AFC Bournemouth
First-team coach Shaun Cooper looks back on a momentous 2022/23 campaign for the Cherries.
While August may have been miserable, April was truly memorable. And there were plenty of highs and lows in between.
It would be an understatement to describe AFC Bournemouth’s sixth season in the Premier League as simply eventful.
From the 9-0 defeat at Liverpool to the historic hat-trick of successive away wins in the top flight at Leicester, Tottenham and Southampton, it was certainly momentous.
Having led the club to promotion in 2021/22, Scott Parker departed after just four games and was replaced on an interim basis by first-team coach Gary O’Neil.
With former club captains Tommy Elphick and Shaun Cooper joining his backroom staff, O’Neil quickly set about steading the ship and presided over a six-match unbeaten run.
“I think the players had a point to prove and they went about their business in proving it,” said Cooper, who sat down with afcb.co.uk to review the season.
“But nobody got too carried away because we knew reality would strike and results wouldn’t always go our way, which they didn’t not long after that. It was a good start.
“It was impressive for the gaffer to prepare the team as well as he did and deliver everything he did. The lads responded really well to him.
“They were outstanding in that period and the results were deserved. It was good to get the ball rolling and get a bit of momentum going because we needed it.”
Defeat by Southampton in mid-October sparked a run of just one win and one draw in their next 12 league games, seeing the Cherries slip into the bottom three.
However, Marcus Tavernier marked his return to fitness by netting the only goal as the Cherries claimed a crucial 1-0 victory at Wolves on 18th February.
“We try to win every game but we’re realistic and know we’re going to lose a few,” said Cooper. “I believe that if you keep persevering, it will balance itself out. We had to fight hard to get over the line against Wolves.
“You could say it was a turning point but I never felt it personally. I just felt it was three more points on the board.
“Just before the World Cup break, we had a couple of last-minute defeats against Spurs and Leeds which were hard to take but big learning moments.
“We spoke about it and worked on it. We had convincing wins in our next two games against Everton because of the work we had done.
“It’s part of the journey. You suffer two late blows and have to try to do something about it. We did and got two good results. It’s about what you can control and keeping going. If you do that, the points will come and that was our mindset.”
Having registered another famous win against Liverpool thanks to Phil Billing’s goal in March, O’Neil’s team claimed 15 points in April to move on to 39, a tally which would ultimately prove enough.
“Results go in waves,” said Cooper. “We had carried on working as we were. We didn’t drop off any levels in training or in terms of preparation.
“Even though we were losing games, we had spells where we were looking really good at times.
“Yes, there were a couple of bad performances but, in the main, the players were still doing a lot of what was being asked of them, we just weren’t getting positive results. Eventually they came and they were thoroughly deserved.
“Once we could sense we were getting close to the numbers we were aiming for, the gaffer called on the experiences from last season and what had been required to get over the line.
“The players drew on the togetherness they have and the shared experience of a promotion and used them to survive.
“The gaffer’s messaging, his delivery and framing of the context, regardless of what the game or situation was, is a real skill.
“He did it really well and the players responded and produced. We got to the tally we wanted and there was a huge sense of relief.
“Staying up is a huge achievement. Three teams didn’t do it and it will have been devastating for them.
“We were written off by a lot of people. But within our environment and from the minute the gaffer was appointed, there was always a belief.
“He picked up a group of lads who had a point to prove. They had come off the back of a bad result and there had been some public criticism and question marks over them.
“The gaffer was very clever in reminding them of their ability and got them motivated again. While it’s an amazing achievement, I think within our environment, we expected it to happen as well.
"Everyone is proud of it but not surprised by it.”
