EDDIE Howe piloted Cherries into the fifth round of the FA Cup for only the fourth time in their history before hailing the impact of substitutes Marc Pugh and Matt Ritchie.

Pugh and Ritchie came off the bench to spark a second-half comeback as Cherries edged a 2-1 win over Portsmouth.

The pair provided the impetus for Cherries to cancel out Gary Roberts’s first-half opener with Pugh bagging a late winner after Josh King had levelled 20 minutes from time. Victory earned Cherries a home tie with Everton as they reached the last 16 for the first time since 1989.

Howe said: “The first half was poor. Portsmouth played very well, they pressed us and out-passed us, which we haven’t seen at Premier League level.

“There was a lot to learn from the first half but, thankfully, the players showed great character to come from behind to win.

“We didn’t get into any rhythm and that was credit to them. It took us to get the two subs on to get control of the game. Once we did, we were very good.

“We had to dig in and it was really important we didn’t go further behind when the game wasn’t going our way. We managed that period of the game and were able to change a few things.

“We had quality players on the bench who we knew had the ability to change the game and, thankfully, that is what happened. Marc and Matt made a big difference.

“They earn their living on being productive and assisting and scoring goals. They know how we play and were able to fit in straight away. Bringing them on was the defining factor in the game.”

Howe made 10 changes to his starting line-up with Tommy Elphick returning from a near five-month injury layoff to skipper Cherries and recent loan signing Juan Iturbe handed his full debut.

League Two promotion-chasers Pompey enjoyed the better of the opening period and reached the break deservedly leading after Roberts had broken the deadlock on the stroke of half-time.

However, the 62-minute introduction of Pugh and Pompey old boy Ritchie turned the tide with King glancing home a Eunan O’Kane free-kick to restore parity before Pugh sealed victory eight minutes from time.

Howe added: “I was concerned at half-time. We wanted a better performance in the second half and wanted to win the game. That was clear from the outset and I picked a team to win.

“We said a few things at half-time and weren’t happy as a group. The key thing was that the players had the character to respond.

“This competition is a welcome distraction from the Premier League. We want to go as far as we can. The early rounds are difficult but, if you can get beyond them, you never know how it can transform your season.

“Winning is everything. It doesn’t matter which competition we play in, we want to win. There was a lot at stake for our supporters and wanted to win for them.”