Austin backed to carry on scoring (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Austin backed to carry on scoring

9:08am Thursday 1st November 2012 in Football By Suzanne Geldard, Burnley FC reporter

CLARETS defender Michael Duff has urged top scorer Charlie Austin to stick to his tactics and techniques to stay on top form.

The striker equalled Ray Pointer’s long-standing club record of scoring in eight consecutive games with a midweek brace at Bristol City.

He missed the chance to go one better at Cardiff City last Saturday, as Burnley failed to score for only the second time this season while under the watchful eye of Sean Dyche, who was appointed the club’s new manager on Tuesday.

But Austin remains the country’s runaway top scorer with 18 goals, already overtaking last season’s tally of 17 strikes in just a fraction of the time.

And Duff is confident there’ll be no catching Austin if he sticks to his atta-cking principles under the new mana-gement regime “Charlie hasn't changed in the last 12 months,” he said. “He’s a down-to-earth good lad and a good footballer scoring goals.

“He’s confident on the pitch and off the pitch. This year more than any other other his all-round game has been massive – beating centre halves and winning things in the air, it’s all contributing towards his goals as well.

“I wouldn’t want to put a figure on what I think he can get this season because I don’t think that’s fair.

“He might dry up or he might score another five goals in the next few games.

“He’s just got to keep doing what he is doing.”

And Northern Ireland defender Duff classes the former Swindon hotshot among the best he has worked with, for club and country.

“I’ve worked with some good centre forwards, but when that ball comes in I’ve never known anyone get on the end of it like Charlie does,” said the 34-year-old.

“The way he attacks crosses is fantastic. When David Healy played in the Euros (2008 qualifying campaign) for Northern Ireland, everything he hit went in and he finished the top scorer (with 13 goals in 11 games).

“It was an incredible feat but a different level because there you’re playing once every couple of months.

“For Charlie to be doing it every week and maintain his level of performance is fantastic.”