# 1997–98 AFC Bournemouth season

During the 1997–98 English football season, AFC Bournemouth competed in the Football League Second Division.

## Season summary

In the 1997–98 season, Bournemouth finished again mid-table in 9th place. The main highlight of their season was the Cherries reaching the Football League Trophy final against Grimsby Town but ended up losing 2–1 to a golden goal in their first Wembley appearance.

## Final league table

| Pos | Team v t e | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 7 | Wrexham | 46 | 18 | 16 | 12 | 55 | 51 | +4 | 70 |
| 8 | Gillingham | 46 | 19 | 13 | 14 | 52 | 47 | +5 | 70 |
| 9 | Bournemouth | 46 | 18 | 12 | 16 | 57 | 52 | +5 | 66 |
| 10 | Chesterfield | 46 | 16 | 17 | 13 | 46 | 44 | +2 | 65 |
| 11 | Wigan Athletic | 46 | 17 | 11 | 18 | 64 | 66 | −2 | 62 |

## Results

Bournemouth's score comes first

### Legend

| Win | Draw | Loss |

### Football League Second Division

| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 9 August 1997 | Northampton Town | A | 2–0 | 6,384 | Vincent, S Fletcher |
| 16 August 1997 | Wigan Athletic | H | 1–0 | 3,799 | Rolling |
| 23 August 1997 | Oldham Athletic | A | 1–2 | 4,986 | Robinson |
| 30 August 1997 | Blackpool | H | 2–0 | 4,196 | Tomlinson, Robinson |
| 2 September 1997 | Bristol Rovers | H | 1–1 | 5,550 | Robinson (pen) |
| 5 September 1997 | Gillingham | A | 1–2 | 5,168 | S Fletcher |
| 13 September 1997 | Luton Town | H | 1–1 | 4,561 | O'Neill |
| 20 September 1997 | Bristol City | A | 1–1 | 8,330 | Robinson |
| 27 September 1997 | Grimsby Town | H | 0–1 | 3,712 | |
| 4 October 1997 | Chesterfield | A | 1–1 | 4,482 | Rolling |
| 11 October 1997 | Preston North End | A | 1–0 | 8,531 | Warren |
| 18 October 1997 | Fulham | H | 2–1 | 7,484 | Cox (2) |
| 21 October 1997 | Millwall | H | 0–0 | 4,752 | |
| 25 October 1997 | Burnley | A | 2–2 | 9,501 | Howe, Vincent |
| 1 November 1997 | Brentford | H | 0–0 | 4,772 | |
| 4 November 1997 | Wrexham | A | 1–2 | 2,462 | Warren |
| 8 November 1997 | Plymouth Argyle | A | 0–3 | 5,067 | |
| 18 November 1997 | Southend United | H | 2–1 | 3,019 | S Fletcher, Warren |
| 22 November 1997 | Carlisle United | H | 3–2 | 3,709 | S Fletcher, Beardsmore, O'Neill |
| 29 November 1997 | Wycombe Wanderers | A | 1–1 | 4,340 | Robinson (pen) |
| 2 December 1997 | York City | H | 0–0 | 3,365 | |
| 13 December 1997 | Walsall | A | 1–2 | 3,548 | Robinson |
| 20 December 1997 | Watford | H | 0–1 | 6,081 | |
| 26 December 1997 | Gillingham | H | 4–0 | 5,672 | Jones (2), Robinson, Young |
| 28 December 1997 | Bristol Rovers | A | 3–5 | 7,256 | Jones, Cox, Robinson (pen) |
| 10 January 1998 | Northampton Town | H | 3–0 | 4,257 | Jones, S Fletcher, Young |
| 17 January 1998 | Blackpool | A | 0–1 | 4,550 | |
| 24 January 1998 | Oldham Athletic | H | 0–0 | 4,079 | |
| 31 January 1998 | Luton Town | A | 2–1 | 5,466 | Brissett, S Fletcher |
| 7 February 1998 | Bristol City | H | 1–0 | 6,623 | S Fletcher |
| 14 February 1998 | Chesterfield | H | 2–0 | 4,271 | Warren (2) |
| 21 February 1998 | Grimsby Town | A | 1–2 | 5,456 | Warren |
| 24 February 1998 | Fulham | A | 1–0 | 7,708 | Robinson |
| 28 February 1998 | Preston North End | H | 0–2 | 5,009 | |
| 3 March 1998 | Plymouth Argyle | H | 3–3 | 3,545 | S Fletcher (2), Vincent |
| 7 March 1998 | Brentford | A | 2–3 | 4,973 | Rolling (2) |
| 14 March 1998 | Wrexham | H | 0–1 | 5,512 | |
| 21 March 1998 | Southend United | A | 3–5 | 4,823 | Stein, Bailey, S Fletcher |
| 28 March 1998 | Carlisle United | A | 1–0 | 4,951 | Stein |
| 4 April 1998 | Wycombe Wanderers | H | 0–0 | 4,271 | |
| 7 April 1998 | Wigan Athletic | A | 0–1 | 2,798 | |
| 11 April 1998 | York City | A | 1–0 | 2,840 | O'Neill |
| 14 April 1998 | Walsall | H | 1–0 | 3,404 | S Fletcher |
| 25 April 1998 | Burnley | H | 2–1 | 6,527 | Robinson (pen), S Fletcher |
| 28 April 1998 | Watford | A | 1–2 | 12,834 | Stein |
| 2 May 1998 | Millwall | A | 2–1 | 7,872 | Witter (own goal), Stein |

