At the end of November, after our televised victory over Grimsby, a fellow Claret asked me, "As a Burnley fan, what do you want for Christmas?" I didn’t have to think too long. "Fifty points and safety." Surely, you mean fifty points and crack on (sorry!) to the Premiership? Well, yes, I’d like to say that but, even as an optimist, I’ve been a Burnley fan too long and didn’t want to tempt providence. Let’s just get fifty points and see where it takes us (sorry again – it’s becoming a compulsion).
Well, here we are, having just completed the last game before Christmas, fifty points in the bag, nearly fifty goals scored (OK - so we’ve conceded thirty-three, but we’ll brush over that), ten games unbeaten and still clear at the top of the league. Whisper it quietly, but promotion is on the cards. Providence be damned.
To be honest, this was a distinctly average game. Millwall, a team with supposed Premiership ambitions of their own, came with the intention of scrapping and spoiling. A draw was their goal, and they achieved it after Burnley spurned the few chances on offer and, in so doing, failed to score at the Turf for the first time this season.
The only change in the Burnley starting line-up came in the shape of Grant, returning from suspension, with Briscoe moving to left-back in place of Graham Branch. Branch had supposedly injured his hamstring in training, but his recent performances would probably have seen him dropped to the bench anyway.
Ironically, it was Millwall who created the first opening after three minutes. Sadlier made his sole contribution to the game when he turned and shot, only to see his effort go well wide. For the rest of the half, the Clarets dominated possession and territory with Millwall maintaining ten men behind the ball. Claridge, obviously getting bored, never failed to offer the fussy yet gutless referee (Neale Barry) his opinion. Obviously, his time as a Sky TV pundit (?) convinced him it was a valued one.
Throughout the half, the Clarets’ approach play was patient, with Grant and Ball in command in midfield. However, in the final third, Little and Alan Moore were finding it difficult to find space out wide and, all too often, cut inside where play was too congested and narrow. Few chances were created, and there was no space for Ian Moore to run at defenders and few quality crosses for Taylor to attack.
Nevertheless, Burnley should have scored. Alan Moore blazed over after being teed up by Lee Briscoe’s pass, and Gareth Taylor missed a sitter after Warner had only parried Kevin Ball’s shot straight into his path. It looked an odds-on goal, but Taylor somehow contrived to miss the ball altogether with one of his two left feet. A goal from a part of his anatomy other than his head continues to elude him, but it would be unfair to be too critical. Six goals in his last seven starts and one chalked off when coming on as a sub at Preston – ironically a delicate chip – would suggest this was a blemish rather than a disease.
The second half was much as the first, with Millwall looking to hang on to what they had. Alan Moore had a couple of shots which didn’t trouble the keeper, but on the hour mark, a 25-yard shot from the Irish winger had Warner scampering as the ball went inches wide. A few minutes later, the frustrated Ian Moore was substituted for Paul Weller. Not that I’d dare question the wisdom of Stan, but I’d have liked to see Papa given a run out. His form in the reserves recently – five goals in the last two games – would have justified that decision, but this was a difficult game for strikers. Stan probably wanted a player to get behind the Millwall defence out wide and supply better quality crosses for Taylor.
After 70 minutes, another long-range shot, this time from Briscoe, again had Warner scampering across his goal, but just like Moore’s shot earlier, it was inches wide. As the game entered the last ten minutes, the Clarets laid siege to the Millwall goal, but still couldn’t find a way through. Weller found space down the right, but was indecisive and failed to deliver the quality required, whereas Little and Moore couldn’t find a way through the massed ranks of defenders. With two minutes left, however, the Clarets should have wrapped the game up. Alan Moore picked the ball up 40 yards from goal and ran at the back-pedalling defence. His pass found Taylor, who turned, but lost possession to Dyche virtually on the penalty spot. Dyche’s back-pass was overhit, and Warner had to dive full-length to his right to keep it out. The ball fell invitingly to Moore who, from a tight angle, managed only to hit the bar, and the ball bounced to safety. Less than a minute later, Dyche should have been red-carded after a disgraceful late challenge on Moore near the corner flag. Unsurprisingly, Barry bottled it.
I had the feeling that if we’d scored, we could have won the game comfortably, but this is probably a sign of things to come. Teams coming to the Turf - which will include most of the top ten - are going to defend in numbers, and first and foremost try not to lose. Millwall’s reaction after the game would indicate that an away point gained at the league leaders is an achievement of some merit. Something for Stan to think about.
Nonetheless, being top for Christmas with fifty points is an outstanding achievement. To reach the ‘safety’ level so early is a tribute to Stan, Sam and the squad, and the ‘dream’ of reaching the top level is very much alive. As an aside, it’s interesting to compare stats for the current Burnley team against those for the last good team we had at this level, namely Jimmy Adamson’s ‘team of the seventies’ which won the Second Division title in 1972-73.
We are staying up!