Bournemouth v Walsall preview
Last Updated: September 28, 2012 1:45pm
Demouge: Back for Bournemouth
Team news for Saturday afternoon's League One clash between Bournemouth and Walsall at Dean Court.
Lorenzo Davids and Frank Demouge will return to action to ease Bournemouth's injury problems.
Cherries boss Paul Groves is contending with a plethora of injuries, but midfielder Davids, cousin of Champions League winner Edgar, has recovered from an ankle injury while striker Demouge is back after his knee ailment.
After losing goalkeeper Darryl Flahavan for six months to a shoulder tear, Groves has scoured the market for an experienced stopper to complement Shwan Jalal and youngster Benjamin Buchel.
The answer could be former England keeper David James, who was training with the club on Thursday morning.
Defender Simon Francis is definitely out after injuring his knee, but the club revealed he will not need surgery, as first feared, which means he is likely to be out for six weeks.
Francis joins a list of absentees which includes Charlie Sheringham (foot), Stephen Purches (broken leg), Lee Barnard (knee) and Richard Hughes (foot).
Walsall have an unchanged squad available.
Long-term absentees James and Adam Chambers remain sidelined with thigh and hamstring injuries respectively, with manager Dean Smith having no new injury or suspension concerns.
Smith must decide whether to keep faith with the 4-4-2 formation which secured last weekend's 3-1 win over Preston or return to the 4-5-1 system he has favoured away from home.
Forward Febian Brandy made an earlier than expected return from his hamstring complaint to sit on the bench last Saturday, and he will again hope to be included in the matchday 18 at Dean Court.
Matches
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npower League 1
Table
npower League 1
| Pos | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Doncaster Rovers | 46 | 84 |
| 2 | Bournemouth | 46 | 83 |
| 3 | Brentford | 46 | 79 |
| 4 | Yeovil Town | 46 | 77 |
| 5 | Sheffield United | 46 | 75 |
| 6 | Swindon Town | 46 | 74 |
| 7 | Leyton Orient | 46 | 71 |
| 8 | Milton Keynes Dons | 46 | 70 |
| 9 | Walsall | 46 | 68 |
| 10 | Crawley Town | 46 | 68 |
| 11 | Tranmere Rovers | 46 | 67 |
| 12 | Notts County | 46 | 65 |
| 13 | Crewe Alexandra | 46 | 64 |
| 14 | Preston North End | 46 | 59 |
| 15 | Coventry City | 46 | 55 |
| 16 | Shrewsbury Town | 46 | 55 |
| 17 | Carlisle United | 46 | 55 |
| 18 | Stevenage | 46 | 54 |
| 19 | Oldham Athletic | 46 | 51 |
| 20 | Colchester United | 46 | 51 |
| 21 | Scunthorpe United | 46 | 48 |
| 22 | Bury | 46 | 41 |
| 23 | Hartlepool United | 46 | 41 |
| 24 | Portsmouth | 46 | 32 |
