STAN Ternent tonight reaches a milestone in his managerial career by celebrating his 300th competitive game in charge of the Clarets.

The rollercoaster, five-and-a-half year ride has undoubtedly included more highs than lows, with a promotion and two play-off heartaches the defining moments of a personal quest to bring Premiership football to Turf Moor. Here, DARREN BENTLEY charts the Ternent years so far.

FEW Burnley fans would argue that when Stan Ternent first walked through the manager's door at Turf Moor, the club he holds so dear was in deep, deep trouble.

Now you would be hard pressed to find a single supporter who is not appreciative of the amazing transformation in fortunes under his leadership.

Ternent has quite simply dragged Burnley Football Club off its knees with his own unique brand of management, taking the Clarets on a journey from Second Division strugglers to within a whisker of the Premiership.

Along the way, footballing legends Ian Wright and Paul Gascoigne were brought on board to generate an electric buzz around Turf Moor.

But much more than that, Ternent finally put the town back on the footballing map as Burnley rocketed to their highest league placing in a quarter of a century.

In all that time, following the halcyon Harry Potts days and an all-too brief flirtation with the big time under Jimmy Adamson, Burnley employed a total of 12 managers to try and spark a revival in fortunes.

There were differing degrees of failure before, in the early 1990s, Jimmy Mullen at least got supporters talking about their football club again.

His successor in 1996, Adrian Heath, kept the pot boiling before the ill-fated appointment of Chris Waddle the following summer threatened to undo all that good work.

Enter Ternent, whose first game in charge saw Burnley beat Bristol Rovers 2-1 on August 8, 1998, with local hero Andy Payton scoring both goals.

Two games and two defeats later though, came the first clear signal that Ternent was not prepared to accept second best.

The 1-0 defeat at home to York City was the catalyst for an amazing post-match press conference where Ternent declared that Mark Winstanley, Steve Blatherwick, Lee Howey and Michael Williams would never play for Burnley Football Club again.

Out they went and in came established players Ternent felt he could trust: Gordon Armstrong, Peter Swan, and Lenny Johnrose all followed their manager from Bury, while a certain Steve Davis cost £750,000 from Luton.

Burnley ended the season unbeaten in 11 league games and the Ternent revolution was finally under way.

The 1999/00 season began similarly - and with basically the same squad the Clarets never dropped out of the top six places in Division Two all season.

Valentines Day 2000 proved a landmark moment in that truly momentous season; the day Ternent persuaded former England and Arsenal legend Ian Wright to sign for Burnley.

The Celtic striker provided the dressing room boost Ternent had been looking for - and of his four goals for the club, no-one will ever forget the last minute screamer that earned a crucial victory at home to Notts County as the season reached a climax.

But it was another fans' favourite, Glen Little, who provided the real drama on the final day, scoring a second half winner at Scunthorpe that allowed the Clarets to pip Gillingham to the second automatic promotion spot.

The scenes that followed the full time whistle at Glanford Park were incredible as Ternent, hoisted high by chairman Barry Kilby, released an outpouring of raw emotion.

Now the hard work really started. But back in Division One for only the second time since 1976, Burnley's momentum caught their lofty opponents cold and hopes of a play-off spot were only extinguished at Sheffield United in late April.

It had been a remarkable achievement to go so near, but just 12 months later Ternent came even closer to achieving his dream.

Incredibly, the Clarets led Division One at Christmas and looked destined for the top flight, having lost just five league games.

Gareth Taylor was scoring goals for fun, Robbie Blake joined for £1m, David Johnson arrived on loan and even the legendary Paul Gascoigne jumped aboard as Burnley went for the final push.

Alas, it was not to be - one measly goal costing Burnley a play-off place on the final day of the season.

Who knows what might have happened had Gascoigne's late free-kick crept past Magnus Hedman?

But ever since that moment, progress has come a very poor second to pragmatism. Ternent has been forced to battle on with his hands tied behind his back, slashing the playing side beyond all reasonable boundaries just to keep the club afloat.

Yet despite finishing 16th last season, the Clarets made it to the quarter-final of the FA Cup before allowing the disappointment of defeat at Watford to affect their league form.

Another whopping exodus last summer, as the financial crisis bit deeper, further weakened Ternent's hand for this campaign.

And now, three hundred games into his tenure, the dream of bringing Premiership football is probably as far away as ever.

Survival is again the key to the future. But to coin a Ternent phrase: It's not the size of the dog - it's the fight inside it.

And in Ternent, Burnley have a born fighter.