JOHN Howarth, who quit Blackburn Rovers just a couple of weeks ago, has been appointed secretary at Burnley.

The 49-year-old official, who lives in Clayton-le-Moors, said he had felt it was time for a change after spending almost 26 years at Ewood.

He took over the secretary's role at Turf Moor yesterday, succeeding Mark Blackbourne - who moved to Sunderland - and said:

"I have joined Burnley to enhance my career and this is a new challenge which I am really looking forward to. After 26 years I felt I had gone as far as I could at Blackburn Rovers and I decided to leave before I was even offered the job with Burnley."

The huge transformation at Ewood Park, through Jack Walker's revolution, meant that Mr Howarth's role had also undergone significant changes. He said: "This is giving me a fresh challenge and I will be involved at all different levels so I am really looking forward to it.

"The offer from Burnley was too good to refuse and I am delighted to join the club at such an exciting time with the new manager and new ground developments.

"The supporters are wonderful and follow the club through thick and thin and the potential at Burnley is tremendous.

"If the players spark it off on the pitch, Burnley will command crowds equivalent to most Premiership clubs."

Burnley chairman Frank Teasdale, welcoming Mr Howarth to Turf Moor, added: "We are delighted. He has a wealth of experience and will be an asset to our club which, we feel, has most exciting times ahead."

The new secretary will work alongside Burnley's assistant secretary Albert Maddox who first joined the club in 1947.

One of the new man's first jobs will be to organise the pre-season friendly which has been arranged with Liverpool on Monday, August 12 (kick-off 7-45pm).

Manager Adrian Heath had been trying to arrange a prestige game against top continental opposition but is more than happy with Liverpool. He said: "We wanted to bring in a foreign team but it was a case of the ones we wanted asking for an absolute fortune or the others not being a big-enough draw.

"Fortunately for us, Liverpool wanted a game and they don't come any bigger than the most successful club in English football."

Heath has also arranged for his two German trialists to travel to England and hopes to have them linking up with the squad on Thursday.

Yesterday, in a private practice match, Kurt Nogan and Nigel Gleghorn were on target in a 2-0 win over Oldham.

"We played three half-hour periods and it was a very useful exercise," said the manager.

"It's always nice to win but the result, really, was irrelevant. The most important thing was to have a game like that."

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