BURNLEY have been dealt a blow after midfield dynamo Paul Weller was ruled out for three weeks with a hamstring injury.

Weller limped out of training ahead of Saturday's 1-1 draw with West Brom, which lifted the Clarets one more place away from the relegation zone.

Clarets boss Stan Ternent was understandably keen to keep the extent of Weller's problem under wraps ahead of the game, since midfield options are extremely limited with a small squad at his disposal.

However, Weller's stop/start season was officially put on hold again today with the news that rules him out of this weekend's crucial FA Cup fourth round clash with Gillingham, which could provide a welcome financial boost for the club.

The nature of the setback also means Weller will miss the First Division clash at Wigan in a fortnight, and possibly even the second visit of Gillingham to Turf Moor for the First Division clash on February 7.

Club physio Ian Liversedge confirmed: "Thankfully it is only a small tear, but I would still say that Paul will be out for a maximum of three weeks."

Meanwhile, Ternent was happy with the hard-earned point against the promotion-chasing Baggies, who played for an hour with ten men following Rob Hulse's dismissal for violent conduct.

He said: "It was an exciting game and I thought the players did extremely well under the circumstances. It's another game undefeated and another point in the bag,

"The players stuck at it big style and it's a good afternoon's work because I think a month or two ago, we would probably have lost that game."