Burnley 2 Millwall 1 - Pete Oliver's big match verdict

ANDY Cooke is back in business - and that spells bad news for Second Division defenders.

Cooke has had an injury-disrupted start to the campaign and had one of those days when nothing goes right at Walsall on Saturday.

But last night he re-emerged as the striker that banged in 20 goals last term to give the Clarets the spark that might just ignite their season this time around.

This was an invaluable win at such an early stage of the campaign to end a run of three straight League defeats and lift Burnley into mid-table.

And, if the three points did the team as a whole the power of good, then scoring both goals should get Cooke firing on all cylinders again.

Cooke cut a forlorn figure as he trooped away from the Bescot Stadium at Saturday tea-time, knowing that too many chances had slipped away.

But, like all good strikers, he was ready to accept the next opportunity that came along and Millwall were made to pay.

His first goal after 22 minutes was typical Cooke, an instinctive and explosive finish. His second-to effectively win the game eight minutes later-showed a greater degree of subtlety and was borne out of the confidence he gained from opening his League account for the season.

Millwall found it too great a mountain to climb although a spirited late rally produced an 89th minute goal for Paul Shaw which made life more uncomfortable than it needed to have been for Stan Ternent's men.

But winning, like goal-scoring, is a habit and having rediscovered the knack the Clarets now need to hang onto it with difficult away games at Luton and Reading to come.

It wasn't all just about Cooke, of course.

His partner-in-crime up front, Andy Payton, is looking as likely to create a goal as to score one and Glen Little has recaptured the form that made him Burnley's outstanding player in the second half of last season.

Between them those two made the chances for Cooke which he buried with great aplomb, while improvements were also evident elsewhere.

Stripped of the tenacity of Ronnie Jepson and the probing of Paul Weller because of injury, Ternent turned to Mark Robertson and Carl Smith in central midfield.

Small of stature they may be but they both gave man-size performances.

And the back four already looks appreciably more solid with the introduction of Peter Swan and Gordon Armstrong and the re-deployment of Chris Brass and Neil Moore.

They were probably disappointed not to keep a clean sheet but, despite Shaw's late strike it, was a case of a job well done in the face of mounting pressure as Burnley's composure deserted them in the closing stages.

Millwall had looked incapable of getting back into the contest following Cooke's double whammy. Despite losing just once so far, the Lions had little bite despite the best efforts of the lively Shaw.

Burnley had also been a little muted going forward, except when Little and Payton combined-until Cooke burst onto the scene.

Robertson triggered the move by winning the ball in midfield and when Little and then Payton ferried it into his path Cooke hooked a first-time shot on the turn across Tony Roberts into the bottom corner.

The weight was lifted from his shoulders and on the half-hour Cooke made it 2-0.

This time Carl Smith gained possession for Little to chip the ball forward.

Cooke had the pace and aggression to shrug off Scott Fitzgerald and then, when faced by Roberts, he allowed the Millwall keeper to commit himself before lifting a deft shot over his prostrate body and into the net.

Millwall therefore found themselves two goals down before they had even conceded a free-kick and they looked determined to keep the referee's workload down when Steve Roach saved David Pugh the need to jot down a third goal when dragging an angled effort badly wide.

At that stage the only serious question appeared to concern whether Cooke would get his hat-trick or not.

And the jury was still out when he spurned the better claims of Payton to go it alone without success on the stroke of half-time. A third goal would have snuffed out any remote prospect of a Millwall fightback but despite a decent chance for Moore and some dodgy handling from Roberts it never materialised.

And realising that there could still be some reward available the visitors started to force a way through at the other end.

Only brave blocks from Little, Moore and Brass prevented likely goals and, as Burnley gave possession away too easily and relied increasingly on early balls to Cooke and Payton to relieve the pressure, so the defence had to earn its corn.

They couldn't stop former Burnley loan player Shaw from adding to his tally of goals at Turf Moor with a low shot on the turn in a crowded penalty area.

But they had done enough to tough it out and claim the victory which must have been even harder for the loyal visiting supporters to bare once they had been informed that their bus back to London had broken down.

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