CLARETS: Frustration mounts at Turf Moor

BY 4.30 pm the greying old aged pensioner with the fashionable black and blue flat cap in Row K was inhabiting his own soccer hell.

He had quite clearly had enough of the tense, stressful proceedings.

The old boy couldn't believe what he had witnessed as he shook his fists to all and sundry.

It was of a show of rage which would have put Dennis Skinner to shame in the heat of a Parliamentary debate.

"How could it happen, what have we done to deserve this," he screamed to the big guy next to him before burying his head in his hands.

The root cause of his ire and indignation was: a linesman's flag which he threatened to stuff down his throat; a squandered David Eyres penalty; and enough second half goal opportunities to have doubled Burnley's goals for column.

And when new loan signing Gerry Creaney blazed over from eight yards out with the clock ticking towards full-time, the bloke could clearly take no more. The mystery man threw his cap to the floor, trampled the article into the Turf Moor dust, swivelled around and beat his fists against a plastic seat.

That was just the main course folks. The starters saw Kurt (Nogan) return to his former dominion to put one over his old club.

And, for 60 minutes his strike had threatened to earn Preston their first success on their League travels since April.

Remember Nogan had scored just twice for Preston since Adrian Heath finally lost patience with the ex-Clarets hero, cut his losses and flogged him to Deepdale for a bargain £175,000 last March.

But, I guess, as soon as Burnley fans saw his name staring at them from the team-sheet, they would have placed their monthly mortgage instalments on Kurt finding the back of the net.

I can't remember an ex-Burnley player getting such a rough ride on his return to Turf Moor and some of the intense abuse was a bit too cruel and personal for a guy whose goals all but kept the club afloat a season and a half ago.

But it was the same old chilled out, cool-as-a-cucumber Kurt who faced the flashbulbs, microphones and notebooks.

"I could hear all the screams and shouts from the Burnley fans but I didn't let it phase me," said Nogan.

"I never do. I just took it in my stride and stayed cool. "Okay. I left Burnley at a bad time. Things happened off the pitch and I probably shot myself in the foot with a couple of things I did.

"Maybe if I had been offered the right deal I could have patched things up with Burnley and signed a new deal, but that wasn't to be.

"I fell out with a lot of people at Burnley but I'll say this - I never fell out with the fans. They always treated me well and I liked them.

"Burnley is in the past now and I've certainly no regrets about leaving them to join Preston.

"To be honest, though, I expected the barracking I got and the bad reception I received. I knew it was coming.

"I think I gave them the answer - with my goal!"

Indeed, Nogan's 20th minute strike silenced three sides of a vociferous and intimidating Turf Moor atmosphere and the biggest gate anywhere in the Second Division so far this season.

The goal was orthodox Kurt. The sort of strike Burnley fans had become accustomed to and the reason why he was such a Turf Moor idol before events turned sour.

Nogan, skinning his marker, timed his run to perfection and, latching on to Sean Gregan's slide-rule pass, slid the ball under Marlon Beresford. Kurt must have been rehearsing his celebratory routine, because his wicked break dance to the half-way line would have given Coolio a run for his money.

Certainly, Nogan's goal had perhaps gone against the run of play as Burnley - adopting a 4-4-2 system and a flat back four for the first time this season - turned out their most complete and constructive performance under Chris Waddle.

The formation, in fact, gave Burnley a far better shape, and for the first time the Clarets looked genuinely capable of hurting the opposition in front of goal.

Waddle was forced to make wholesale changes to the side thrashed by Stoke City - and recalled Gerry Harrison from the wilderness to take his place at the heart of the Burnley defence. Unfortunately, injury forced Harrison out of the fray just seven minutes after Nogan's opener.

That forced Paul Weller to switch to right-back and Chris Brass to move to the heart of the defence.

It didn't appear to hinder Burnley and steadily they began to claw their way back into the contest.

A minute before half-time Burnley were handed a life-line.

David Eyres set the ball rolling with a clever chip into the Preston area, Michael Jackson read the danger and Mark Ford fell awkwardly over the Preston stopper. The penalty appeared a dubious decision, but Burnley, with only League goal to their name, were not complaining.

Eyres, usually so deadly from the penalty spot, let his nerves get the better of him and ballooned his shot high and wide and into the Cricket Field stand where the jubilant Preston fans rejoiced.

It was a moment which summed up the first month of Burnley's jinxed season. That instant could have sapped Burnley's spirit and belief, but the Clarets set about their task with renewed energy and vigour to dominate a tense second half struggle.

By this time Waddle had arrived on the stage and he was instrumental in providing what Burnley believed was an equalizer.

Waddle's trickery opened the sights up for Mark Ford who crashed a shot against a post. The rebound landed at the feet of Paul Barnes, who netted from close range.

Barnes began the celebrations, but a linesman's flag had ruled out the strike, much to the disgust of an angry possee of Burnley players who harangued the officials.

Burnley, though, just turned up the heat even further.

A David Eyres cracker was stopped by Preston's giant Finnish goalkeeper Tepi Moilanen, with Andy Cooke going desperately close with the loose ball.

Cooke was then left cursing his luck after a potent header narrowly missed the target after tremendous work from substitute Andy Kiwomya and the excellent Neil Moore.

Moore, who narrowly edged Chris Vinnicombe out for my man of the match, must surely be a made a regular fixture in the side after two thundering performances.

Burnley finally got their reward as they breached the Preston back-line 10 minutes from time.

Paul Barnes, who worked his socks off, raced away on the left flank to deliver a peach of a centre for Andy Cooke.

The striker made no mistake - powering home a header past Moilanen to hand Burnley a justified split of the spoils.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.