BARRY Kilby looked shell-shocked and Stan Ternent was gobsmacked.

No, not the great 'has he, hasn't he quit' debate - more the tell-tale reactions of two men contemplating how Burnley had grabbed all the lead roles in a blockbuster ... only to end up in the B movie from hell!

This was truly peer through your fingers, edge of the seat stuff. Gripping from the opening scene to a cliffhanger ending, when the Chinese whispers that Ternent had dramatically quit started circulating following a clandestine chat with his chairman.

Thankfully, we got the happy ending instead as Ternent dispelled all the trumped up tittle-tattle. But gauging the overall mood, I think it's safe to assume the Burnley dressing room was far from a happy place at 2.30pm on Saturday.

Ternent was rightly "naffed off" at losing a game his players had largely controlled from first whistle to last. North End might argue they gave as good as they got for at least part of a breathless second half, but when the cold hard facts are assessed, there can only be one outcome - Burnley blew it.

Scoring three goals away from home should be enough anywhere in this league to pick up maximum points. In fact, it's no exaggeration to suggest the classy Clarets looked like scoring every time they ventured into the last third of the field.

Unfortunately, things went belly-up all too often when they were in the ascendancy, and four, yes four times Preston broke from deep to exploit oceans of space and score.

Keeper Brian Jensen added to the woes with an afternoon he will want to quickly forget, although in my reckoning, direct blame could only be apportioned to Preston's second and fifth goals, scored by Eddie Lewis following an embarrassing scramble in the six-yard box, and a David Healy shot that squirmed under his body at the near post after all the damage had been done.

The man largely responsible for the rest of the damage was Ricardo Fuller - a beast of a striker with the physique of Shrek, but who floats over the surface like a stone skimming water.

At this level and in this form, the Jamaican is possibly the nearest living thing to a tornado. You know he's coming at you, but you can do nothing about it!

And on the three occasions Fuller demonstrated his full force to find himself one-on-one with the badly-exposed Jensen, the outcome was all-too inevitable.

His opener on 18 minutes was a classic example. Richard Chaplow saw his goalbound shot blocked and the ball instantly found its way to Fuller near the half way line. A quick shimmy and a burst of acceleration left last man David May trailing in his wake as he bore down on goal and side-footed the ball effortlessly past the keeper.

His second, and Preston's third, came from another counter-attack, this time down the right after Robbie Blake was robbed of possession. Sub David Healy swept the ball low across goal and the net bulged again.

But it was the hat-trick strike that proved to be the dagger through Burnley hearts. Glen Little's invitation to win the match at 3-3, with just North End keeper Jonathan Gould to beat was spurned, the ball was shunted upfield and Fuller sped onto Pawel Abbott's through ball to beat the advancing Jensen with a delicate dink.

Surely Fuller has to be Premiership bound next month?

But if Preston have their prize guy, what of Robbie Blake? For if one other player on the slick Deepdale surface did not deserve to be on the losing side it was Burnley's leading scorer.

Throughout the entire 90 minutes, he teased and tormented the entire Preston defence to the stage where they must have wanted to rip off their white shirts and wave them as flags.

It's not as if North End had not been warned. Three times in the opening flurries, he tried his luck with free kicks and narrowly failed to convert.

But his orchestration of almost every single attacking move from then on was a joy to watch. Fuller's 18th minute opener was therefore totally against the run of play and it was no surprise when the equaliser came just six minutes later.

Blake was hauled to the ground 30 yards out, leaving Richard Chaplow the only other option of a shot. That forced Gould into a full-length parry and Ian Moore was on the loose ball in a flash to rifle home.

Paul Weller screwed a shot wide and Little's curler was turned for a corner as the Clarets dominated. But it was after the break that things really kicked off!

Gould tipped Dean West's cross-cum shot over before play switched and Mo Camara cleared in front of goal after Fuller wreaked more havoc.

On the hour, Fuller's cut back - when the ball appeared to be over the line - allowed Lewis to somehow poke the ball home while prone on the ground accompanied by two defenders.

Four minutes later, it was 2-2 as Arthur Gnohere beat a hesitant Gould to head home Blake's inswinging free kick. May then hit the bar from Blake's corner before Gould redeemed himself with an astonishing point-blank save from Moore's fierce volley.

Fuller's breakaway third swing the pendulum back North End's way - but only for seven minutes as Blake bamboozled Marlon Broomes in the box and was awarded a penalty, which he coolly converted after what seemed like an eternity.

In between all those goals, Burnley held every ace and controlled all the possession. But the two defining moments that decided the outcome both occurred in the 80th minute.

First Blake, Luke Chadwick, and Ian Moore all combined to sweep the ball from right to left and leave Little the simple task of beating Gould from eight yards.

One save and thirty seconds later, Burnley's fate was sealed to leave Ternent and Kilby both shaking their heads in incredulity. It was that sort of day.

PRESTON 5

Fuller 18, 70, 81, Lewis 60, Healy 87

BURNLEY 3

I Moore 24, Gnohere 64, Blake pen 78