Cherries: Mixed emotions for Pearce (From Bournemouth Echo)

Cherries: Mixed emotions for Pearce

7:00am Wednesday 25th November 2009

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KEY player Jason Pearce produced a man-of-the-match performance to help Cherries earn a point against Dagenham and Redbridge – but he was left to rue missing his match-winning moment.

The Cherries centre-half contributed to a brave defensive display, as his crucial interventions ensured last night’s Dean Court clash ended goalless.

With promotion rivals Daggers piling on the pressure during the closing stages, Pearce and his team-mates stood firm to keep a clean sheet.

But it could have been even better for the defensive prospect, had he made the most of a clear goalscoring opportunity with time running out.

Reflecting on the chance he headed over, Pearce admitted: “I thought I maybe could have done better.

“I just got underneath it a little bit. I was stretching for it and just couldn’t get over it to head it down and headed it over.

“I was disappointed with that, but it’s a good point.”

The result keeps Cherries top of League Two, with Daggers also in the mix, and Pearce feels the battle for promotion promises to be a close contest.

When asked about Dagenham’s credentials, he said: “They are a good team and they are good at what they do – they showed that last night.

“It’s just such an open league and a lot of teams in this league are very good and hard to play against.

“But we’re top of the league at the moment and that’s where we want to stay.”

Cherries’ 0-0 draw against Dagenham and Redbridge ensured they kept hold of the League Two top spot by a point.

Pearce felt it was a good result for his side after Eddie Howe’s men were made to work hard in front of a bumper crowd.

He added: “It was a hard game to play in. They are in your face for the whole game, but I think the lads dug in.

“We know we can do better. The conditions didn’t help us but it’s a point gained, which keeps us top of the league and that’s where we want to be.

“I was speaking to Ryan (Garry) and Shwan (Jalal) and we were disappointed that we hadn’t kept a clean sheet for a while.

“It’s great to get a clean sheet again and that’s what we want to build on.”

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