Burnley 1 Charlton Athletic 2: TONY DEWHURST reports

TURF Moor super-fan Dave Burnley has missed one game since January 18, 1969!

He religiously makes the 150-mile round-trip pilgrimage from his Stoke-on-Trent home to pray devoutly at the Turf Moor shrine.

Mr Burnley has caught colds, pneumonia and flu following his club across land and sea. He has cycled to games in rain, hail and snow. Dave has slept on windswept railway platforms, kipped in shopping centres and spent hours drinking endless cuppas on motorway service stations. All for the Burnley cause.

The lad has thumbed lifts from Sunderland to Plymouth, from East Fife to Exeter. His whole life revolves around this proud Lancashire club.

"The game I missed was Newcastle United away. April 10th, 1974. It was a game re-arranged on six separate occasions!

"We played them four times in 21 days. It was the year of the electricity and the miners' strikes. Since then I haven't missed a single competitive game - league or cup." Two years later Burnley were relegated from the old First Division. He changed his name from Mr Beeston to Mr Burnley.

Dave says it was a show of allegiance to the club. "It was a hard decision to make. I don't regret it for one minute.

"It's like a woman changing her name whe she gets married. I'm in love with Burnley, women are in love when they get married.

"To me it's the same sort of thing. It's a different sort of perspective I have on life, that's all."

But that fierce loyalty was tested to the limit last night.

Dave said he spoke for the missing thousands at Turf Moor.

He pleaded with the club to review their ticket prices for future low-key fxtures.

A paltry 2,281 clicked through the turnstiles for this second round, second leg Coca-Cola Cup formality.

"It broke my heart to see so few people inside Turf Moor," said Dave. "People have only got so much money. They can only afford to pay so much. Life is hard. The regulars I've talked to have missed shifts and all sorts to be here.

"They've scraped together their hard earned money to go to this game because they want to to see their club play.

"But we've had one of the smallest gates here for many a season. Surely that is a message. Why did the club not cut the prices to encourage people to come?

"Fans were just not going to pay full league prices with the tie all but dead.

"There has got to be a lesson to be learnt here. Otherwise this could be a white elephant ground for fixtures like this.

"It's just so short-sighted. They did it for Mansfield. Why not last night?

"My season ticket has doubled in price to what it cost me last year.

"Burnley is not a rich town. People are just going to make a decision to what comes first: The club or their livelihood.

"The club must look at this. They didn't encourage fans to come to this cup tie."

The meagre Turf Moor attendance was hardly a lift for Adrian Heath's lads.

The odds were already stacked high against Burnley.

But the Clarets were determined to make a fight of it. And, with little other option, they took the tie to their First Division opponents with fire and gusto.

Eighteen corners to Charlton's two underlined the Clarets' territorial dominance. Yet any grain of hope that Burnley had of a shock victory slipped away as early as the 17th minute.

The Clarets had made a bright and industrious start - Kurt Nogan crashing a header against the cross-bar after a Paul Smith centre and Paul Barnes assist.

But Charlton nosed ahead, cashing in on a defensive mix-up between goalkeeper Wayne Russell and Jamie Hoyland.

A breakdown of communication let Bradley Allen in to slide the ball home into an unguarded net and give Charlton an untouchable 5-1 aggregate lead.

It was Allen's second goal against the Clarets after the little striker bagged one in the first leg too.

Yet Burnley were level on the stroke of half-time.

Again Paul Smith, deservedly voted man of the match, provided the danger with a pin-point centre from the left flank.

Kurt Nogan did the rest - neatly converting his eighth goal of the campaign with a slick header.

It was one-way traffic in the second half. Burnley strived to win the tie and restore their dented pride after failing to do themselves justice at The Valley. A Paul Barnes effort was ruled out for offside following a David Eyres thunderbolt.

Mark Winstanley headed narrowly over and a corking shot from the impressive Paul Weller was brilliantly turned away by busy Australian goalkeeper Andy Petterson.

It was quality Burnley pressure. Nigel Gleghorn continued the offensive, heading narrowly wide, while Paul Smith saw a powerful effort well-saved by the overworked Charlton 'keeper.

But Charlton stole the tie in the final minute. Burnley were caught on the break and substitute David Whyte wrapped up a 6-2 aggregate win for the Valiants.

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