### FA Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R1 | 15 November 1997 | Heybridge Swifts | H | 3–0 | 3,385 | Beardsmore, Robinson (2) |
| R2 | 7 December 1997 | Bristol City | H | 3–1 | 5,687 | Carey (own goal), O'Neill, Fletcher |
| R3 | 13 January 1998 | Huddersfield Town | H | 0–1 | 7,385 | |

### League Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R1 1st Leg | 12 August 1997 | Torquay United | H | 0–1 | 3,215 | |
| R1 2nd Leg | 26 August 1997 | Torquay United | A | 1–1 (lost 1–2 on agg) | 2,278 | Rolling |

### Football League Trophy

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| SR2 | 6 January 1998 | Leyton Orient | H | 2–0 | 1,732 | Jones, Robinson (pen) |
| SQF | 27 January 1998 | Bristol City | H | 1–0 | 2,124 | Vincent |
| SSF | 17 February 1998 | Luton Town | H | 1–0 | 5,367 | Rolling |
| Southern F 1st Leg | 10 March 1998 | Walsall | A | 2–0 | 6,017 | Rolling, Beardsmore |
| Southern F 2nd Leg | 17 March 1998 | Walsall | H | 2–3 (won 4–3 on agg) | 8,972 | Evans (own goal), Rolling |
| F | 19 April 1998 | Grimsby Town | N | 1–2 | 62,432 | Bailey |

## Squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| - | GK | ENG | Jimmy Glass |
| - | DF | TRI | Ian Cox |
| - | DF | ENG | Neil Young |
| - | DF | ENG | Jamie Vincent |
| - | DF | ENG | Eddie Howe |
| - | MF | NIR | Steve Robinson |
| - | MF | ENG | John Bailey |
| - | MF | ENG | Christer Warren |
| - | MF | ENG | Russell Beardsmore |
| - | FW | ENG | Steve Fletcher |
| - | FW | SCO | John O'Neill |
| - | DF | FRA | Franck Rolling |
| - | MF | ENG | Mark Rawlinson |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| - | MF | ENG | Jason Brissett |
| - | FW | ENG | Mark Stein |
| - | FW | ENG | Graeme Tomlinson (on loan from Manchester United) |
| - | DF | ENG | Paul Teather |
| - | FW | ENG | Steve Jones (on loan from Charlton Athletic) |
| - | MF | ENG | Justin Harrington |
| - | MF | ENG | Michael Dean |
| - | FW | ENG | David Town |
| - | FW | ENG | James Hayter |
| - | DF | SCO | Rob Murray |
| - | MF | WAL | Carl Fletcher |
| - | DF | ENG | Anthony Griffin |