MANAGER Eddie Howe safely piloted Cherries into the third round of the FA Cup and then hailed his players for their bravery.

Cherries booked a place in this afternoon’s draw courtesy of a comfortable 3-1 victory over League One rivals Carlisle at Brunton Park yesterday.

Goals from Wes Fogden, Eunan O’Kane and Marc Pugh saw Cherries bank £27,000 in prize money and progress to the third round for the first time in eight years.

Howe said: “We are in the hat for the third round draw which is one of the highlights of the FA Cup. The players deserve credit because Carlisle is a really difficult place to play and they responded brilliantly to the challenge.

“I thought we controlled the game. We were brave, we played from back to front and we wanted the ball. I felt we dictated the game. I can’t remember them having too many chances. Apart from their goal, I thought it was a really good performance.

“It isn’t easy when you come away from home. Their supporters got behind them and Carlisle are a decent side so we had to get the basics right and we did. The players were brave and composed. We have got some really good footballers in this team and I thought that showed.”

Fogden and O’Kane both netted within six first-half minutes before Pugh completed the scoring in the dying seconds after Mark Beck had halved the deficit for the hosts with 18 minutes remaining.

Howe added: “A third goal earlier would have killed the game because there was always a chance it would be a little dicey towards the end after they had scored. But what pleased me most was that, even after we had conceded, we were still in full control and saw it out in a really professional way. The third goal was the icing on the cake.”

Former Bolton star Fabrice Muamba and ex-Spurs skipper Ledley King will make the draw at around 2.40pm, with Cherries ball number 48 in the bag.

The draw will take place at Wembley and is being screened on ITV following their coverage of the second round tie between MK Dons and AFC Wimbledon.

Cherries’ last appearance in the third round came in 2004-05 – after they had eliminated Carlisle in the second round.

A 2-1 home win over Chester in the third round earned Cherries a trip to Burnley and they exited 2-0 at Turf Moor to an Ian Thomas-Moore double.