MICKY Mellon completed a 10-day spending spree of £1.1 million by Stan Ternent as the Burnley boss stepped up his bid to bring the glory days back to Turf Moor.

The Tranmere Rovers' midfielder joined the Clarets for £350,000 on a two-and-a-half year deal in time to make his debut at Bristol Rovers today.

And following the record £750,000 signing of Luton defender Steve Davis last week, it means Ternent was likely to field up to eight of his own signings at the Memorial Stadium this afternoon.

"I think that it shows the club means business," stressed Ternent.

"I have said on many occasions that the standard for Burnley Football Club comes from the early 60s.

"A lot of people have been brought up with very good football and very good players. You can't just play any old way at Burnley.

"You can go out, you can win football matches but you have to win them with a bit of style.

"And Micky Mellon is a terrific footballer and will be a big influence and a really good signing for us."

Mellon had been at Prenton Park since October 1997 when Tranmere manager John Aldridge bought the 26-year-old Scot from Blackpool for £285,000.

And Ternent's perserverance paid off in his chase for the attack-minded midfielder who has a reputation as one of the sweetest strikers of the ball outside the Premiership.

An offer from the Burnley boss had been lying on Aldridge's desk for some time and, after Rovers went out of the FA Cup last week, it appears the money was too good to turn down for the cash-strapped First Division outfit. "I have been chasing him for a long time. I made the offer a long time ago - a couple of months - and I have been chasing it and tracking it in a similar thing to the Steve Davis situation," said Ternent, who outlined what he expects from the former Bristol City and West Brom man.

"Quality, goals, know-how, competition for places, everything. It's a big step in the right direction.

"Micky is an extremely good player, a quality footballer who will be a fantastic player for Burnley in my opinion.

"And on the back of that if I can get Weller and Smithy and Ronnie Jepson and Neil Moore back then all of a sudden I am looking at a fairly strong squad and that's what I need."

In a short space of time following new chairman Barry Kilby's major injection of cash into Turf Moor Ternent has re-vamped his squad, adding Davis, Mellon, Graham Branch, Ally Pickering and Paul Crichton to the likes of Brian Reid, Gordon Armstrong and Peter Swan from his first wave of signings.

And after a disappointing first half of the season, the Burnley boss believes things are now fitting into place.

He added: "We have had to put up with some kind of shoddy performances but now I'm hopeful that we are on the turn.

"It's a new year, I've got some good players in now and I'm getting my injured players who are influential players back in the team. But next week shows you with Mark Ford and Brian Reid suspended that you need that sort of squad. "The kids have come in and done well but they needed to go out and learn their trade a little bit more and in a year 18 months' time who knows where they are up to?

"This is what I have had in my mind all the way down and hopefully I'll be able to strengthen it more in the future."

With their pressing financial problems seemingly behind them thanks to the introduction of Kilby and the on-going rights issue, Burnley are back among the big spenders of the division - and there could be more to come.

"It's never complete. Once you are happy with what you've got you're on the wrong line but at the moment I am delighted. With Steve Davis, Graham Branch and Micky Mellon, I can't ask for a lot more can I?" added Ternent.

"I still have other players in mind but we have just spent, excluding wages, far in excess of £1 million so we will see how we go on now.

"I think we made a mark with Steve Davis and I think we are making another mark now and giving the supporters what they have hoped for for a long time.

"All credit to the chairman and his board."

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