STRIKER Sam Surridge insisted boss Eddie Howe had been “great” with him since his return to Cherries’ setup and added: “Hopefully he will give me a chance soon.”

The Cherries academy graduate has featured on just two occasions for the Dorset club since returning from a loan spell at Championship Swansea earlier this season.

Ferndown-raised Surridge came off the bench in the Dorset club’s 3-0 home defeat to Watford in January, before netting in a 2-1 FA Cup home loss against Arsenal.

He has not been seen in a competitive fixture since striking against the Gunners.

But with manager Howe without regular frontman Callum Wilson for two games through suspension and Joshua King picking up an ankle injury, Surridge could be in contention to feature against Newcastle United on Wednesday (6pm).

Speaking to the Daily Echo before the Premier League’s resumption, the former Weymouth and Poole Town loan star said: “I am going to keep working hard and the gaffer does trust me – hopefully he will give me a chance soon.

“He has been great with me really. He’s just kept saying you’ve got to keep working hard.

“It’s a cliché but it’s true, you’ve just got to keep working hard and, you never know, you are only one injury, maybe two away from getting a place.

“I have just got to stay ready and keep showing what I can do in training.

“I’ve got two or three good strikers in front of me – you’ve just got to keep going.”

Surridge, whose previous loan clubs also include Yeovil and Oldham, played 23 games for Swansea this season – scoring seven goals.

He has also earned two caps for England under-21s, which included coming off the bench and scoring in a friendly against Slovenia.

“It’s been good. At the start of the season I wanted to break into the Bournemouth team but the chances were limited,” he added.

“Obviously, I went out on loan and the Championship is a good level. I wanted to go there to prove myself, then come back and use it as confidence for myself to come back and play in this team.

“Since I have been back, I’ve showed what I can do. I’ve got a couple of strikers in front of me but hopefully in training I am showing that I can push for a place.

“Obviously, you just want to be playing. Especially at my age. You want to be playing and getting experience.

“But I’ve had a taste of it and once I do get maybe a couple of games under my belt, my confidence will shine through."