ONE topic still dominates conversations with Steve Kindon - the day he caused a riot in Burnley.

Kindon was the jet-heeled, powerhouse striker bought in November 1977 to dovetail with Paul Fletcher and spark a revival following a dismal start to the season.

He did exactly that by finishing top scorer with 13 goals. But it was the famous strike against Celtic a year later in the now defunct Anglo-Scottish Cup that he is most remembered for -- a goal that brought terror to Turf Moor.

Kindon, now an in-demand after-dinner speaker, recalled: "Wherever I speak in Scotland, people always come up to me saying they remember that goal.

"Even in and around Burnley, folk don't remember us winning the Anglo Scottish Cup. All I get is 'You caused a riot and I nearly got killed because of you!'

"My first memory of the game was walking out onto the pitch at 6.30pm and looking to my left to see a mass of green and white on a packed terrace.

"On the Burnley side of the no-man's land, there were about eight people. As I turned round to go back up the tunnel, the Cricket Field Stand was also full over an hour before kick off.

"That travelling support brought home the realisation of who we were playing."

The fuse was lit in the 55th minute, as Kindon exploded onto a misplaced pass and sped half the length of Turf Moor to slot home the only goal of the first leg.

By the 80th minute, the thousands of Scots penned-in erupted in an orgy of violence that became the Longside's worst memory.

Kindon added: "The fences were there to create a barrier, but the Celtic fans suddenly started ripping them up to use as metal spears.

"To be honest, it wasn't frightening at the time. On the pitch, you are away from the crowd doing your job and I didn't feel at all fearful."

Referee Pat Partridge duly led both teams off the pitch as the trouble escalated to all four corners of the ground.

But Kindon soon found himself the centre of attention again as the battles raged.

He explained: "The ref came into the dressing room and called the manager, Harry Potts, out.

"When he came back, he approached me saying 'the referee thinks it's a good idea for the two managers to lock arm-in-arm and go out there to calm things down. But you are the most popular player at the club, so I suggested you go out.

"I said 'Gaffer, I've just scored the bloody goal. I'm the last person they want to see out there!"

"But he insisted, so the Celtic manager, Billy McNeil, and myself linked arms and went out."

Eleven arrests were made on the night, which left nine policemen and 20 fans injured and put the second leg, at Celtic Park a fortnight later, in jeopardy.

However, the game later went ahead and Burnley won 2-1 thanks to goals from Kindon and Ian Brennan.

The Clarets then went on to win the Anglo-Scottish Cup with a 4-2 aggregate won over Oldham Athletic, Kindon scoring twice in the 4-1 first leg victory at Boundary Park.

It was the only senior trophy Kindon ever lifted, unless you count the Fastest Footballer in Britain award he won seven years running having once clocked a remarkable time of 10.7 seconds for the 100 metres.

Burnley team v Celtic: Stevenson, Scott, Thomson, Rodaway, Brennan, Hall, Noble, James, Cochrane, Fletcher, Kindon.