Even the heir to throne is a fan!
THERE'S no doubt that Burnley Football Club is entering a crucial stage of the Premier League 2009-2010 campaign.
Results from the Clarets' league matches until the New Year will determine what sort of fight they will face in 2010, in what has so far been what must be one of the closest Premier League seasons since the format (as far as I'm concerned the league still began in 1888, so none of this dating the whole shebang only to 1992 nonsense) was introduced.
At the top end of the table, teams with the capacity to wheel out the big guns bought with big bucks, like Liverpool and Manchester City, have had campaigns that are best described to date as stop-start.
Lower down in the echelons not only Burnley, until the last few weeks, but Hull and Birmingham in particular, have shown some excellent form. No-one is adrift at the bottom yet.
This closeness may not last though. I suspect things will become stretched as 2010 dawns and the job of manager Owen Coyle and the squad is to make sure they are on the right side of it.
At the smaller clubs chance may also have its part to play - there's no doubt in my mind that Jimmy Bullard's presence on the pitch and probably in the dressing room has driven Hull's recent good run of results – how serious the injury Bullard sustained last weekend is may well have a big impact on their season.
Burnley were certainly on the wrong side of results against West Ham and Portsmouth. There;s no hiding our disappointment that both these games, among the most winnable or drawable fixtures November and December held, ended up with nil points.
Coyle was particularly frustrated by some of the goals given away in London and down at the south coast, and they reinforced to the players that mistakes at this level are more often than not punished.
It has again put pressure on the team to come up with another home win when Fulham head north on Saturday, particularly when it's followed by Arsene Wenger's Arsenal at home on Wednesday evening.
The three games that follow, at Wolves on Sunday, December 20 (1.30pm), home to Bolton on Boxing Day (3pm) and at Everton on Monday, December 28 (3pm) are proverbial six-pointers as things stand, so come January the task in hand will be more clearly set out.
Of course Burnley have had injury problems of their own, and it is hoped January will see Martin Paterson and Chris McCann return to the mix.
McCann is the best defensive midfielder Burnley have and will do much the relieve some of the pressure which has led to goals at West Ham (where the offside trap employed failed miserably) and Portsmouth. The only plus point about his injury is that he hasn’t been in the shop window, so to speak.
Just how testing 2010 will be depends on how they fare in the festive season.
l HRH Prince Charles has hinted at making a royal visit to Turf Moor after pledging his support for Burnley Football Club, the club has reported this week.
The heir to the throne apparently expressed his delight that the Clarets were now in the Premier League after meeting club director John Sullivan at a private reception at Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh recently.
The Prince told Mr Sullivan that he follows the Clarets’ matches with interest, sending his congratulations to all the team and fans.
The club’s Community Sports Trust also came in for much praise, in particular the Prince’s Trust and Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, with the Prince commenting that he was very grateful for all the hard work that John Sullivan and the club have done for the community, including a pilot scheme with the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.
Burnley is the flagship Football League club delivering a Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme, awarding an unrivalled 105 awards this year on the back of its most successful year yet.
This was originally Mr Sullivan’s idea and inspiration and has been so successful it has now spread to 22 other league clubs. Mr Sullivan said: “The Prince was delighted at the progress made by the club and has expressed a desire to visit and see the good work we do in the community for himself, should his diary allow.”
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Halifax
Sunday 05 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 3 C to 5 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: West
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 0 C to 5 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: North
