BURNLEY'S footballers have made a habit of coming with a late run in recent seasons and they did it again yesterday by beating their neighbours off the final ball to clinch a four-wicket win in their annual Cricket match at Turf Moor.

Set an imposing target of 198 in 25 overs by Burnley Cricket Club, the Clarets got home thanks largely to a superb 89 from young winger Matt O'Neill and a cultured middle order knock from Dean West.

O'Neill hammered three sixes and 13 fours and found useful allies in new signing Mark Rasmussen (21) and West, whose 29 included two boundaries and plenty of scampered ones and twos.

The footballers got the target down to six off the final over from Ian Whitehead and clinched victory when scholar Richard Fogarty and media man Danny Reuben scrambled a bye off the last ball.

West also proved a dab hand in the field, taking a steepling catch to dismiss Mike Kelly from the first ball of the match off skipper Little.

It was downhill all the way from there, however, for the wingman whose mazy runs on the other Turf Moor are thankfully far more elusive than his right arm over and round the wicket.

Gareth Halley blazed his way to 46, peppering the pavilion en route, while Lee Briscoe's car also felt the brunt of a six from Ian Whitehead.

However, with Anthony Shandran bagging three neat catches in the outfield the cricketers were kept within sight as the Clarets chalked up their first win of the campaign.

SCOREBOARD

BURNLEY CC

M Kelly c West b Little...0

D Pickup c Shandran b Moore...15

J Clare c Reuben b Rasmussen...2

G Halley c and b O'Neill...46

G Lalor c and b Shandran...18

I Whitehead b O'Neill...35

B Law c Reuben b Bielby...18

A McLeod c Shandran b O'Neill...19

P Foster c Shandran b Fogarty...7

T Pickup not out...13

D Shorrock st Reuben b Fogarty...5

Extras...18

Total...196

Bowling: G Little 7-0-44-1; M Rasmussen 5-0-21-1; I Moore 1-0-6-1; D West 1-0-20-0; D Bielby 2-0-34-1; A Shandran 2-0-19-1; M O'Neill 5-0-32-3; R Fogarty 2-0-13-2.

BURNLEY FC

G Armstrong b Law...9

M O'Neill b McLeod...89

M Rasmussen c McLeod b Halley...21

G Little c Halley b Foster...4

D West run out...29

D Bielby b Foster...14

D Reuben not out...8

R Fogarty not out...1

Extras...18

Total (6 wickets)...197

Bowling: D Shorrock 3-0-24-0; T Pickup 3-0-9-0; P Foster 3-0-23-2; A McLeod 3-0-27-1; B Law 2-0-23-1; I Whitehead 3-0-23-0; G lalor 2-0-20-0; G Halley 2-0-7-1; D Pickup 2-0-21-0; M Kelly 2-0-12-0.