Andrew Lloyd Williams reports from Dean Court.

The game had a somewhat subdued opening as players got to grips with the slippery playing surface. Ex-Cherry Ricky Sappleton barged his way through the centre of the home defence and dragged his shot wide of the mark. Although there was a lack of efforts on target, several entertaining passages of play took place, with Brett Pitman and Liam Feeney combining cleverly and Danny Hollands chasing down well.

Colin Daniel would have been kicking himself if not the ball after he failed to connect with a cross which found him unmarked on the edge of the six yard box. Jason Pearce and Pitman should have both opened the scoring when a Macclesfield offside trap failed, leaving the pair alone in the box with keeper John Brain. Pearce headed down for Pitman whose volley clattered over the crossbar. Pitman went close again a minute later when he worked his way into space outside the penalty area and shot wide of the right hand post.

With half an hour gone, Hollands' crisp shot was well held by Brain. The lively partnership of Rhoys Wiggins and Josh McQuoid down the left hand flank created several chances as the two interlinked and overlapped creatively. The visitors consistently fired warning shots past Jalal's goal but failed to really trouble. There was laughter as Pitman miscued an attempted bicycle kick. McQuoid headed over the crossbar from the edge of the box after a dangerous Feeney cross was only half-cleared. Ross Draper got an important clearing header as Pearce looked to connect with a corner. On the stroke of half time, Fletcher nutmegged a defender and Pitman had a shot cleared for a corner.

Cherries started the second half at breakneck speed as Wiggins beat several players and unleashed a powerful shot that cannoned against a defender. Lee Bradbury stung the fingers of Brain when he rifled a shot from the edge of the box which the keeper did well to push away for a corner. Anton Robinson was next to test the keeper as Alan Connell knocked the ball down to him and Robinson's volley was gathered by Brain.

On the hour mark, as Bournemouth began to take charge, a Pitman shot from twelve yards out beat the keeper but clipped the top of the crossbar. A minute later, against the run of play, Nat Brown opened the scoring for Macclesfield. Lee Bell's free kick invited his powerful header which beat Jalal down to his left. It was a brilliant cross which was screaming out for someone to bundle it home. Ben Wright nearly doubled the visitors' lead with a powerful header but Alan Connell had other ideas and dived to head clear on the goal-line. Connell had a golden opportunity to level the scores after seventy minutes when Wiggins' pull-back found him un-marked in the penalty area but his shot was scuffed and bobbled wide.

Cherries again went close when Pitman diverted a cross towards goal but his improvised effort rose over the crossbar. Connell had another opportunity after Goulding broke through the Macclesfield defence but once again he failed to connect cleanly with the ball. Substitute Emile Sinclair should have put the game beyond doubt for the visitors when he recieved the ball on the penalty spot but the striker's shot was too weak to beat Jalal.

Alan Connell finally made one of his chances count when he recieved the ball in a crowded penalty area. Connell brought the ball down and hit a low shot crisply through defenders' legs and into the back of the net. Robinson had the chance to win the game for the home side when a deep Wiggins cross was headed back by Bradbury but his volley was rushed and wild. Five minutes of stoppage time couldn't find a winner and the game ended level.

Attendance: 4,549.

Goals:

AFC Bournemouth: (85 minutes) Connell

Macclesfield: (61 minutes) Brown

Here are today's line ups

AFC Bournemouth

1 Shwan Jalal

6 Marvin Bartley

5 Jason Pearce (Captain)

16 Rhoys Wiggins

11 Liam Feeney

17 Josh McQuoid

8 Anton Robinson

14 Danny Hollands

9 Brett Pitman

33 Steve Fletcher

23 Lee Bradbury

Substitutes: 10 Alan Connell, 28 Warren Cummings, 19 Jeff Goulding, 30 Dan Thomas

Macclesfield Town

1 John Brain

2 Izak Reid

5 Nat Brown

4 Sean Hessey (captain)

16 Shaun Brisley

7 Lee Bell

8 Ross Draper

22 Ricky Sappleton

28 Craig Linfield

17 Colin Daniel

Substitutes: 13 Jose Veiga, 11 Ben Wright, 29 Greg Mills,  25 Michael Thomas, 9 Emile Sinclair, 23 Matthew Tipton, 15 Paul Bolland