BURNLEY utility man Peter Swan is facing a six-week absence as he needs a cartilage operation to sort out his knee problems.

It's another blow for Turf Moor boss Stan Ternent but has been tempered by the rapid return to action of Glen Little.

Little, the man who is seen as the key to a Burnley revival, came through an hour with the reserves at Coventry last night - along with Neil Moore - so both should be able to come back into the reckoning for Saturday's tough game at home to Gillingham.

But Ternent will now have to plan a recovery without Swan who went for a scan on his damaged knee.

"He has torn the cartilage and we'll lose him for six weeks," said the manager.

"Glen Little is a bit stiff this morning but I was pleased with him last night and it was also good to get Neil Moore a run out.

"We have a difficult game on Saturday but we have to start winning football matches. It's as simple as that."

Meanwhile, goalkeeping coach Tony Parks is set to put his theory into practice back on the Football League stage with basement club Scarborough.

Parks, who will continue his part-time coaching duties at Turf Moor, was poised to join the Seasiders today to help their fight to stay in the Third Division.

The former Spurs keeper left Burnley to join Barrow on a free transfer last September but with the Conference club now being run by liquidators he has had to look for a move.

And new Scarborough manager Colin Addison was ready to make Parks his first signing and hand him a debut for his 13th League club at Brentford on Saturday. "Things have gone badly wrong at Barrow. The club has been wound up and my contract is null and void," said Parks.

"Scarborough approached me about helping them until the end of the season on a short-term contract and I said 'yes' as long as I can do it along with my coaching. "It was important that I stressed to Scarborough that I am looking more along the lines of my goalkeeping coaching.

"That's where I see a future for myself. My playing days are numbered so as long as I'm not going back full-time it will mean a move back into the Football League on my terms so I am pleased to help them out."

Scarborough want the experience of Parks to aid their fight to close a three-point gap at the bottom of the League and the 36-year-old will be reunited with former Burnley team-mate Jamie Hoyland at the McCain Stadium.

"They had a good win on Saturday which shows they are still having a go and hopefully that will give them a lift.

"Hopefully I can help them stay up and then you never know what might happen," Parks added.

The former Clarets keeper, who made two first-team appearances in the Worthington Cup at the start of the season, will link up with the Seasiders at the end of each week after carrying out his coaching duties at West Bromwich Albion and Burnley where he returned last month to work with Paul Crichton, Frank Kval and Craig Mawson. "When I left the club it wasn't in unhappy circumstances. The new manager wanted to bring in his own players and that was fair enough," said Parks.

"I was still training quite a lot there and started working with Paul Crichton. That's how that came about and Stan offered me the job.

"You are always looking for that first rung on the ladder and I am grateful I got that chance."

The Crichton connection, and a word from West Brom's former Burnley physio Nick Worth, also helped Parks get fixed up at the Hawthorns.

"Hopefully that means I am doing the job properly and 'Crichts' is happy with the way I am coaching him.

"It's really enjoyable. If you have played the game all your life it's very hard to just walk away," added Parks, who also went into battle at the bottom of the Nationwide League last season during a loan spell with Doncaster Rovers.

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