STEVE Cotterill believes referees are giving Burnley a rough ride against bigger Championship rivals.

The Clarets saw two penalty appeals waved aside in last night's 1-0 Turf Moor defeat to bogey side Wolverhampton Wanderers.

And after slumping to a second successive defeat following the award of a controversial match-winning spot kick at Ipswich at the weekend, Cotterill argued that his side are becoming the victims of match officials leaning towards the division's big-hitters.

He said: "It is again frustrating because we felt we did enough to get a result out of the game and if that was a penalty (at Ipswich) last Saturday, then we could have had a couple last night.

"But I will tell you what happens when we play the bigger teams; we compete, but the referees don't want to give anything against them.

"At Ipswich it wasn't a penalty, but when you go somewhere where there are 25,000 fans and everyone is up in arms, a referee who has played two games in the Championship gives the award.

"Last night I thought the referee was poor. We were playing against a big club again and I feel as though sometimes, in this league, they don't want to give decisions against them. I think that has happened quite a few times this season to us."

Paul Ince's fortuitous 15th minute strike was enough to earn Wanderers victory, despite the visitors' second half rearguard as Burnley pressed for an elusive equaliser.

But Cotterill feels an enforced change of formation, and a brand-new pitch that has unexpectedly worsened in the past few months, have contributed to halting the free-flowing football that was a hallmark of a purple patch enjoyed by all earlier in the campaign.

He explained: "I thought all the lads gave me absolutely everything and a plus is that it's another 90 minutes under the belt for Michael Ricketts.

"We know things have changed now that Ade Akinbiyi has gone. We play a little bit more direct and not as much football as we played earlier in the season, but also we haven't really got a pitch that's conducive.

"At the moment we have a problem with the roots being eaten and the grass is not regenerating. There is nothing holding it together and that makes it unstable.

"As it stands, the pitch wont be, and hasn't been since the New Year, as conducive to knocking the ball about and it might be a bit more of a grind between now and the end of the season."

He added: "When you put things into perspective and look at the size of Wolverthampton Wanderers, they could play in the Premiership tomorrow and probably sustain it, whereas it's a tall order for us and the division is getting bigger and bigger.

"Every team we come up against is a challenge, but to be fair I haven't any problems with my lads because they have given their all again - and we will stick at it."