BURNLEY were today anxiously awaiting further news on injured goalkeeper Danny Coyne.
The Clarets goalkeeper was stretchered off after falling awkwardly during Saturday's controversial 3-0 defeat at QPR.
Initial fears were that the Welsh international had suffered either cartilage or ligament trouble.
However, Coyne later travelled home from London with the team, offering a glimmer of hope that the injury is not as bad as first feared.
And this morning, manager Steve Cotterill was still awaiting a detailed medical report on his number one stopper as planning begins for another tough assignment at Leeds United on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Cotterill described himself as a "proud man hurting" after a dismal afternoon at Loftus Road, where everything went wrong for his side.
The Clarets were three goals down inside 24 minutes after initially going behind to a highly debatable penalty for a push by Graham Branch.
Cotterill's side also had two penalty appeals turned down, while Jean Louis Valois suffered a hamstring injury and Michael Duff picked up a booking and a suspension that rules him out of this weekend's home clash with Ipswich.
"Where did that saying 'After the Lord Mayor's Show' come from?" said Cotterill.
"I ask because that looked like us after the Villa game. At the end of the day, you have to say well done to QPR because for the first 25 minutes they were like a whirlwind.
"We certainly weren't like that and it looked like we'd left that whirlwind up in Burnley the other night.
"I just can't explain that because, if anything, the team here was stronger than the one that beat Aston Villa with Frank Sinclair back.
"I don't mean that disrespectfully to Richard Duffy, but Frank has been terrific all season.
"But we can't put what happened early in the game down to Frank, so I'm a proud man hurting."
Cotterill now needs to pick his troops up quickly ahead of the trip to Elland Road, where table-topping Wigan yesterday won 2-0.
That Roses clash is followed by three successive home games, including next week's mouth-watering Carling Cup fourth round tie against Premiership giants Spurs.
But Cotterill is concentrating purely on Burnley's current league position, rather than causing any cup shock.
He said: "The cup is great for the players, the supporters, the chairman and the directors.
"It's great for the money too, but to be honest I would rather do well in the league."
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