BOSS Kevin Bond watched Cherries slump to a second successive Dean Court defeat and then demanded a return to home rule.

Substitute Luke Rodgers grabbed the only goal of the game as Port Vale completed a hat-trick of consecutive wins at the Dorset venue on Saturday.

The bustling striker netted with eight minutes remaining to condemn Cherries to a second 1-0 home reverse following Huddersfield's triumph a fortnight earlier.

His clinical half-volley broke the deadlock as Cherries, who ended last season on the back of a six-match unbeaten home run, were made to pay for spurning a series of excellent chances.

Bond said: "With the shape of our side at the moment, it almost seems to suit us better being an away team. We were expected to be under pressure at Nottingham Forest, West Brom and Doncaster, but we got men behind the ball and defended really well in those away games.

"In our first two home games, we haven't been able to impose ourselves enough on the opposition to gain control. We did it for 20 minutes against Port Vale when we got up a head of steam but that was about it.

"We sat too deeply and didn't get close enough to put anybody under pressure. As a consequence, we were getting men behind the ball and they were getting a lot of the ball, which you don't want at home. We need to look at that and try to do something about it.

"It was an important game for us on the back of the Doncaster win so we are hugely disappointed to have suffered back-to-back home defeats. We have handed the initiative to the opposition far too easily in those two games and we've got to do something about it."

Bond added: "We need to look at whether it's the way we've played or the players we've played. We certainly need to be able to play at a higher tempo and if we need to up it a gear, one or two don't look capable of doing that at the moment.

"We certainly need to be more on the front foot at home and need to believe in ourselves a lot more. We don't want teams coming here and having so much possession because that really makes life difficult. We need to get in people's faces more."

Although Vale had dominated the first half, Cherries should have been in front at the interval after Garreth O'Connor headed a glorious chance straight at visiting goalkeeper Joe Anyon 13 minutes before the break.

And after Lee Bradbury had twice been thwarted by Anyon in the second half, Josh Gowling squandered a gilt-edged opportunity to salvage a share of the spoils when he fired weakly at the Vale stopper in injury time.

Bond said: "We had some fantastic chances and maybe would have won on another day. But their two strikers (David McGoldrick and Marc Richards) and the two subs that came on up front (Rodgers and Callum Willock) always looked lively and always looked capable of giving us problems.

"They will probably feel that they got what they deserved and I wouldn't knock them for that. We certainly need to boss games more at home and that's something we'll be working on."