BOSS Eddie Howe thanked Cherries’ fans for lifting his side to a 4-0 victory over Luton and added: “They’ve really stuck with us.”

A Philip Billing double along with goals from Callum Wilson and Dominic Solanke ensured the Dorset club are in the fourth round of the competition for the first time since 2016.

Cherries had lost three of their past four games ahead of victory over the Hatters – a run which had seen them slip into the bottom three of the Premier League.

But Howe insisted a win over the Championship outfit was hugely important.

He said: “I’m delighted with the scoreline, the performance, the attitude of the players and the crowd as well.

“It’s been difficult for them. Some of the games we’ve played here, they’ve really stuck with us.

“I’d just like to thank them for all their support and it was great to reward them with the four goals today."

Cherries will find out their next opponents in the competition when the draw is made on Monday evening.

Howe added: “I think there was a lot of really good stuff today. Was it perfect? No. No game is. I am always going to see areas that we can improve.

“But it was much more like us, quicker passing, more attacking intent. We scored the four goals and could have scored more - but very pleased.

“We knew how important today was. We needed to win.

“I say every year when we enter this competition, we want to win and we want to progress. It’s no different there, we’ve just produced a very good performance.”