When the spring sunshine rears its head and the temperatures begin to increase, every afternoon in the Championship becomes more and more important in deciding who achieves what. Here, on a glorious afternoon in West Yorkshire, nobody seemed to understand that more than Scott Parker as his Bournemouth took what seemed like a significant step back to the Premier League.
Parker bounded along the touchline all afternoon with the kind of commitment and energy he was renowned for as a player. Fortunately for him, that was matched by his team in a game that could go a long way to deciding who claims the second automatic promotion spot behind, in all probability, Fulham: as well as the makeup of the play-off places in a Championship season that is heading for a thrilling climax.
The congested nature of the race for promotion is perhaps best summed up by Huddersfield’s position. Victory would have moved them level with Bournemouth but after being comprehensively beaten, they are now nervously glancing over their shoulders, with the gap to seventh-placed QPR just four points. Bournemouth, meanwhile, now have a six-point buffer between themselves and Huddersfield and Luton.
How they deserved their victory. It had promised to be an enthralling afternoon between two sides vying for automatic promotion. By the end, the John Smith’s Stadium was practically empty except for the travelling fans who had watched their side produce an accomplished display from start to finish.
“That was arguably one of our best performances of the season in every aspect,” Parker said. “It’s a big result. They’re a good side and they’ve done incredibly well this season but we were too good for them. I don’t think that’s being disrespectful. To a man, we were clean and clinical.”
That summation was evident from the early moments, with Bournemouth’s intensity in their play always likely to lead to goals. Midway through the half a ball by the outstanding Dominic Solanke across goal found Jaidon Anthony unmarked. Solanke was also involved in the second. His effort was saved by Lee Nicholls but when Huddersfield failed to clear their lines, Jefferson Lerma fired into an empty net. “He was incredible,” Parker said of Solanke.
Huddersfield could have few complaints about the final outcome as they were clearly outplayed. This is now back-to-back defeats for them, with hopes of automatic promotion now drifting. They will hope the international break affords them a chance to refresh for the run-in.
“Individually and collectively, Bournemouth were better than us,” Carlos Corberán said. “There was a big difference between the sides’ performances.” Corberán sacrificed Tom Lees at half-time in an attempt to stem Bournemouth’s momentum but within seconds of the restart, they fell further behind when Solanke’s deft backheel beat Nicholls to put the result beyond doubt.
From there, it was a procession to the final whistle for the visitors, whose defensive resilience was matched by their swagger in attack, led by Solanke. Parker urged his side to embrace the pressure post-match and play with the freedom they showed here. If they replicate this performance in their final 10 matches, it is difficult to see any of the chasing pack catching them.
