ADAM Federici kept Cherries' first Premier League clean sheet on the road for nine months after a "nightmare week" which had seen him rush to his son's hospital bedside.

Federici recovered from the emotional turmoil and "a few sleepless nights" to help Eddie Howe's team register a deserved 1-0 win at Stoke on Saturday.

He was drafted in after Artur Boruc had been ruled out through injury – and started at the bet 365 Stadium just days after returning from a near 12,000-mile round trip to Thailand which was followed by a frantic dash to hospital.

Federici had only arrived back in England on Wednesday after sitting on the bench during Australia's World Cup qualifier with Thailand in Bangkok.

The 31-year-old, whose son is now on the mend and recovering from his illness at home, told the Daily Echo: “My little boy was in hospital so it was a nightmare week. It meant a few sleepless nights so that didn’t help – but the game at Stoke was a nice way to finish the week."

Federici, who received 24 hours’ notice that he would be starting against Stoke, hopes he has given manager Howe “a bit of a headache” and has his eye on retaining the gloves for Sunday’s mouthwatering trip to Arsenal.

He added: “Now, I’ll do what I always do – work my socks off. Neil Moss (goalkeeping coach) and Anthony White (Moss’s assistant) have been fantastic with me and I’ve enjoyed working hard with them. All I want is the team to succeed and do well, but obviously I want to play.

“If I don’t, I’ll be supportive of Artur. What you want to do when you’re in my position is give the manager a bit of a headache and hopefully I’ve done that."

Before his appearance at Stoke, Federici’s only Premier League action in the past 12 months had come in Cherries’ dead rubber with Manchester United at the end of last season.

Although the door opened for him in similar circumstances last year when Boruc injured his thigh, Federici damaged his ankle during the epic 3-3 draw with Everton and was forced off at half-time.

He said: “That was disappointing for me, hard to take. “You wait so long for an opportunity and you want to build on it.

“For a goalkeeper, it’s extremely tough to come in cold. I felt a bit rusty and that’s to be expected. I also think goalkeeping has a lot to do with confidence and you get your confidence back by playing.

“But coming into a group like this, with how hard the boys work, you know everyone will have your back. That just made it even more special.”

Federici insisted Cherries would not get carried away with their jump into the Premier League’s top half.

But he believes winning at Stoke could act as a spur for more awayday success.

“Any game you win in this league is big because it’s such a tough league,” said Federici.

“We believe in ourselves – the coaches instil that in us. It tells us we can keep clean sheets away from home and gives us a bit more confidence and impetus to win more away games, which we need to.”