Cherries hang on for 2-1 win in Huddersfield despite late scare to leapfrog Barnsley in to fifth

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Strikes from Philip Billing and Dominic Solanke proved enough for Jonathan Woodgate’s side to leave the John Smith’s Stadium with all three points, but Bournemouth almost learned a very cruel lesson – never take your foot off the gas.

Bournemouth have turned it up a gear at just the right time, as the Championship season draws to a close and we will soon learn the Play-Off opponents. However, performances like that in Huddersfield won’t quite cut it against upcoming opponents such as Norwich City and Brentford.

The Cherries have managed seven wins in their last nine league games and have won five on the bounce, as well as reaching 20 league wins on Tuesday night.

Ex-Huddersfield man Philip Billing opened the scoring after just 15 minutes, and has enjoyed a completely new outlook on his game since switching to a more advanced midfield role.

Jonathan Woodgate’s arrival saw the Dane shifted from a holding defensive midfield role, to a brand new part in behind striker Dominic Solanke in attacking midfield.

In his last five games, Billing has been involved in six goals, and bagged his seventh of the season against the Terriers. The 6-foot-6 giant makes no mistake of having his presence known behind the forward line and causing havoc amongst defenders.

During his time in West Yorkshire, Billing managed just six goals in six years but already has seven this season for the Cherries.

“It was nice. I had this feeling I was going to score. I thought I was going to score a few more. But, you know, I will take the one goal and the most important thing is we won the game. If I can contribute with goals, then happy days. For me it’s just about getting in the play-offs, securing that spot and then we take it from there.”

Solanke’s 14th goal of the season took his contribution tally up to 23, playing a direct hand in an additional nine assists. Bournemouth’s front line have been firing on all cylinders this season, with left-winger Arnaut Danjuma boasting 13 goals and six assists to his name so far.

Woodgate‘s men went ahead of sixth-placed Barnsley following the three points to climb in to sixth on goal difference, and are five clear of Reading in seventh. With just five games remaining in the season, nothing except maximum points will be accepted as they look to gain a shot at Premier League promotion.

“There’s always upsets that happen. We have got ourselves in a good position, nothing is completed. We’ve got five games to go and we need to win as many as we can to secure that. At the minute we are doing really well. We can improve it and get better – but at the minute we are a confident bunch, not over-confident.”

Notwithstanding an impressive first-half performance, the visitors visibly took it down a gear entering the second period and almost paid a very cruel price as the Terriers continued to knock on the door in the closing stages.

Lewis O’Brien’s audacious effort cannoned off the crossbar five minutes after the restart, and Bournemouth were thanking their lucky stars that one didn’t rifle in to the back of the net.

Skipper Jonathan Hogg headed home from a corner after 76 minutes, in what began a heartening display from the hosts where they needed at least a point on the occasion for their survival hopes.

Huddersfield are five points clear of the drop zone, with Rotherham United in 22nd – and a key three games in hand for the Millers. Coventry City also have a game in hand, which if won, could send the Terriers down to 20th.

Spanish gaffer Carlos Corberan enjoyed his side’s second half performance, and stated it showed that his players are ‘still alive.’

“I thought the second half reaction of the team was very positive. That is what I want to see. I don’t think the second half was wasted effort from the players tonight, because it shows the players that they are still alive.”

The Terriers face a difficult run-in to the end of the campaign, with trips to Nottingham Forest and Reading on the horizon. As we all know, this is football – never write anyone off.