Clarets Blog: Don't let the derby clash boil over (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Clarets Blog: Don't let the derby clash boil over

3:14pm Thursday 22nd March 2012 in Burnley FC blogs By Suzanne Geldard, Burnley FC reporter

DERBIES stir the senses, no matter what the level of competition.

Since Burnley’s season started to dip below expectations, focus has turned to the youth team to give them something to shout about.

The spotlight is well and truly on the young Clarets tonight, as they play the first leg of their semi final clash with Blackburn Rovers, beginning at Ewood Park.

More than three decades have past since they last reached this stage; incentive enough to make the most of it.

Throw the rivalry into the equation, and the game takes on even greater significance. Not only is a place in the final at stake, so too are bragging rights.

Defender Alex Coleman knows all about them.

Born in Burnley, he is one of a handful of Clarets fans in the Turf Moor youth camp.

He has taken it upon himself to make sure those previously uneducated in East Lancashire enemy lines are fully aware of just what this game means.

But that’s what it is. A game.

A chance for aspiring professionals to play on a bigger stage and prove they will make good professionals.

They will be judged on nights like this; how they handle the pressure and rise to the occasion.

Both sets of fans should remember why they are there too – to support a group of young boys who are trying to make their way in the game.

Enjoy the banter, but don’t let it boil over.

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