REJUVENATED Jason Tindall today revealed he was on the verge of turning his back on Cherries before Sean O'Driscoll helped to resurrect his career.

Tindall, now a lynchpin in the Cherries defence, was restricted to just 12 starts in his first two seasons at Dean Court after signing on a free transfer from Charlton in 1998.

However, since O'Driscoll's elevation to manager 15 months ago, the likeable Londoner has missed just two out of Cherries' last 62 league games - including 44 on the trot last season.

And Tindall, who is due to make is 100th league and cup appearance for Cherries at Chesterfield today, was rewarded for his efforts with an improved contract in the summer.

Now firmly established as a first-team regular, Tindall's current position is a far cry from less than two years ago when the 24-year-old admits he was considering his future.

He said: "When things aren't going well and you're not getting in the team, you've always got it in the back of your mind that you might have to move on and look elsewhere.

"But I got my head down, got my chance and I'm glad I did. I don't look back any more because I would rather look forward to the positives which is what I'm doing now.

"I was surprised to find out that the Chester-field game would be my 100th league and cup appearance for Bournemouth and it's fair to say there was a time when I wasn't sure if I would get this far.

"I certainly didn't know what to expect at the start of last season and if somebody had told me then that I'd be making my 100th appearance today, I probably wouldn't have believed them.