THE last time Everton were at Turf Moor, in August 2009, it ended with Burnley recording back-to-back Premier League wins, fresh from promotion.

After nine games now the Clarets are still awaiting their first.

It is becoming increasingly hard to see when this run will come to an end, not when the next outing is a trip to Arsenal.

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Ex-Gunner Alan Smith, now a Sky Sports summariser, noted before the game that when he was promoted with Leicester City in the early Eighties they went 10 top flight games without success.

The story of Crystal Palace last season offers similar hope.

The Eagles had less points than Burnley at this stage post promotion and are an example the Clarets will cling to in these increasingly tough times. But there must come a point when they start helping themselves.

The omens for this particular fixture had been favourable.

For starters the Toffees were without a win at Turf Moor in their previous five visits, while after their last two Europa League games this season they had gone on to lose their next Premier League game.

Both sequences were broken at Turf Moor yesterday, as it was made all too easy for Everton almost straight from the kick-off.

Leighton Baines accepted the space offered up to him to deliver a cross that, with just three minutes and 11 seconds on the clock, Samuel Eto’o powered home with his head.

Faith was restored by Danny Ings’ first Premier League goal – a first goal scored by any Burnley striker this season. The other four had been supplied by the midfield.

But Burnley had not learned the error of their ways after Everton’s first, when they had backed off with Baines in possession.

Roberto Martinez’s men put 24 passes together, again without meeting much resistance, in order to regain their lead through Romelu Lukaku.

There was an element of fortune in the second.

Lukaku’s initial shot was blocked by Stephen Ward, but Kieran Trippier unintentionally returned the ball to the striker to put his second chance away.

The Clarets stayed in it. There were opportunities. But they were little more than half chances while it was clear Everton had more gears and the quality of Eto’o came to the fore with a sublime finish to inflict a second consecutive 3-1 home defeat on Sean Dyche’s side. But for the post denying the former Barcelona forward a hat-trick it could have been worse. But as with all bar the West Brom performance there were still positives, Ings’ goal being the main one.

The England Under 21 international will grow in confidence from that and he was unlucky not to get a second after Everton had stretched their advantage late on, although it would have been no more than a consolation.

Martinez was complimentary of the Premier League new boys, but Burnley need points more than platitudes.

The Everton manager said he expected a tough game and felt he got one. The crux was quality, and his ability to make changes to set up in order to deal with the problems he felt they might face.

Burnley are not blessed with such options.

But as bad as Burnley’s start was the response was impressive.

Scott Arfield’s angled ball into the box was well taken by Ings, who knocked it back to Michael Kightly.

The winger’s cross for Lukas Jutkiewicz had the striker stretching, but he kept the attack alive.

In his haste to fashion a shot however, he snatched at it with his left foot and watched it bobble meekly towards the side netting.

Burnley advanced again with Trippier and George Boyd combining effectively down the right to earn the Clarets' first corner. Eto’o headed it behind to concede another.

Burnley were bright with a recycled second set piece with Ward and David Jones both having shots blocked.

But the goal opened up to Ings after being slipped through when Lukaku gifted possession to Jutiewicz midway inside the Everton half.

The striker’s eyes lit up, his feet took him round goalkeeper Tim Howard and rolled the ball into an empty net.

It got the fans going and Burnley’s tails up.

There was clear confidence in the camp with a back heel from Ings in the box, Arfield went close with a half volley, Kightly tried to be clever with a flick.

But what Burnley needed was to stick to the basics and build on their equaliser, with Everton looking increasingly eager in possession.

Making maximum use of a 24-pass move, the Toffees went back in front.

Ward got in the way the first time but there was nothing to stop Lukaku at the second time of asking.

Jutkiewicz had the chance of an equaliser but missed the target and Jones saw his free kick just outside the area blocked by the wall.

Everton went forward again, Leon Osman crossed for Steven Naismith to head on target, but Tom Heaton managed to push it onto the bar and catch the rebound.

Burnley started the second half as positively as they had ended the first, with Ward’s high ball causing Antolin Alcaraz problems, but Jutkiewicz’s subsequent header was too tame to trouble Howard.

And that was about as good as it got for Burnley. Substitutions punctuated the second half. Burnley’s, barring Ashley Barnes’ 65th minute introduction, came too late to have any effect, and in between the final two Eto’o had scored the goal of the game to finish it.

The start to this season has not reached anywhere near the same highs for Burnley as the last time they were a Premier League team.

Just as that did not guarantee survival in 2010, the way this campaign has started will not necessarily translate into relegation.

But for all their endeavour, you sense a long, hard struggle.