STEVEN Caldwell will hope to give Clarets boss Owen Coyle a major defensive boost by coming through tonight’s reserve clash against Hull City.

The Clarets skipper has not appeared in Burnley’s debut Premier League campaign after sustaining a groin injury while on international duty with Scotland.

He was selected as an unused substitute for last Saturday’s 5-0 defeat at Tottenham after stepping up his fitness in training over the last fortnight.

But Caldwell could be handed his first start of the season if he passes a fitness hurdle against the Tigers in tonight’s Premier Reserve League North fixture at Accrington’s Crown Ground (kick-off 7pm).

The Scot is expected to be among the names picked for the second-string clash, and the outing is an ideal opportunity to get some match time under his belt.

After watching his side ship five in a haphazard display at White Hart Lane, Coyle will be only too keen to increase his defensive options ahead of Saturday’s home clash with fellow top-flight new boys Birmingham City.

The Burnley manager has kept faith with the same back four – Clarke Carlisle, Tyrone Mears, Stephen Jordan and Andre Bikey – in each of their previous six Premier League matches, but he insists that competition is vital.

“We’ve competition in every area,” said Coyle. “The skipper comes back into the equation, as they all do.

“I know what the problems were (at Spurs), it was there for me to see.

"We’ll look to address that.

“It’s important we don’t over-analyse that because there were large periods of the game where we looked a very good side.

“But at this level, 50, 60, 70 minutes in the Premier League is not good enough. If you switch off, you’ll be punished and that’s what’s happened.

“We have to have concentration and focus for the duration of the game. We’ve done that in the home games, and we’ve got our rewards.”

Coyle added: “I don’t know if nasty is the right word, but we need to defend better and be focused and full of concentration.”