CHERRIES were beaten 3-2 at Burnley after Eddie Howe's side was unable to muster a comeback in Lancashire to rival last week's late, late show against Liverpool.

The visitors' found themselves two behind in the space of three chastening first-half minutes.

They might have considered themselves powerless to do much about Jeff Hendrick's peach of a volley on 13 minutes.

But the way Stephen Ward reacted first to to a loose ball, yards from goal, to double the hosts' advantage would have been difficult for the away team to swallow.

Benik Afobe, with his first goal since he scored against Southampton on March 1 cut the deficit on the stroke of half-time.

With Cherries threatening to recover a two-goal deficit for the second time in a week, however, George Boyd struck with 15 minutes to play to effectively seal the deal for his side – even though Charlie Daniels' stoppage time goal gave his side brief hope of rescuing a point.

A frenetic start to the contest saw penalty box action at both ends.

Referee Martin Atkinson wasn't won over by an early Clarets penalty shout, when Hendrick fell in the area with Harry Arter in close attendance.

Adam Smith, operating on the right of midfield for Cherries, then located Dan Gosling, bombing forward into the hosts' box. Gosling shifted the ball out of his feet but could only direct his stabbed finish past Tom Heaton's right-hand post.

Cherries' next opportunity came courtesy of the foraging Ryan Fraser. The winger, integral to his side's remarkable fightback against Liverpool last week, drifted infield to collect possession, before embarking on a run across the apron of the penalty area and unleashing a shot that cannoned off Matthew Lowton.

Afobe was handily placed for the rebound, but the striker's snap shot was saved by Heaton, dropping sharply to his left

Gosling was then close again, the midfielder this time aiming too high with his effort, after being found 20 yards from goal by Simon Francis following a smartly worked short corner.

The next opportunistic dig at goal, however, came at the other end of the pitch and resulted in Cherries falling behind. Nathan Ake returned Heaton's punt back downfield, where Lowton was alert enough to clip a terrific pass forward for Hendrick.

Nevertheless, there was no sense that the visitors were in any immediate danger, not even when the Irish international controlled expertly and benefited from a favourable ricochet off his knee.

With the ball then sitting up and demanding to be thumped, Hendrick obliged, in some style, sending his strike arcing away from Artur Boruc and into the top right corner.

And a Burnley team that had been scoring its Premier League goals at a rate of fewer than one per game prior to this encounter, swiftly had its second inside 180 seconds.

Clarets' set piece master Steven Defour was given a second bite of the cherry, after Ward's close-range effort following the Belgian's right-wing corner was deflected over.

Cherries were guilty of allowing Ben Mee the freedom of their box when Defour sent in his next effort, with Mee's powerful header taking a nick off Callum Wilson and drawing a reaction save from Boruc.

The keeper's effort, however, was all in vain. Ward was first to the loose ball and not to be denied a second time, the left back turning into an empty net.

With Cherries experiencing all manner of bother in their attempts to combat their opponents' direct approach, it needed Boruc at his best to keep Burnley pegged at two.

The Pole's reflexes had to be in good order for him to spring to his right and push Michael Keane's header round the post, and he was then briskly off his line to deny Scott Arfield after the attacker had got on Ake's wrong side.

As Cherries began to get hot under the collar Arter went into the book for a reckless challenge on Mee – and immediately found himself walking a disciplinary tightrope after he was pulled up for a tug on Hendrick.

But when the visitors started to channel their irritation in the right direction, the contest took on an entirely different feel.

Smith's free-kick, after Afobe had been balked at the edge of the box by Dean Marney, was kept out by a sprawling Heaton, finger tipping the ball over the top.

Former Cherries forward Sam Vokes then deflected an Arter effort off target, but in the final act of the opening period Howe's side got themselves on the board.

Fraser, again, came off his flank to receive Gosling's pass. The Scot went right to Francis, who promptly delivered to an unmarked Afobe.

The ex-Arsenal man opted to shoot first time, applying a firm right boot to the ball to send it past the diving Heaton and into the left of goal.

And minutes after the restart Afobe had a chance to square matters. Fraser released Daniels down the left, but when the defender cut back for Afobe the forward's contact was poor and the ball screwed across the face of goal.

Smith was then narrowly wide with a shot from the right of the box, while Burnley substitute Ashley Barnes saw his half-volley on 55 minutes suffer a similar fate.

Arter then should have done better than thrash wildly over after another Cherries' short corner routine had outfoxed Sean Dyche's team.

As the game became ever more stretched Gosling was cautioned for a cynical body check on Hendrick. The subsequent free-kick was flicked on by Mee towards Barnes, but confronted by the imposing Boruc the Burnley man refused to put his body on the line and sent a limp header drifting harmlessly wide.

When Barnes then linked with his fellow sub Andre Gray the argument could conceivably have been settled, but darting onto Barnes's flick striker Gray fired his effort straight into Boruc's gloves.

But there would be no let off for Howe's men when the admirably fearless home side next poured forward.

Jack Wilshere and Josh King – to a chorus of boos from a home support not prepared to forgive his Blackburn Rovers past – had entered the fray as Cherries threw the kitchen sink at their efforts to draw level, when Gray swooped onto possession.

Thirty-five yards from goal, and displaying exceptional vision and no little technique, Gray reversed the ball into the onrushing Boyd.

Like Hendrick earlier, Boyd still had much to do. And he did it in accomplished fashion, drilling his shot across Boruc and into the far corner.

Fraser's last contribution before being replaced by Marc Pugh was to bend a shot a fraction wide, with Pugh then furious to be denied a penalty after he tumbled over Lowton's leg – a leg, in truth, Cherries' winger went looking for.

Boruc prevented further damage by saving low from Gray after the striker had sprinted half the length of the pitch, with Wilshere in his slipstream

Cherries were then initially denied the opportunity to launch another grandstand finish when the linesman spotted Afobe had controlled with his arm before converting Wilshere's through ball.

But immediately after the announcement of four minutes' stoppage time had induced a might groan around Turf Moor, Cherries did have a lifeline.

Their latest short corner ended with Arter feeding Daniels, free on the left side of the area and hammering a shot into the top right corner.

This week, though, there was no escape for Cherries, whose wait for a win in this part of the North West stretches to 14 matches and more than 55 years.

Burnley (4-3-3): Heaton; Lowton, Keane, Mee, Ward; Marney, Defour (Barnes 55), Hendrick; Arfield, Vokes (Gray 55), Boyd (Tarkowski 90).

Unused subs: Flanagan, Kightly, Bamford, Robinson (g/k).

Bookings: Arfield, Boyd

Cherries (4-4-2): Boruc; Francis, Cook, Ake, Daniels; Smith, Gosling (King 72), Arter, Fraser (Pugh 81) Afobe, Wilson (Wilshere 59).

Unused subs: B Smith, Mings, Ibe, Federici (g/k).

Bookings: Arter, Gosling

Referee: Martin Atkinson (West Yorkshire).

Attendance: 19,680 (1,429 away supporters)