of the league and when we find ourselves on top on games, this is when things like this are going to be important.

“We are not a team to dive around all over the place. If there is an opportunity for someone to get us a breather when we are winning and the game is a bit tense, we are all for that.

“I don’t think it is cheating, it is managing the game. Jose Mourinho is a past-master at it and I think you can learn so much from his teams. It is not just about managing the game but also about when to go back and when to go forward. They are all experiences and the longer the season goes on with us where we are, the more we are going to have to use them.”

Two fine individual goals from Callum Wilson sandwiched a clinical strike from Yann Kermorgant as Cherries coasted into a 3-0 lead. But just minutes after Wilson had added his second and the visitors’ third, Leon Clarke headed home from close range to reduce the arrears.

Elphick added: “I thought it was going to be another demolition job after the third one had gone in and we were a little disappointed we didn’t kick on. Their goal straight after our third gave them some momentum so we had to stand up, be strong and defend a lot of balls and crosses and we did it well.

“The pitch was one of the worst we had played on this season and it is all about different obstacles and challenges. But, in the first half, I thought we moved the ball as well as we have this season and it was a well-orchestrated performance.

“We managed the game well, got the goals at crucial times and it was another positive result. It wasn’t quite a perfect performance but it was another win and that is vital at this stage of the season.”