STAN Ternent teams have always been noted for their ability to grind out 1-0 wins.

They are the bread and butter results that helped him to lead both Burnley and Bury to the first division in recent times.

So after the 5-2 win against Walsall and dramatic 3-3 draws against Crewe and Barnsley last night was a good time for the Clarets to get back to basics.

A stroke of genius from the left boot of Paul Cook and a resolute defensive display from everyone in claret and blue not only produced a first win in six games, it propelled Burnley to within one point of their opponents who still top the first division.

This was not a top of the table classic, this was a clash between two teams determined to get a result for very different reasons. Burnley sought the win that would get their promotion campaign back on track after a run of five games without a win.

The high-flying Eagles wanted to create history by matching the run of 80 years ago when the club recorded eight straight league wins.

In the end it was a moment of magic that won the game as early as the 17th minute - or was it a fluke?

By that stage the visitors had already gone as close as they would get to a goal all evening, left wing back Julian Gray seeing his fierce drive bounce off the top of the bar and behind Nik Michopoulos's goal.

The home side had not had a real sight of goal but suddenly, out of nothing, they grabbed the lead. Lee Briscoe delivered a cross into the area, Gareth Taylor won the ball in the air and it dropped to Cook who was faced with what looked like an impossibly acute angle.

Clarets fans are well aware that Cook's left foot is a more potent source of more magic than a Harry Potter story and that is why they will be convinced that what happened next was deliberate. Cook simply executed a delightful lob into the far top corner of the net with keeper Matt Clarke forced to watch it loop over his head.

That might have calmed nerves among the home fans who made up the vast majority of the crowd but it was to develop into a decidedly sweaty evening for two reasons.

The first was the erratic, and that is being charitable, display from referee Mike Clattenburg. It is no wonder that Clarets boss Stan Ternent sought him out at half time as his increasingly bizarre decisions caused consternation both on and off the pitch.

Advantages played when there was none, fouls ignored, Gareth Taylor booked despite that fact that he was the one who appeared to be impeded on a regular basis and a string of decisions against Burnley all ensured the official left the field to a crescendo of boos.

But the visitors deserve credit for the second reason that the final whistle was greeted with as much relief as satisfaction because they really made the home defence work hard to record a rare clean sheet.

They dominated possession and piled the pressure on the Clarets goal but with the back three of Steve Davis, Ian Cox and Arthur Gnohere in outstanding form they never really saw the whites of Nik Michopoulos's eyes.

Davis has nothing to prove to the Turf Moor faithful but he has spoken of his concern about the failure to keep clean sheets. He was clearly determined to keep Palace out last night.

The same could be said for the former Palace player Cox who had not seen a shut-out since his return from injury. He was strong and brave throughout.

And then there was Gnohere. It is a strange thing that turns a player from being a popular figure to a cult character but the Frenchman is already achieving that status. Given the task of shackling the dangerous Clinton Morrison he relished the role and still had time to burst forward in the dying minutes and shoot at goal.

He still has a lot to learn as Ternent would no doubt rather have seen him use one of his supporting players to run the clock down but as he left the field to chants of "Arthur, Arthur," he will have reflected on a job well done.

But it was not a three man show, everyone did their bit to defend from the tireless Ian Moore and Gareth Taylor in attack to the five men strung across the midfield.

In fact apart from Gray's early shot there was only one real scare for Burnley when Morrison's clever pass found sub Steven Thomson in space in the box near the end but he pulled his shot wide.

The two teams had come into the game with great goalscoring records this season but it was never going to be a high scoring game and so Cook's goal was likely to be priceless.

As if the three points was not enough for the fans there was the sight of their beloved Glen Little coming back to action for the first time since he limped off at Norwich City last month.

In true showman style he did not waste any time in announcing his return, producing one mazy run and then a delightful pass with the outside of his boot.

Already thoughts are turning to another summit meeting at the weekend against Wolves and with a few more days training hopes will be high that Little's role will be bigger.

But for now everyone at the club can reflect on a hard job well done - the way the manager used to like it.

RESULT: BURNLEY 1 (Cook 17)

CRYSTAL PALACE 0

Attendance: 14,713