LIKE his predecessor Kenny Allen, Cherries goalkeeper Shwan Jalal says he would willingly take a beating at Prenton Park for a victory over Tranmere.

Allen was victim to one of the most bizarre incidents of football hooliganism when he was struck by a pensioner wielding a walking stick during Cherries’ 5-0 win at Rovers in 1979.

Charles Lindsay, 68, took umbrage after Cherries had raced into a 4-0 lead and clambered over the barrier before whacking Allen on the backside as he went to take a goal kick.

“He was wearing a pork pie hat and had a walking stick in one hand and his false teeth in the other!” recalled Allen. “He was moaning at me because we were beating his team. I told him he needed to whack his own goalkeeper because he was the one who had let in the goals. The police frog-marched him away and, as he reached the Main Stand, he doffed his hat.”

During an appearance in front of Birkenhead magistrates, Lindsay admitted conduct likely to cause a breach of the peace and was bound over for two years.

“I would take a walking stick to the backside for a 5-0 away win at Tranmere!” laughed Jalal. “Fans do the craziest things.

“At Chesterfield on the final day of last season, I had to be protected by two stewards in my goal. They were running riot and I had all sorts of obscenities screamed at me.”

Cherries head to the Wirral seeking their first win at Tranmere since 1981 and Jalal maintains they will travel in confident mood following the manner of their 5-1 crushing of his former club Peterborough.

He added: “I’ve heard our record isn’t too good but things are there to be changed. We can only come off the back of a home win with massive confidence and look to take it to Tranmere.

“They were dogged last season and managed to stay up by the skin of their teeth. They have probably got the same qualities as us.

“We’ve got to go there and play our football when we can and also do the ugly stuff as well.”

Discussing Cherries’ victory over Posh, Jalal said: “It was very satisfactory, both on a personal note and also because of the way the boys played. It was a pleasure to watch that type of football played in front of me.

“Everybody in my family knows what I went through at Peterborough.

“My dad was in the stand and every time a goal went in, I looked up at him and he was jumping up and down. It was absolute jubilation.”

Tranmere Rovers: (from) Nielsen, Darville, Wood, Goodison, Cresswell, Welsh, McLaren, Labadie, Gornell, Showunmi, Thomas-Moore, Bakayogo, Blanchard, Brown, Cathalina, McGurk, Power, Atkins, Collister, Miotto.

Cherries: (from) Jalal, Purches, Cooper, Pearce, Wiggins, Feeney, Bartley, Robinson, Pugh, Symes, Pitman, Garry, Bradbury, Hollands, McQuoid, Cummings, Arter, Partington, Stockley, Thomas.