STAN Ternent dealt himself three aces in attack as he tried to fit in the joker in his pack but ended up being well and truly trumped.

When the team sheets came out there was no doubting the positive intent as strikers Ian Moore, David Johnson and Gareth Taylor were all named, leaving Paul Gascoigne on the right hand side of a midfield three.

The result was simple - Burnley were over-run in the first half, lucky to be only one behind at the break and on the way to a beating.

"We played with three forward players today but didn't get the ball forward," admitted Ternent bluntly after the game.

He left it until half-time but then took off the injured Ian Moore and replaced him with Paul Weller.

But any hope of a comeback was dashed within a couple of minutes thanks to Laurent D'Jaffo smacking the ball home from long range after a mistake by Mitchell Thomas.

The first half was in many ways remarkable as the three strikers must have felt lost as they watched the home side dominate possession and pin Burnley back. It could have been Michael Owen, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Thierry Henry in the claret and blue, it wouldn't have mattered.

To put it simply, if you don't have the ball you won't score.

The main reason they did not have the ball is because the midfield did not have Kevin Ball. In the continued absence of Steve Davis he not only took over the armband as the skipper but he was asked to drop back alongside Ian Cox in the heart of the defence.

Ball is one of those players who has been singled out by sections of the Burnley fans in recent weeks for criticism but, as is often the case, the real value of a player like Ball is not seen until he is not there.

He may have misplaced a few passes in some games, he may not have the instinct of a natural scorer but he is still a man who is capable of spoiling the opposition attacks, winning the ball and allowing his creative team mates to worry the other side.

It is not by accident that he has played well over 500 league games, he is a good player. How Gazza and co would have loved to have him by their side on Saturday.

He did a decent job in defence, first with Cox and then Thomas after Cox had limped off early on. But the problem was that Burnley needed two Balls to get the one ball that mattered.

Aware of the need for steel middle of the park Ternent had pushed Lee Briscoe forward from left back but he had to drop back when Cox went off. He was replaced by Alan Moore who joined Gascoigne and Tony Grant in the middle of the park.

So with three creative, attacking players who was going to get the ball to feed the goal hungry strikers? Sadly the answer was no one.

In fact if Paul Peschisolido had been able to hit a barn door the game would have been over by the break.

As for Gazza, after all the promise of the first hour of his debut he looked a tired man from the start and never got into the game.

His performance was that of the second half at Turf Moor against Bradford as a second game in quick succession exposed his lack of fitness.

He actually gifted Peschisolido a great chance with a horror back pass in the 11th minute that was actually his best through ball of the day.

Luckily for Gascoigne the chance went begging thanks to a great stop by Marlon Beresford who got a hand to the ball after the striker had gone around him.

"Gazza is getting there," said Ternent. "That pitch did not suit his kind of game. It has had four games on it this week but you have to adapt to conditions and they did that better.

"Paul Gascoigne has not played for five weeks but he has had one and a half games now."

The 34-year-old former England star was eclipsed by a recent England youth international who will not be 20 until the summer. A goal in each half, both firm drives from the edge of the box, ensured it was a day he would never forget.

When Gazza was wowing the world in Italia 90, the biggest thing Philip Jagielka had to worry about was what to have for school dinner.

Therefore it is little wonder that he should have been a tad anxious as he looked forward to coming face to face with a legend. And it was not just Gazza he was worried about.

"Before the game I was quite nervous because I was not just playing Paul Gascoigne but Kevin Ball as well.," he said. "But once the game started they were just two other players.

"To be honest I though Gazza would have done more."

It was deep into the second half before Gazza produced a bit of real magic, a reminder of what he can do but his inch perfect ball over the top for Johnson was wasted as he failed to control it.

That was a shame because Johnson had always looked the most likely source of a goal. Time and again he picked the ball up on the right and cut in before firing in a shot with his left.

After the break, with the return to 4-4-2, Burnley competed better and the chances started to come at both ends.

One mad scramble looked sure to end with a Burnley goal but the ball was somehow kept out, Simon Tracey made a couple of decent saves and Taylor hit the cross bar.

So three points went begging and the chasing pack could take heart from the Clarets defeat.

They now have a week to get things right before the visit of Wolves to Turf Moor on Saturday.

SHEFFIELD UTD... 3

Scorers: Jagielka 17, 88, D'Jaffo 47

BURNLEY... 0

Bramall Lane

Attendance...19,003