AFCB

First Team

A “special day” for Kelly

AFC Bournemouth captain Lloyd Kelly has labelled it a “special day” following promotion to the Premier League.

In a closely fought affair with Nottingham Forest, a late Kieffer Moore strike sealed second spot in the Sky Bet Championship.

Speaking with BBC Radio Solent's Kris Temple following the full-time whistle, the defender shared his emotions on achieving the step up to the top flight.

He said: “From where we were at the start of the season to where we are now is just amazing, to be honest.

“Every single one of the people in the changing room, the staff, the physios, the masseuses, players, this is what we deserve and I’m so proud of everyone that’s involved; this is a special day.”

Looking ahead to next season, the skipper spoke on the team’s individual and collective goals.

“I know everyone can say the same thing but for everyone’s development, it’s a step towards where we want to be as individuals and as a collective,” he explained.

“Now, we enjoy this moment and we think about next season when we need to, but I’m just proud of everyone involved.”

With the fixture against Steve Cooper’s Forest crucial for both teams' promotion hopes, it was a case of getting the job done for the captain.

Kelly shared: “We knew it was going to be a close game, they were in form.

“We had just come off of two good results, but we knew we had a job to do and, at the end of the day, we got the job done.”