WAYNE Thomas spoke of his pride at taking the Clarets captaincy before a ball was kicked this season.

But the centre-back faces the prospect - just eight weeks into the Championship campaign - of having the honour and armband stripped away following a moment of madness.

Thomas was rightly condemned by manager Steve Cotterill for flooring Southampton midfielder Jhon Viafara with a suspected elbow.

At the time, Burnley were a goal up and flying. The Saints, tottering and against the ropes, looked a world away from picking up a point, never mind all three.

It was foolish from Thomas, certainly not the required action from a leader of men.

Asked if he will stay on as skipper, Cotterill said he would sleep on the matter.

But the question of discipline is becoming a serious issue for the 27-year-old defender.

Since joining the Clarets from Stoke last summer, Thomas has been sent off four times, all in the space of 23 games, while his career red card count stands at nine.

Only in the clear light of day will Thomas know why he struck out.

Intensifying his crass stupidity was the fact it came so early in the game - just a quarter of an hour in - with Burnley pulling all the strings.

Okay, the game was just 15 minutes old and Southampton are blessed with attacking riches to pull a goal out of the bag at any time.

But at that stage, the Clarets looked destined to chalk up a third straight league win andinch ever closer to the Championship summit.

Buoyed by a lively Turf Moor atmosphere, there was a free-flowing panache to Burnley's game.

What's more, every attacking move carried a genuine threat of goal.

Steve Jones slammed the home side in front with a cracking left-foot volley, while efforts for a second zoned in from Gifton Noel-Williams, James O'Connor and Wade Elliott.

The Clarets were firing on all cylinders, until Thomas' dismissal changed the game's complexion.

Even with 10 men, Burnley continued to dominate and re-took the lead through Andy Gray after Grzegorz Rasiak levelled.

But ultimately, the running and chasing was all the more difficult to sustain in the second-half as the Saints made good use of possession.

George Burley's men were indebted to three well-executed goals for victory, though, with Rasiak and Rudi Skacel on the spot.

The contest was heralded as the Championship's game of the weekend, a match-up between third and fourth and two sides enjoying good form.

It lived up to the billing and - matching high decibel levels reached against Barnsley - Clarets supporters cranked up another white-hot atmosphere.

At times during the first-half, the noise was deafening, spiced up to a large degree by a poor refereeing display from Darren Drysdale.

While he was in the right place to catch Thomas in the act, the Lincolnshire official time and again got his decisions wrong.

Blatant fouls on Noel-Williams and O'Connor were waved away, along with a handball from Pele inside Southampton's box, while a string of contentious decisions went the visitors' way.

It proved all too frustrating for home supporters who observed that Drysdale was "not fit to referee".

Cotterill stuck to the same side that held off Stoke last Saturday, with Alan Mahon back on the bench after recovering from a groin injury.

Before kick-off, Cotterill's name was chanted around the ground, a clear statement that fans want their manager staying put despite links to the vacant position at West Brom.

And the Clarets made the best possible start, scoring in their first real attack on goal.

Michael Duff's throw-in, adjacent to the penalty box, found Thomas and his flick on fell to Steve Jones unmarked.

Afforded time to watch the ball come down, Jones steadied himself before volleying left- footed past goalkeeper Kelvin Davis and into the bottom corner.

It was the former Crewe forward's first goal since his debut brace against QPR on the opening day of the campaign - and a deserved goal following a series of scintillating displays down the left.

On the opposite flank, Wade Elliott teamed up beautifully with Duff before whipping over an inch-perfect cross for Noel-Williams at the back post.

Noel-Williams, who sank a memorable hat-trick on his previous Turf Moor outing, looked a dead- cert to deliver the finishing touch, but the big man steered his header wide.

Elliott's volley struck a defender and O'Connor - who produced a lion heart performance in midfield - dragged his shot wide as Burnley looked poised to double their advantage.

Another opportunity, a 25-yard free-kick, presented itself when, all of a sudden, Thomas hit out.

As players jostled for position inside Southampton's penalty box, the captain seemed to shove an elbow into Viafara's chest and the Columbian went down.

Drysdale had no hesitation in pulling out the red card and, within a minute of Thomas heading down the tunnel, the Saints were level.

As the Clarets tried to re-organise, Chris Makin swung over a cross from the left and Rasiak sneaked behind John McGreal to glance past Brian Jensen into the corner.

But instead of feeling sorry for themselves, the equaliser galvanised Cotterill's men and at times, you were forgiven for thinking Burnley boasted the numerical advantage.

And 10 minutes before the interval, the Clarets were celebrating again.

Frank Sinclair, brought on for the sacrificed Elliott, floated goalwards a 50-yard free-kick which Gray steered into the bottom corner for his fourth of the season.

The pressure continued after the interval. After squeezing past Jermaine Wright and Viafara, Noel-Williams brought out a full length one-handed stop from Davis, while the loose ball almost fell for Gray.

That proved crucial for the Saints, as they sprung a second equaliser minutes later. Skacel was allowed room to shoot after advancing with the ball and, from 25 yards out, located the inside of the post.

>From that point, Southampton gradually grasped the ascendancy, forcing the Clarets into most of the running.

Jensen comfortably held another Skacel long-ranger and the Czech was thwarted by O'Connor's crucial block as Burnley at times dropped deep.

Jensen then took a clobbering bravely denying Kenwyne Jones as the striker bore down on goal.

But the Dane could do nothing to stop Rasiak from sending Saints in front.

>From Skacel's cross, the Polish international guided a superb header into the corner.

Burnley legs were weary late on, but twice Gray had chances to salvage a point.

In stoppage time, the Scotland striker reached onto Noel-Williams' flick-on but, from inside the six-yard box, his stretching right-foot volley could not find its way past Davis.