BURNLEY legend Brian Miller will part company with the Clarets at the weekend after a remarkable 44 years at Turf Moor.

The Lancashire Evening Telegraph can reveal today that the former Clarets manager has retired as Burnley's chief scout.

Clive Middlemass, Jimmy Mullen's ex-assistant, will take over the post on Monday.

And today Burnley chief Adrian Heath paid a warm tribute to Miller's exceptional contribution, as both player and manager, which began when he joined the club as an office boy in 1952.

Heath said: "Brian Miller has made a fantastic contribution to Burnley and he has been involved in some of their greatest triumphs.

"In this day and age to see a person serving a club so loyally and for so long is truly an amazing feat. "I've known Brian for a number of years now and the one noticeable thing about him is his true feelings for Burnley and his genuine desire to see the "great times" back at Turf Moor.

"Sadly, football clubs these days do not have one club men like Brian. May I take this opportunity to wish Brian all the best. Enjoy your retirement Brian, you deserve it!

Chairman Frank Teasdale added: "Brian Miller has served Burnley loyally for over four decades and I want to put on record my great appreciation for his immense efforts and hard work.

"'Dusty' Miller will be sorely missed. All at Turf Moor, along with the fans, wish him a long and happy retirement."

Hapton-born Miller was one of only a small number of locally-born players to make the grade with Burnley and he twice managed his boyhood club from October 1979 to January 1983 and again from July 1986 to January 1989.

He will be always remembered as the manager who had to undergo the glare of nationwide publicity as Burnley fought for their Football League lives to avoid automatic relegation to the Vauxhall Conference against Leyton Orient in May 1987. Miller, 59, one of the last links with the sixties glory years, joined the Clarets as a junior in 1954 and made his first team debut, standing in for Les Shannon during an FA Cup epic against Chelsea two years later.

A player renowned for his solid, honest and hard-tackling style, Miller was an ever-present in the 1959-60 Championship winning team when Burnley clinched the old First Division title.

He won several Under-23 caps and a full England cap against Austria in Vienna in May 1961. He went on to make a remarkable 455 appearances for the Clarets before a knee injury forced him to retire in 1967. Miller joined the coaching staff in the same year, but his two spells as manager featured some of the most turbulent years in Burnley's history.

He was the man who guided Burnley back into the old Second Division as Division Three champions in 1981-82 and spotted the potential of Mike Phelan and Trevor Steven. He later guided the Clarets to a Sherpa Van Trophy appearance against Wolves at Wembley in 1988.

Miller, though, finally made way for Frank Casper following his second managerial spell at Turf Moor and he has been connected with the club ever since. Brian's son, David, also played for Burnley. Grandson Chris Scott maintains the family link. He is currently on Burnley's books.

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