'Always advance, never retreat'
As Bournemouth's season winds towards its close, Arsenal became the latest team to do a seasonal 'double' over the Cherries - joining Liverpool, Manchester City and Tottenham - leaving December's hard-fought 2-2 draw against Aston Villa as the only league point the Dorset side have taken off a top-five team this season.
A lot has been written about the perceived harsh treatment from the officials, both on-field and at Stockley Park, during Saturday's game at Emirates Stadium.
It is safe to say that - when onlookers as firmly entrenched in Arsenal's corner as Ian Wright and Piers Morgan were tweeting that the penalty won by Kai Havertz should not have been given, with Wright adding that Bournemouth's disallowed goal "should have stood" - Cherries followers can feel a little hard done by.
A more level playing field is anticipated this Saturday when Bournemouth host Brentford – their fourth most frequent league opponents in their history – in a match which was a League Two fixture as recently as 2009.
Whilst the men's team's rise through the divisions since then has received many fanfares, Bournemouth's women deserve time in the spotlight after their astonishing season finished on Sunday.
Having risen from the ninth tier to the fourth tier of the women's football pyramid in less than a decade, the Cherries play in the FA Women's National League Division One South West.
They were locked in battle with Exeter City all season – to the extent that both sides were unbeaten when they met at Exeter on Sunday for a winner-takes-all game to decide the single promotion place.
Bournemouth finished the season with 19 wins, three draws, zero defeats and over 100 goals in 22 games. Their total of 60 points would have been enough to win any of the other three divisions at that level, but a 1-1 draw allowed Exeter to keep their noses in front and seal promotion.
The Cherries' challenge – and that of the men's team who are bidding for a top-half Premier League finish – is to be even better next season.
Or, as club owner Bill Foley would say: "Always advance, never retreat".
