SATURDAY was supposed to be a good day. The Clarets would overcome an all but relegated Franchise FC and earn three precious points to move away from the wrong end of the table.

Not only that, but the game would be played out before a bigger than average crowd with many season ticket holders taking advantage of Dave Edmundson's imaginative "bring a friend for free" initiative.

Unfortunately, Mother Nature had other plans as Turf Moor was battered by 70 mph winds meaning the game was postponed on health and safety grounds, with less than an hour to kick off.

By 5pm Burnley's league position was looking far from healthy and safe.

The decision to postpone the game was, of course, absolutely correct. As ground safety officer Alex Wood commented: "Safety has to have priority." The tragic death of an Everton fan en route to his team's game against Leicester stands as an appalling example of what could have happened had the fixture been given the green light.

Nevertheless, those Clarets who kept an ear to the radio on Saturday afternoon, had a grim time of it, as news filtered through of successes for many of Burnley's rivals. Preston, themselves making a belated charge for relegation, lost out to Walsall, Gillingham put Rotherham to the sword and a Paul Peschisolido-inspired Derby (what a loan signing that is turning out to be), came out on top in the Midlands derby.

Only goal difference stands between Burnley and the drop zone. Although the game is over a month away, and a lot of water will go under a lot of bridges twixt now and then, the Clarets' clash with Derby at Turf Moor on April 24 has a growing aura of "Judgement Day" about it.

But if Saturday was a bad day for Burnley Football Club on the football field, it was no better off it. Barry Kilby, although accepting the decision to postpone was the correct one, was left counting the financial cost; an estimated £20,000. It is a blow the club could well have done without in its current state. More revenue will also have been lost from those punters planning to come for free who would doubtless have put their hands in their pockets for food, drink, golden gamble tickets etcetera.

Add to that last week's news that there is a £60,000 shortfall due to a lack of television revenue (sounds eerily familiar, no?) and it is clear that this hasn't been a great week for the club.

An upturn in fortunes is needed on Saturday when Burnley travel to beleaguered Bradford, a club in an even more parlous state than ourselves. Thousands will make the short trip over the Pennines, let's hope the journey back is a happy one.