I THINK it was Pele who first coined the phrase "the beautiful game" to describe football.

However, had the Brazilian superstar been at Turf Moor on Saturday to witness Burnley v Gillingham, he would almost certainly have been forced to revise his opinion.

There was nothing beautiful about this game. Gillingham were everything we expected. Obdurate, regimented and solid, only the visitors' Patrick Agyemang looked like causing Burnley any problems.

Unfortunately, the Clarets offered a mirror image.

Thank goodness Glen Little was on hand and quick-witted enough to capitalise on the late defensive slip which cost the Gills the game.

But ugly though Saturday's encounter undoubtedly was, you would have been hard pushed to find any Claret complaining as they made their way home.

In Burnley's perilous position it is points, not pretty football, that count. And a five-point buffer now separates the Clarets from the relegation zone.

If Saturday underlined one thing and one thing alone, it was the importance to the team of Robbie Blake. With Glen Little having one of his less effective games (his goal aside) there was a dearth of creativity.

Blake has been our player of the season so far by a country mile. He makes us tick. He is our Thierry Henry, our Paul Scholes - if he isn't scoring the goals, he's making them for others.

I'm sure Burnley supporters everywhere breathed a huge sigh of relief when the transfer window finally closed last Monday.

With Blake in the squad, the Clarets have a chance of avoiding the drop: without him - well, let's just be happy that isn't a scenario we have to worry about.

Meanwhile, Burnley find themselves in the bizarre situation of not knowing who their next opponents are, or even if they will have a game on Saturday.

Tomorrow, at the third time of asking, Telford and Millwall will fight for the right to face the Clarets in the fifth round of the FA Cup.

The fourth round match has previously been postponed on two occasions because of the unplayable pitch at Telford's New Bucks Head Stadium.

On the one hand, the Clarets may know their opponents tomorrow. On the other, should the match be drawn, the replay will take place on Saturday, meaning Burnley will not have a game.

When you reckon that the game was originally scheduled to be played a little less than a month ago, it is apparent that the FA have handled the situation badly. Surely they could have ordered the game to be played at a neutral venue before now?

As a result, the innocent parties involved: the management, players and supporters of Burnley Football Club are being massively inconvenienced.