ASSISTANT manager Jason Tindall says Cherries are determined to prove wrong their critics following an indifferent start to the campaign.

Back-to-back defeats have left Cherries bottom of the Premier League, prompting some pundits to predict a season of struggle for the Dorset club.

And while a similar knee-jerk reaction greeted Cherries at the start of last season, they went on to preserve their top-flight status at the first time of asking.

Tindall told the Daily Echo: “It is no different to what they were saying this time last year. We lost our first two games and everybody started writing us off.

“They were saying we were going to struggle, we needed to change the way we played and needed to do this and that. Not once did it have an effect on us and what we were doing.

“We carried on working as hard as we always have and believing in what we believe in. Results eventually turned and we ended up having a fantastic season.

“That is our drive and, in some senses, it makes us want to succeed even more when people write you off because you want to prove them wrong. That is what we are going to look to do with the group we have and I am sure they will do that.”

Asked whether he had been surprised at the negative reaction after just two games, Tindall replied: “Not really because everybody has an opinion and they want to make it heard.

“It is something we have always had here for different reasons. Back in the day, people wrote us off because we had embargoes and points deductions.

“They said we were going to get relegated and drop out of the Football League. That was our motivation then.

“We had a bad start to our first season in the Championship and people said we were going to go straight back to League One. We ended up proving them wrong and doing well.

“The year we won the Championship, a lot of people predicted we would fall away and only get in the play-offs. We ended up winning the league and getting promoted.

“We have lost our first two games and these people appear again. They criticise and try to knock you down.

“We have such a good group and real belief both within the squad and within the team around the players. We are confident in what we are doing and are confident that if we keep doing it and working hard then things will change and we will get the results.”

Tindall said places in Cherries’ Premier League team would be up for grabs when they meet Morecambe in the second round of the League Cup tonight.

He added: “Whenever you get selected to play for this club, you are always under pressure to perform.

“Whatever team is selected, it is a fantastic opportunity to deliver a really good performance and show the manager what they are capable of and let him know they are ready if called upon. I am sure that is what the players will be looking to do."