Having been struck by injury since he return to the South Coast, Steve Lovell has sacrified some of his wages in light of the his injury which has prevented him from playing.
Speaking in the Bournemouth Evening Echo, manager Eddie Howe is quoted as saying: "Steve had a routine ankle operation in April and there was no need for any concern at that stage. We were expecting him to train during the latter part of pre-season. Unfortunately, and through no fault of his own, there was a complication that we weren’t aware of until a couple of months down the line. It only came to light when he started running again. It is a real disappointment that Steve hasn’t been able to kick on and join in training. He has had to have another operation and we are hopeful he will be back in around six weeks. Steve came to us and said he didn’t want paying his full salary until he was fit and able to play. It’s a great gesture and very rare in the modern game that you would get it".
Chairman Eddie Mitchell is quoted as saying: "It is a great gesture from Steve. There was a bit of toing and froing by the club last year which may have inconvenienced him so that makes it even more of a gesture. As a board, we would rather be paying him a full wage and have him playing. But this situation has arisen and Steve’s stance is very much appreciated. We didn’t ask Steve to take a cut but I think it just shows the Howe family’s dedication to helping this club go forward".