Cherries: Partington hides grief to star against Daggers

JOE Partington insists he is ready to play a role in Cherries' promotion push after making an emotional return to the starting line-up. The homegrown midfielder was named in the Cherries side for just the second time this season against Dagenham and Redbridge on Saturday. Being involved in Cherries' 2-1 win was particularly special for the Welsh under-21 international, whose grandfather Herbert passed away on Thursday. Partington said: I felt a little bit weird coming into training on Friday morning but Lee Bradbury called me in and told me I was playing, so I was chuffed to bits. It meant a lot to me to play. A couple of days after something like that happened, I was focused to go in and do well. It was nice for my family to know I would be playing and it gave me something to look forward to. My grandfather had always been proud of me so it was nice to play well and when we won it was a great feeling. Partington added: I think I proved on Saturday that I can go in there and play. Whenever I have been asked to play, I have done quite well. I have always felt ready (to come into the team), it is just that the lads have been doing so well. Boss Bradbury, who substituted Partington when Cherries went 1-0 down, added: We were just starting to find our feet, Dagenham scored and we had to change formation. It was nothing against Parts I thought he did really well.

Source: Bournemouth_Echo