EDDIE Howe has revealed that Harry Arter could face hernia surgery – but the talented playmaker is set to report for duty at Oldham tomorrow.

The former Charlton Athletic midfielder has impressed since arriving from Woking as one of Cherries’ summer signings.

He continued to catch the eye when producing a virtuoso performance in the midweek reserve victory over Plymouth Argyle.

But Arter could be in for a spell on the sidelines in the near future after Howe reported that he visited a specialist yesterday for a consultation.

The emerging talent, one of the stars of pre-season, looks set to play through the pain barrier as Cherries decide on the best way to treat the injury.

Howe told the Echo: “Harry has impressed near enough every time he’s played, so he’s definitely improving all the time.

“We think he may have a hernia, so that’s an area we’re going to have to look at as to when we operate on him, which is a bit of a blow for us.

“It’s one of those he can play through. It’s not giving him too much discomfort while he’s playing, it’s more after that he gets a little sore. We’ll have to see when the right time is.

“He’ll be available tomorrow. It’s not when he’s playing that he feels it, it’s more afterwards, so we’ll just have to try to find the right time for him to go under the knife and get it done.”

Howe is expecting a stern test at Boundary Park against Paul Dickov’s side, who are unbeaten on home soil in League One this term.

“Boundary Park is always a difficult place to go – it’s quite a tight stadium and their fans get behind them, so it’s another tough away game for us,” said Howe.

“They’re sort of a new team. Paul Dickov’s gone in there and they’ve added players to their squad in the past year.

“I played against Paul a few times and he was a nightmare to play against because he worked his socks off. I’m sure his team will mirror what he was like as a player.

“They are extremely hard working and they’ve got some good players to add to that. They’ve made a good start.”

Howe rated as “doubtful” attacking duo Josh McQuoid (calf) and shoulder-injury victim Michael Symes.

Oldham: (from) Brill, Lee, Hazell, Jarrett, Black, Jones, Stephens, Furman, Taylor, Tounkara, W Feeney, Alessandra, Mvoto, Jacobson, Gregan, Dikaba, Gerrard.

Cherries: (from) Jalal, Bradbury, Pearce, Garry, Wiggins, Cooper, L Feeney, Bartley, Robinson, Pugh, McQuoid, Cummings, Hollands, Arter, Stockley, Taylor, Fletcher, Partington, Nelson, Symes, Purches, Stewart.