FOR much of last season Millwall and Burnley were in the pack of clubs battling to claim a place in the play-offs.

It is therefore something of a surprise that both the Clarets and the Lions have made such a poor start to their campaigns.

Millwall finally finished last season in a highly creditable fourth place before they suffered the heart-break of play-off semi-final defeat by Birmingham City at the new Den.

The violent scenes that followed that match ensured they would make the headlines for all the wrong reasons and security surrounding their games both home and away will be very tight.

In fact the Clarets is one of six clubs to have their fans banned from going to Millwall.

Despite the sadly usual off field problems, Millwall were tipped for great things at the start of the campaign.

But the players in the squad were caught up in wrangles over money and with morale reportedly low they made the worst possible start, losing 6-0 at home to Rotherham on the opening day of the season.

A failure to score in either of their next two games suggested all was not right with Mark McGhee's men but slowly and surely they have started to turn things around.

Before this afternoon's clash with first division leaders Portsmouth, a couple of wins had helped them climb towards mid-table and there is surely a lot more to come from the Lions.

They roared to a top six spot back in April having been promoted the previous year although they failed to score in either game against the Clarets.

Burnley won 2-0 at the New Den, with Alan and Ian Moore on target, while they arrived at Turf Moor last December determined to get a point which they did in a drab goalless draw.

The loss of influential centre half Sean Dyche to Watford will not have helped their cause but there is still plenty of ability in the squad with evergreen striker Steve Claridge still a threat in front of goals.

Both Millwall and Burnley will expect to finish the season much higher than they are at present.

And therefore Tuesday's match will be important as they look to make up lost ground.