AND now for the news: Aston Villa scored a goal. Two actually.

Eddie Howe’s post-match assessment that these two wonderful strikes were the only difference between the two sides was accurate in many respects. Howe’s side were superb during a first half that promised to enhance a weekend of FA Cup shocks yet further.

But for all of Cherries’ style and joie de vivre, essentially they were undone by two goals of real quality and Villa’s second-half ability to frustrate with pure and simple possession. It was all a bit Premier League.

The statisticians had been salivating over this tie ever since the balls came out of the bag. Not so much of an upset if Cherries won, they purred, but more if Villa did and Paul Lambert, the manager, kept his job. It was easy to understand their giddy excitement – after all, this was the country’s poorest team in front of goal against the most prolific.

Seven goals in the league all season and some of the most turgid and uninspiring football in the club’s history translated into Cherries boasting more goals in the second city than Villa thanks to their eight against Birmingham. A truly remarkable statistic with Valentine’s Day on the horizon.

This was exactly the game Lambert didn’t need, against exactly the kind of opposition he would have feared and at exactly the time he was under most pressure. The relief post-match was such that the usually straight-down-the-line Scot even cracked a few jokes with the assembled Press. It was that kind of good news day for Villa with Fabian Delph signing a new contract before kick-off.

For Howe, his obvious disappointment was screened by a glimpse of the bigger picture.

Despite his insistence that the eight changes he made here made little difference to his side’s quality or expectation of victory, Howe knows places like Villa Park are where Maxim Demin, the owner, wants ‘little old Bournemouth’ to be. An FA Cup run to the last 16 and everything that goes with it rarely helps a genuine Championship promotion bid.

That said, Cherries started the tie at a brisk pace and with real intent. Ryan Fraser was their main outlet down the left, twisting and turning his way around Alan Hutton to cross at every opportunity. It was Fraser’s invention that resulted in Cherries’ first chance after just four minutes, Shaun MacDonald firing narrowly over Shay Given’s crossbar.

The tempo showed no signs of abating. Villa were keen to get a crowd frustrated by a lack of urgency this season on their side early on, but they were drowned out by almost 6,000 from Dorset as the visitors surged forward.

Three minutes later, it was Fraser again causing Villa problems, squaring to Harry Arter. His shot, though, was disappointing given the amount of space he was afforded by the Villa back four.

At the other end, Hutton crossed from the right only to see Andreas Weimann head wide from a wonderful position inside the penalty area. Lee Camp looked beaten.

New signing Carles Gil followed Weimann in failing to test Camp on 14 minutes when he blazed wide from around 25 yards.

A wonderful move on 19 minutes saw MacDonald round Given following a breathtaking series of passes between Junior Stanislas, Steve Cook and Fraser, but Kieran Richardson was on hand to block MacDonald’s effort on the line.

It was the story of the opening 20 minutes. Villa looked petrified at the pace in Howe’s side, Fraser in particular, but also Adam Smith down the right.

Villa had their moments, but there was always something lacking. Tom Cleverley’s direct run after half-an-hour saw the midfielder square an inviting ball across the six-yard box, but Christian Benteke was nowhere to be seen. Moments later, Arter slipped a delicate pass to O’Kane, who charged towards the penalty area on his left foot. As the visiting fans’ roar deafened the Holte End, O’Kane’s shot was pushed wide by Given.

Leandro Bacuna blasted way into the North Stand as half-time approached. It wasn’t as if Villa looked short on confidence or nervous due to recent results. They were simply uninspiring and devoid of ideas in the final third – it was a taste of what the Villa Park faithful have endured all season with not a single shot on target for the home side during the opening 45 minutes.

And it was much of the same at the start of the second half. Benteke was guided across the face of the penalty area by Tommy Elphick and Cook, unable to get a shot away, before Gil fired into the side netting.

But the Spaniard didn’t make the same mistake in the 50th minute and it was a wonderful strike to give Villa the lead.

Picking up the ball on the right, Gil cut inside all of 30 yards out and curled a stunning left-foot shot into the far corner. Premier League club, Premier League goal.

It acted as a jolt, awaking the Holte End from its slumber and suddenly Villa looked the better side. Fraser was not having the same impact, finding himself stifled and controlled on the left by Hutton and Jores Okore who had stepped across to double up on the wee Scotsman when Cherries attacked.

Although Cherries didn’t appear rocked by the goal, after the hour they became sloppy, giving the ball away and allowing Villa to dictate and play at a more comfortable tempo.

On 71 minutes, Weimann made it 2-0. Hutton crossed from the right and the Austrian side-footed past Camp.

Substitute Callum Wilson only just failed to get on the end of Smith’s cross 15 minutes from time, while Simon Francis drove into the side netting in stoppage time having replaced Ian Harte.

Cherries did bag a deserved consolation when Smith’s desire to stretch and cross found Wilson, who deftly touched the ball past Given.

Then, as Cherries pushed for an equaliser in the final few moments, Villa broke away, but substitue Ashley Westwood was denied in a one-on-one with Camp.

MATCH FACTS

Villa: (4-4-2) Given; Hutton, Akore, Clark, Richardson; Bacuna (Grealish, 90), Cleverley, Sanchez, Gil (Westwood, 87); Weimann, Benteke.

Unused subs: Baker, Cissokho, Lowton, Burke, Guzan (g/k).

Booked: Hutton, Okore, Bacuna.

Cherries: (4-4-2) Camp 7; Smith 8*, Elphick 7, Cook 7, Harte 6.5 (Francis, 60); Stanislas 7 (Ritchie, 79), Arter 7.5, O’Kane 7.5, MacDonald 7.5, Fraser 7.5; Kermorgant 6.5 (Wilson, 60).

Unused subs: Ward, Surman, Pitman, Boruc (g/k).

Referee: Mike Dean (Wirral).

Attendance: 27,415.

STAR MAN - ADAM SMITH

COMING in alongside Ian Harte for Charlie Daniels, who was rested, and Simon Francis, who was on the bench, Smith showed no signs of rustiness over a lack of game time. Like Ryan Fraser on the left, Smith was a constant threat to Villa during a fine first-half performance from Cherries.

Alan Hutton simply couldn’t cope with the pace of Fraser, although with Jores Okore as back-up, the Scot enjoyed an easier ride during the second period. On the other side, Smith constantly cut inside and caused the Villa midfield no end of problems. He also defended well when required and was key to Cherries’ consolation goal when he refused to give up on a ball that looked destined for the advertising boards.