JEFF Mostyn vowed Cherries' board of directors would leave "the right legacy" after admitting the club had been given "very little choice" but to move to a new home.

In December, Cherries announced proposals to leave Dean Court, the ground where the club has been housed for more than a century.

Three potential sites have been identified by the Premier League side, who had initially hoped to buy back and develop their current home.

But having failed to agree on the stadium's value with landlords Structadene and discussed the matter with Bournemouth Borough Council planners, the club elected to seek a new venue.

While chairman Mostyn conceded there would "always be regret" over moving away, he insisted a new, increased-capacity ground would enable Cherries to fully satisfy supporters' football needs.

In an exclusive interview with the Daily Echo, Mostyn said: "This is the traditional home of AFC Bournemouth and as a consequence of that, you are always disappointed if at any stage during the club's history, you have to move away. From that perspective, there is always regret.

"In terms of the circumstances leading up to a decision, the landlords valued the stadium at a far greater sum than is realistic. Because we are now in the Premier League, they believe we should pay a premium for real estate and it's just not right.

"Second to that is because we are within the Five Parks Act, the council said to us they would not allow us to develop the footprint to the extent we wanted to.

"But the quid pro quo for that is they said they would help us find options within the conurbation and that's where we are now.

"Irrespective of the value of the stadium, if we bought it, we could still not develop it to the satisfaction of the board and our supporters and, hence, the decision was made to relocate.

"Three sites have been identified as potential sites and that's all it is."

Mostyn added: "It's always difficult for anyone to move home. What we have to do is ensure the legacy we leave as a board of directors is the right one for our supporters.

"From our perspective, you are left with very little choice when you have a stadium of 11,300 in round figures and you have a demand of maybe 20,000-plus for tickets.

"Our job is to satisfy the needs of supporters who have been supporting this football club for 40, 50 or 60 years in some cases.

"The board's desire is to ensure we have a stadium which everyone will be proud of and that everyone who has supported this football club for generations has the opportunity to buy a ticket to watch their beloved team."

Mostyn, who politely declined to reveal the location of the three sites concerned, added that moving to a temporary home before the new ground had not been considered by the board.

It is hoped the new stadium will be built in time for the 2020-21 season.