Luton Town return to the Vitality Stadium in the Premier League to face AFC Bournemouth on Wednesday night.
Rob Edwards’ side go into this game riding on the high of Cauley Woodrow’s late equaliser at Crystal Palace last Saturday.
Andoni Iraola’s Cherries have only lost two of their last seven Premier League games after clawing back to claim a point against Sheffield United.
A visiting supporters' guide for our fans travelling to the Vitality Stadium is available to read.
Tom will be present at the game to meet those who saved his life and thank both sets of supporters for their response on the day.
In a feature interview for the matchday programme, Locks said: “I just want to give them a massive thank you and I can’t wait to see them in person and thank them myself. They almost go under the radar with being at every football game you ever go to, but you don’t really see them until something serious happens and you actually need them.
"That’s when you see what incredible human beings they are. They deliver such swift and fast life-saving care to the people who need it, so I honestly can’t thank them enough. To be able to look them in the eyes and shake their hands will be a great moment.”
As a club we would like to thank the Cherries Trust for setting up the fundraiser that has seen £2,200 donated by fans of both teams and wider football community, with AFC Bournemouth also contributing the outstanding amount to cover the cost of four Luton Town supporters' coaches to the match.
Proceeds from the evening’s Cherries Community Draw will go to the Bournemouth Heart Club and British Heart Foundation charities.
In the build-up to kick-off, mental health first aiders from The Cherries Trust and Talking Cherries will be joined by volunteers from Bournemouth Heart Club for drop-in points located in home and away areas of the ground. Supporters are encouraged to arrive early to take advantage of this support.
There will also be a half-time presentation from both the Luton Town Supporters' Trust and the Cherries Trust, who have both raised funds for the British Heart Foundation.
The opposition
Bournemouth appointed former Rayo Vallecano manager Iraola in the summer after Gary O’Neil steered the Cherries to Premier League safety in their return to the top-flight.
The home side are winless in all four of their Premier League games at Vitality Stadium so far in 2024. They last had a longer run without a home league win from the start of a calendar year in 1994.
Since their return to the top-flight last term, Bournemouth are unbeaten in all eight of their Premier League games against promoted sides.
Bournemouth have won just one of their last six league games against Luton, a 2-1 win at home in September 2021.
Philip Billing has scored three goals in two home starts against Luton in all competitions, netting twice in an FA Cup match in January 2020, and once in that September 2021 win in the Championship.
Words from Rob
“We need to be able to start games how we finish, we don’t want to play safe, and we’ve done that for the majority of the season.
“I think the other teams are under more pressure to beat us, so we can be the underdogs and do what we do. We have our own internal pressure and beliefs here, we know what we have to do so there’s no added pressure for these two games.”
Team news
One of his centre-half partners Gabe Osho has not passed a fitness test and will be unavailable for this fixture.
Ross Barkley suffered a broken nose on the weekend; he will be fine to play as normal while all other injured players remain out.
Last time out
Luton’s late drama continued as we took a point against Palace at Selhurst Park on Saturday.
Jean-Phillipe Mateta pounced on a defensive error to open the scoring in the first half before Woodrow’s header in stoppage time sent the travelling fans into raptures.
Last time we met
Luton Town took all three points in the 97th minute against promotion-chasing Bournemouth in January 2022 at Kenilworth Road.
A Lloyd Kelly own goal and a screamer from Allan Campbell gave the Hatters a two-goal cushion at half-time.
Emiliano Marcondes and Morgan Rogers clawed the game back for the Cherries before Kal Naismith scored an iconic winner in the dying seconds of the match.
Officials
The referee for our fixture against Bournemouth will be Sam Allison.
99 yellow cards and one red card has been handed out by Allison across his 26 games this season.
Allison will be taking charge of his second Premier League game, the first being our Boxing Day victory at Sheffield United.
Fourth official will be Simon Hooper, who was referee of the original fixture in December.
Referee: Sam Allison
Assistant Referees: Marc Perry & Steven Meredith
Fourth Official: Simon Hooper
VAR: Michael Oliver
AVAR: Adrian Holmes
LOVE FOOTBALL. PROTECT THE GAME.
Luton Town Football Club has committed in its customer charter to providing safe match-day experiences for all supporters regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, disability or sexual orientation, and this applies equally to home and away fixtures.
In the event that any Luton supporters do make discriminatory chants, the Club will work with the police and football authorities to help identify such individuals. Any such fans would then face the strictest club sanctions, including football banning orders that would prevent them attending any matches, in addition to any criminal charges.
The Club can also be held responsible for the behaviour of its supporters, which could lead to substantial fines being imposed.
As a diverse and inclusive football club, we stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our fellow Premier League clubs in supporting the FA’s ‘Love Football. Protect the Game’ campaign and call on all fans to enjoy the game in a positive spirit.
If you are offended by any discriminatory abuse of any kind at any of our games, you can report it by clicking here, or by contacting your nearest steward immediately. Alternatively, email myvoice@lutontown.co.uk or report the incident via Kick it Out's free, confidential reporting app on the App Store and Google Play.
