IT was the day they came to bury Burnley, but the Clarets lived to tell the tale as Neil Grewcock and Ian Britton secured not only the 2-1 win over Leyton Orient, but, more significantly, the club's Football League survival.

Kick-off was delayed by 15 minutes as a crowd of 17,600 packed into Turf Moor. Due to that hold-up, supporters knew with 15 minutes remaining that their relegation-threatened counterparts, Lincoln City, had lost, and all Burnley needed to do was hang on to their lead.

They did, and as hoards of fans spilled onto the pitch to celebrate with the players, new life was breathed into the club, with a place in the Sherpa Van Trophy final following hot on the heels.

Former Burnley defender Phil Malley, who played in the game, recalls: "The last three games were Southend, Crewe and Orient. We beat Southend 2-0 then got turned over by Crewe on the Bank Holiday Monday.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't extremely frightened before kick-off.

"It really sunk in when we went out at about 10 to three. We got sent back into the dressing room because there were still hundreds of people outside trying to get in.

"At the end, when we were safe, I just slumped over. Neil Grewcock gave me a huge hug. There was a photographer lurking and he had the foresight to look up, but I didn't.

"The next thing I knew I was surrounded by fans who had poured onto the pitch and had to get dragged out of a mass of people."

Goalscorer Britton added: "I don't think the more seasoned pros like Billy Roddaway, Leighton James and myself felt the pressure as much as the youngsters in the build-up to the game.

"We arrived at Turf Moor that day quite early and already there were lots of people about and the atmosphere was building.

"When we came out for the warm-up, the ground was already packed, but then the kick-off was delayed for 15 minutes because of the crowd.

"That didn't really help, but we just had to get on with it.

"Brian (Miller) and Arthur (Bellamy) just said to go out and do your best."