York City v Burnley - Tony Dewhurst's big match preview

PAUL Barnes describes himself as an "ogre" when the goals are not flying in.

"Just ask the wife," says Barnes. "I do take the job home with me when I'm not scoring goals and I can be a nightmare to live with.

"I'm a nicer person to be around when I am scoring goals.

"Sure. It does play on your mind when the goals don't arrive and it is a natural human reaction to worry.

"You have to perform - but it is that pressure that keeps you going.

"It's very difficult to switch off and let it go when the game is finished. The whole weekend you are still playing things back in your head."

Barnes returns to former club York City tomorrow determined to break Burnley's goal drought and kick-start his scoring form into life.

Burnley need no reminder it is six League games without a goal for the Clarets as Chris Waddle targets his first League win as Burnley manager.

But the uncommon sight of Barnes toiling for some early season form should only serve as a severe warning to York's defence.

Because, surely, it is only a matter of time before Barnes strikes gold again and recaptures the sort of bountiful form which brought him 24 League goals in the 1996/97 campaign. Remember last season? Barnes needed half-a-dozen games to register a goal after his £350,000 move from Birmingham - then he single-handedly destroyed Stockport with all Burnley's goals in an bewildering Turf Moor day last October.

"It would be nice to get a goal from anywhere. A back heel, an own goal, just anything, because we can't get away from the fact that it has proved a disappointing start to the season," he added.

"It has proved a setback but we have got to keep on believing.

"The ball is going to drop soon and we are going to give somebody a beating.

"We are going into the game at York with a positive feel and the attitude that we are going to score.

"Of course it is frustrating for all of us and you start to wonder where the next goal is going to come from.

"To be fair, we've not had settled side and there are several signings getting used to playing with new people.

"Just look at the luck we had at Chesterfield. We hit the inside of the post and their goalkeeper had a blinder.

"It is a strange one because, after all, we were a side who scored 71 goals last season. Now it is the complete opposite.

"I would probably worry about my lack of goals but I am not the kind of person to be bothered to the extent that I will hide.

"It bothers me because I want to do it, so I try even harder." Barnes' career went into fourth gear at Bootham Crescent after ex-Clarets assistant John Ward signed Barnes from Stoke for a cut-price £50,000.

Three years and 76 League goals later he was one of the hottest properties in the Football League.

"I've an awful lot of fond memories of York, I really have," added Barnes.

"They gave me a big break in the game.

"I loved living there and I enjoyed my quality of life in York.

"I supose I became a big part of the club. I gave it a lot of input. It was a special time in my career."

York have made an indifferent start to their season, although the 0-0 midweek draw at Grimsby, their best performance so far, suggests that manager Alan Little has secured a defence which leaked 61 goals and escaped relegation by the narrowest of margins. A league win at Millwall and the Coca-Cola Cup KO of First Division Port Vale, York won both legs, has lifted spirits further.

Burnley fans, though, will be craving for a sunnier performance from their side. Last season's engagement was arguably Burnley's poorest display as the game ended prematurely for Barnes, carried off with an ankle injury.

He added: "York can be a very up and down team but they always graft for each other. They had a cracking result at Millwall the other week and they will make it tough for us.

"Bootham Crescent is always a difficult place to go and play. It is tight and restrictive.

"But we are feeling very positive that we can go to York and do a job."

Centre-half Tony Barras returned to the heart of the defence at Blundell Park, and he is likely to partnered by Mark Tinkler, a £75,000 signing from Leeds United and a former team-mate of Mark Ford.

Graeme Murty - who netted York's goal against Burnley at Bootham Crescent last season - made his first appearance of the season in midweek, while strikers Neil Tolson and David Rush are both back in the frame after successfully negotiating the Pontin's League fixture against the Clarets on Wednesday.

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