WORKERS today hoisted a black flag over an Oswaldtwistle factory where the staff are Blackburn Rovers fanatics.

Things ground to a halt yesterday at Stuart Engineering when the news of striker Alan Shearer's world record transfer broke in the Evening Telegraph.

Boss Gordon Birtwistle and his 34 staff are big Rovers fans. The Springfield Road factory, which sponsors Blackburn games each year, was stunned.

"It is a tragedy really," said Coun Birtwistle, leader of the Liberal Democrats on Burnley Council. "But we are still backing Blackburn and we won't be sending our season tickets back."

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