SUPERSTITIOUS Tommy Elphick is pondering ditching some of his pre-match rituals after his late arrival at Dean Court on Saturday brought about a change in fortune.

Elphick and goalkeeper Artur Boruc were both caught in traffic as a pile-up on the Wessex Way led to kick-off in Cherries’ clash with Blackburn being delayed.

However, despite the disruption to their preparation, both Elphick and Boruc played a part as Cherries kept their first clean sheet for six games.

Ringwood-based Elphick told the Daily Echo: “First and foremost, it looked like a bad crash and I just hope everybody was okay. Sometimes, there is more to life than football.

“I left my house just after midday for a journey which normally takes 15 minutes and ended up getting to the ground about 30 minutes before the scheduled kick-off time.

“The closer you get and the longer it takes, you start getting a little more anxious that you are not going to get there but, thankfully, the referee decided to delay it which was appreciated.

“They sent a car up the other side of the dual carriageway to collect us and me and Artur skipped over the central reservation to get in it. But because the other way was blocked as well, we ended up going back on ourselves and had to go to the back of the queue!

“The manager prepares us all week so there wasn’t too much to go through before the game. In the old days, it would have been the norm to turn up, put on your kit and get out there. I think it is mind over matter a lot of the time.

“I’ve got so many pre-match rituals and routines and a few of them had to go by the wayside. I know I lost count of the lampposts so it shows you just how much they work!

“I like to get here early so I can go through everything but, as we kept a clean sheet, I might start getting here a bit later for every game!”

Elphick also had words of praise for Cherries supporters and thanked those who had been stuck in the traffic for their patience.

He added: “I was getting itchy feet sitting there so it must have been the same for the supporters.

“They must have been frustrated with the result but I thought they were spot on. They were behind us for the 90 minutes and were as loud as they had been all season. I have said we are all going to have to pull in the same direction and I felt they did.

“We have come a long way in such a short space of time and sometimes that can escalate pressure and people can expect too much.

"But we put that pressure on ourselves every day, we want to be in the top two and that remains the focus. It feels like the fans are dragging us there and they were excellent.”