Round-up
From magic lantern to Magic Marlon
Through to the third round!
Click here for October 2002 comment entries.
31 October - round-up
Until we played Portsmouth at home and then Grimsby away (shudder), October was a good month. We continued September's good run up to and including Ipswich away on the 22nd October, and at that point were unbeaten in twelve games (League plus League Cup).
Of course, the run was never going to last forever, but it was fantastic while it lasted. And included in that set of twelve matches was an away win at Leicester, and an away draw at Ipswich. We'd like to say "well done" to Stan and the lads for giving us something to smile about after the early season tears! All we need to do now is pick ourselves up out of the post-Grimsby daze, and start climbing the table again. And another win in the League Cup would be nice!
The excellent on-pitch performances made it hard to think about anything else other than "how long is the run going to last?", but a few things did happen off the pitch, too.
There was good news on the player contracts front. Just before the Walsall game, Marvelon signed for another month. No news of anything longer-term at present, but all parties seem to be hopeful of sorting something out in the near future. (Let's hope playing behind that defence at Blundell Park hasn't given the glovely one second thoughts!) Even better news arrived regarding Dean West - he has now been signed up until summer 2004. Excellent!
Far away from the Turf, Papadopoulos and Taylor were with the Greece under-21 and Wales senior squads respectively. Papa got on the scoresheet in the first of his two games (a 1-1 draw against the Ukraine), and won a penalty in the second (a 2-1 victory over Armenia). Unfortunately, Gareth didn't feature in Wales' 2-1 win over Italy, but no doubt he was pleased with the result!
As far as previous favourites were concerned, Lenny Johnrose continued his quest for a new club with Boston United and ex-employer Bury. Kevin Ball, however, has decided to retire from the professional game. We'd like to wish him all the best. Not quite an ex-player, but NTG is set to continue on loan at Crystal Palace for at least another two months. Of course, should anything happen to Marlon (God forbid), we can recall him instantly.
October also saw some unwelcome news, as Leicester City became the latest club to go into administration, following Barnsley earlier this month. Rumours abound regarding who will be the next to fall, with the smart money on heavily-indebted clubs like Coventry City and Derby County. Not so long ago, talk was all about our own Club going into administration, but thankfully those rumours appear to have receded. As we've said before, though, there is no room for complacency.
Finally, October sadly brought the death of a past Burnley great. Jackie Chew, who represented the Clarets in the 1947 FA Cup Final, died aged 82. Have a drink in memory of Jackie, and all those gone-but-not-forgotten players like him. They contributed to the Burnley FC we all know and love today.
8 October - League Cup clash to be live on Sky
A bit of a mixed bag of news over the past week - some good, some bad. Our League Cup draw (Spurs at home, for anyone who's been on another planet all week!) most definitely falls into the category of good news. Not only have we drawn a top club, we're at home. This means a potential full house, with the financial benefits that will bring, and perhaps even a chance to slay a Premiership giant and progress to the next round.
Although the reverse fixture might have been more convenient for most of our members, we're delighted with the draw. Even better is the news that the match will be broadcast live on Sky, meaning a) more money for the Club (around £100K seems to be the most popular estimate), and b) the chance for those Clarets who can't make it to the Turf on November 6th to see the game. Keep your diary clear for the first week in December!
Following on from the news of Papa's international call-up was the announcement that Gareth Taylor has been named in the Wales squad for their European Championship qualifier against Italy on the 16th. This doesn't clash with a Burnley game, of course, but Gareth will not be playing against Walsall on Saturday as he is suspended. (Can you believe that he's got five yellow cards already?) Anyway, congratulations to both Gareth and Papa on being selected to represent their countries.
There's been some news of former players over the past few days. Kevin Ball was rumoured to be considering a contract with Accrington Stanley, but has apparently turned them down. And Lenny Johnrose has been on trial at Carlisle. Good luck to them both in their efforts to find new clubs.
Of course, there's always some bad news. Probably the worst news of the week was that Barnsley have become the latest club to go into administration. Their long-term borrowings are less than £3M, but in the short term their income is unlikely to cover their expenditure. The main contributing factor to this situation? The ITV Digital collapse, of course. It's worth remembering that only a few seasons ago, Barnsley were in the Premiership. No club is safe in the current economic climate.
As far as Burnley are concerned, thankfully the rumours of administration seem to be receding. However, the Board have been forced to come out and deny that the Club is set to sell (and lease back) Turf Moor, or sell Gawthorpe. These options have been known about for some time, but viewed as unlikely choices. So unless something significant has changed, hopefully that's the last we'll hear about it. Certainly the Club's denial was quite categoric.
And finally - to end on a positive note - we were delighted to hear that Dean West has signed another month's contract, to take him up to the end of October. Still no news on Marlon's situation - though apparently he will be sitting down with Stan and Barry this week to discuss future options. Fingers crossed that we can keep him, and for somewhat longer than a month this time.
1 October - League Cup win
We beat Huddersfield Town 1-0 at the McAlpine Stadium to go through to the third round of the League Cup. Papa scored our goal in extra time.
The third round draw will be made this coming Saturday, 5th October, from around 2pm. It will be shown live on Sky Sports' Soccer Saturday programme. Of course, we will be in Sheffield - but will hopefully find a TV screen somewhere!
We'd like to congratulate Stan and the lads on the win - as has been said before, a good run in one Cup or the other (or both?) is more important than ever this season.
October 2002 comment entries
With friends like the Football League, who needs enemies?
Firmo bemoans our game's cack-handed administrators
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