PERHAPS it was always inevitable. The game was half an hour old when Craig Dawson, the defender Burnley had spent all summer trying to sign, set the Clarets on course for this dispiriting defeat.

If Burnley had not missed Dawson’s presence in their central defence up until this point in the season, it was the 24-year-old’s goal threat that they missed yesterday.

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Decimated by injuries, Burnley could certainly have no arguments about this result.

Shorn of David Jones, Dean Marney, Danny Ings and Sam Vokes, they were outclassed at the Hawthorns and their goal drought now extends to 616 minutes – more than 10 hours of football.

That it was Dawson who ended their hopes of a result so early on just piled on the frustration for boss Sean Dyche.

Dyche had been denied time and again in the summer as the Clarets had several bids rejected for Dawson.

The player himself had given indications that he wanted to move to Turf Moor, upset by a lack of regular football at West Brom in recent seasons.

But given his chance at the Hawthorns at the start of the season following a defensive injury crisis, now Dawson is getting the regular football he craved.

A threat in front of goal throughout his career – he scored 22 in two seasons for Rochdale – the former Oswaldtwistle St Mary’s junior had finally netted his first for West Brom.

In truth, Dawson had little to do defensively at the other end as the Clarets struggled to pose any sort of attacking threat.

Five months ago Burnley finished a Championship fixture at Watford without Marney, Jones, Ings and Vokes but scored late on to secure a point that edged them to the brink of promotion.

This time, in the Premier League, the ask was too great.

Already without Ings and Vokes, last season’s regular strikers, the late loss of Jones and Marney with respectively thigh and hamstring problems was an issue they could have done without.

It forced Dyche to select a much changed Clarets line-up, with Scott Arfield moving into central midfield – joined by Steven Reid, making his full Burnley debut and warmly applauded by the West Brom fans on his return to his old club.

Dyche’s decision to leave out striker Marvin Sordell saw Lukas Jutkiewicz play in a lone striker’s role, as George Boyd moved into central midfield in a 4-5-1 alongside Arfield and the holding Reid. Ross Wallace and Michael Kightly came into the side to fill the vacant wing spots.

The change of formation and the decision to move Boyd inside was perhaps an attempt not to leave Arfield and Reid exposed in a new look central midfield, but offensively it just did not work and eventually the pressure told on the defence.

Burnley had created chances without scoring in recent games. This time they created nothing at all until they were out of the game. Jutkiewicz was left isolated, starved of support and service.

The Clarets started the game better defensively, where Kieran Trippier had overcome a groin problem to play and the form of Michael Duff and Jason Shackell meant Michael Keane had to be content with a place on the bench once more. Strangely enough, Keane might have found it easier to have got into the Manchester United line-up at the weekend.

Had he not moved to Turf Moor on loan earlier this month, he may have started for an injury-hit United side, for whom Louis van Gaal handed a debut to 19-year-old Paddy McNair.

The hosts started brightly though and the Clarets needed Duff and Shackell to stand firm.

Burnley saw an appeal for a penalty turned down when Boyd’s cross appeared to strike the arm of defender Andre Wisdom, before West Brom came close when Chris Brunt’s effort was deflected just wide by Duff.

As Burnley offered nothing approaching the final third, it was becoming increasingly one-way traffic. Brunt swung in a corner from the right and Dawson leapt at the far post to head in from six yards. Trippier on the line could not quite do enough to clear, only finding the roof of the net.

The Clarets could not respond to the goal and Tom Heaton had to make a superb save to tip over Graham Dorrans’ swerving long-range strike.

A second goal arrived on the stroke of half time, from another corner. This time James Morrison crossed from the left, Dorrans flicked on and Berahino nodded in from close range.

Dyche made a double substitution at half time, bringing off the ineffective Reid and Wallace.

On came Ashley Barnes to join Jutkiewicz up front, and Nathaniel Chalobah in midfield for his Burnley debut. Boyd returned to the flank.

But West Brom simply continued pouring forward and it was 3-0 in the 56th minute when Berahino outpaced Jason Shackell to collect Dorrans’ slide-rule pass and fire past Heaton.

The Clarets finally started to get into the game and a Jutkiewicz header from Trippier’s cross forced a good save out of Ben Foster, before the striker was replaced by Marvin Sordell – having appeared to pick up a knock.

Sordell soon lashed a long range effort just wide before Barnes fired over from a good position.

But a fourth goal arrived in the 90th minute as substitute Cristian Gamboa pulled the ball back for Dorrans to fire into the bottom corner.

It was a day of misery, for those off the field as well as on it.

The injured Vokes cut an increasingly disconsolate figure as he watched the action from near the press box.

How he would have loved to have been able to get on to the pitch to try to do something about it.

Burnley could certainly have done with more people like him at the Hawthorns.

The return of Vokes, Ings, Jones and Marney looks very much needed.