Cherries visit Cheltenham aiming to keep pressure on top of table

THE Cherries head to Bishops Cleeve FC to face Cheltenham Town as they look to maintain their pressure on the top of the league heading into the final stages of the season.

Bournemouth are firmly in the hunt for the title and promotion, trailing league leaders Watford by just two points with a game in hand.

The Hornets face bottom side Billericay, who are yet to earn a point this season, so they’ll be confident of a victory, before they head to Real Bedford on Friday next week.

Second-placed Plymouth host Lewes, who are currently fifth, with Bournemouth trailing Argyle by a single point, but with two games in hand over the Devon side.

Helen Bleazard’s side come into Sunday’s fixture off the back of back-to-back victories, having seen their unbeaten record of more than 1,000 days in the league come to an end at Oxford.

Sophie Quirk (Image: Richard Crease)

They have bounced back, though, with a 2-0 win over Gwalia United, before a 4-1 away win at Real Bedford, one of their games in hand, last weekend.

Top scorer Sophie Quirk returned to the scoresheet in last weekend’s victory, taking her tally to 20 for the campaign across all competitions.

Skipper Abby Jones netted her second in two games, while Georgia Wilson and substitute Jenna Markham scored the other two for the visitors.

Cheltenham, meanwhile, were beaten 3-0 by league leaders Watford at Honeycroft, after a draw with Gwalia, but they are yet to record a league victory in 2026.

Their last win came on December 7 when they beaten Exeter 4-0 to complete a run of three consecutive wins, to leave them fifth and in the contest for the top four spots in the league.

But since that game, they have lost four and drawn once in their five league games.

That leaves them on 20 points, four points clear of the relegation zone, and they’ll be hoping to arrest their slide towards the bottom two.

Cheltenham’s top scorer is Clarabella Hall, with eight in the season, while there are contributions throughout the side, with eight players having scored multiple goals this term.

Their home record has seen them win three, draw one and lose four in front of a home crowd, scoring 12 but conceding 16.

The Cherries, meanwhile, have won five, drawn one and lost one on the road, only conceding three times while scoring 22, so they will be aiming to extend that strong away form this weekend.

AFC Bournemouth visit Cheltenham Town on Sunday, March 8, kick off at 2pm.