GUTTED Mark Molesley took the flak for a glaring late miss after shell-shocked Cherries were hammered deeper into the relegation mire in the Steel City yesterday.

Mark Hudson’s 18th-minute volley was enough for Mark Robins’s Rotherham to take all three points at Sheffield’s Don Valley Stadium - and condemn Cherries to a fourth successive league reverse in the process.

The Millers midfielder let fly from around 20 yards after Danny Hollands’s poor clearance had fallen into his path – before Hollands capped a disappointing display when he was sent off for two quick bookings midway through the second half.

But despite a woeful display, Eddie Howe’s troops did launch a mini revival 10 minutes from time – with substitute Molesley, on for the injured Lee Bradbury, wasting a glorious chance to snatch an undeserved point with less than 30 seconds of normal time remaining.

Molesley, whose close-range shot from space following Brett Pitman's teasing cross trickled agonisingly wide of the upright, told the Echo: “Everyone is very down at the moment, but we’ve got to pick ourselves up quickly. We rallied hard in the last 15 or 20 minutes and really gave it a go. I should have scored and we had a few other chances late on, so we could have got ourselves back in the game.

“I ran a long way and I thought ‘If this comes in I’m going to head it’ and I changed my body shape to go and head it, but it dropped a little bit short and I was running out of room.

“I just wanted to get a touch on it and I did, but it wasn’t the one I wanted. I’m gutted and I feel responsible because if that had gone in we would have had a point.”

Pitman also headed over during Cherries’ late rally and Jason Pearce’s snapshot right at the death was pushed around the post by Millers keeper David Stockdale. Alan Connell also had a stoppage time effort ruled out for offside.

Howe’s charges are now a daunting 10 points from safety heading into Saturday’s clash against top-of-the-table Wycombe at Dean Court.

And with Hollands suspended, Scott Guyett nursing a hamstring strain and Bradbury facing at least three weeks on the sidelines with a foot injury, Howe’s side to face the Chairboys could almost pick itself.

Molesley added: “Jason Pearce had a great chance that was going in the top corner but the keeper somehow tipped it around the post, but it’s all ‘what ifs’ and we can’t keep saying that. We have to turn those chances into goals.

“We can’t keep making excuses and looking for excuses. We need to get ourselves out of this.

“It’s always the case when things aren’t going your way, but in the space of two seconds we had a player injured and a player sent off and we’d already lost Scottie. When you’re down, things don’t go your way, but we’ve got to rally together and start fighting for our lives.”

On Hollands’s two quick-fire bookings, Molesley, watching close by in the Cherries dug-out, said: “It looked harsh to me. They both dived in for the ball for the first one and the second one, again, I thought was harsh but the referee was quick to give it.”