THE DEFENCE for our Daily Echo Perfect Promotion XI is sorted – and now it is time to pick the first midfielder.

It is the battle of the Scots on the right-wing, with Cherries’ current creator-in-chief Ryan Christie up against 2015 champion Matt Ritchie.

Over the next few weeks, the class of 2015 will be up against last season’s promotion heroes, giving Daily Echo readers the opportunity to select the members of their ‘Perfect Promotion XI’.

We will announce the winners of each poll all together, once voting has concluded in the final poll.

In order to qualify for selection, players will have had to have played 1500 minutes of league action to be eligible for selection in a poll.

Voting will last for two days, allowing as many Daily Echo readers to vote as possible.

With five players already locked in, we effectively reach the mid-way point.

A deadline day signing back in August, Christie represented somewhat of a coup for Cherries, with the club convincing the midfield maestro to depart Scottish giants Celtic.

Christie had started the campaign in the Champions League qualifiers, before ending it with promotion at the Vitality Stadium.

The 27-year-old Scottish international made 38 league appearances under Scott Parker, scoring three times and providing eight assists.

Ritchie appeared in all 46 matches as his Cherries side ended the season top of the pile.

Arguably it was the winger’s best season of his career, with Ritchie grabbing 15 goals and 17 assists as one of Cherries’ top performers.

In total, Ritchie made 142 appearances in Red and Black, scoring 31 goals and assisting a further 29 goals, meaning over half of his contributions to Cherries came in that 2014-15 campaign.