HATS off to Ade Akinbiyi for again turning headline-maker with his first hat trick in six years.

But that hardly begins to tell the tale of a victory against all the odds on a drama-filled day that began behind the scenes an hour before kick off.

At that point, Akinbiyi didn't even have a pair of boots to wear, as replacements for ones he split in training on Thursday winged their way down from Turf Moor.

Thankfully the package arrived just before 2pm - and whatever the cost it was certainly worth it.

Akinbiyi ended the game clutching the match ball and vowing never to wear the boots again after scoring three goals in a game six years to the day since he last achieved the feat while playing for Wolves.

Instead, the boots will take pride of place in the Akinbiyi display cabinet alongside the ball signed by his team mates and including the brief message from goalkeeper Brian Jensen: 'I owe you one!'

And that's where the real drama unfolded on a day the 800 or so Burnley fans inside Kenilworth Road will long remember.

The Clarets were two goals up and cruising 39 minutes into the game when, inexplicably, Jensen raced outside his area to cut off a ball that striker Steve Howard was never going to reach in a million years. The ball skidded off the wet turf and instinctively, the Dane caught the ball before realising the error of his ways.

Referee Paul Melin was in no mood for leniency and instantly flashed a red card for deliberate handball.

Jensen looked distraught as he trudged to the dressing rooms, and with good measure since the law clearly states that goalkeepers should only be red carded when 'denying the opposing team a goal, or obvious goalscoring opportunity by deliberately handling the ball.'

Howard's positioning meant that was unlikely to be the case and it may well be that Burnley boss Steve Cotterill has just cause to ask the FA to look at this incident again, especially in the light of Barnet keeper Ross Flitney seeing his sending off at Old Trafford rescinded in similar circumstances.

Even Town boss Mike Newell has sympathy, later insisting: "I think it's a silly rule. If it's a blatant handball, then fair enough, but the people who make the rules have never played football and been in that position."

However, the upshot of Jensen's rush of blood was that Burnley - with no substitute goalkeeper on the bench and emergency stand-ins Michael Duff and Graham Branch both out injured - held an emergency meeting near the dug out.

Eventually it was John Spicer who emerged from the huddle wearing an oversized goalkeeping shirt and giant gloves that left him resembling Kenny Everett's character 'Brother Lee Love', the minister with unfeasibly large hands!

And with the Clarets now handicapped, things soon looked bleak when Luton forced five quickfire corners and halved the arrears as Howard climbed to head home on the stroke of half time.

Thankfully the break gave the Clarets chance to regroup and figure out a way of hanging onto their slender lead.

You felt sure that with Luton sure to put the ten men under severe pressure

rom corners and set plays, the Clarets might need to score again to achieve a result.

And with Garreth O'Connor making way for Gifton Noel-Williams during the interval, it was clear that Steve Cotterill was aware of the need for additional height to repel the main threat.

And Burnley got the cushion they so desperately wanted eight minutes into the second half as this incredible game took another twist.

Akinbiyi had moved to the left side of midfield after terrorising the entire Town defence in the opening half, when he scored two exquisite goals.

The first had arrived in the 15th minute when he played a neat one-two with Spicer on the half way line and sprinted clear before sliding the ball under Marlon Beresford.

Just after the half hour, he doubled the lead with a real bolt form the blue. Spicer was again the provider, sending Akinbiyi racing away down the right to invite the lone striker to blast the pall past the startled former Burnley keeper from just inside the penalty area.

That made it 15 goals in 30 starts for the £600,000 former Stoke striker, who was soon to add another to that tally.

Released by Jon Harley down the left flank in the 53rd minute, he teased teenager Leon Barnett before powering past him and into the area, where the defender carelessly stuck out a leg to concede a penalty.

Akinbiyi, who incredibly had never taken a spot kick in his career, dusted himself down to send Beresford the wrong way with an ice-cool finish.

Now the onus was on Burnley to protect Spicer and end proud Luton's unbeaten

home record.

But within six minutes the lead was again reduced to one goal as another corner caused mayhem and Warren Feeney poked home inside the six-yard box.

The charge was on - but in the final half hour Burnley showed unbelievable determination to grind out the victory.

Centre backs John McGreal and Frank Sinclair dealt with the aerial bombardment magnificently, Noel-Williams back-tracked whenever Burnley lost the ball to add more inches to the cause and Spicer showed he too was up to the challenge - first by flinging himself across goal to palm Howard's 30 yard drive for a corner, then with a brave tackle as sub Enoch Showunmi's feet.

And as the clock agonisingly ticked down, that was the closest Town came to

salvaging an unjust point as the Clarets celebrated a memorable victory with

a team huddle in the middle of the pitch.