We were better than them

“I thought Burnley shaded it in the first half,” he admitted, “But then in the second half we really got to grips with the game and created the better chances. We knew they would come at us because they were on a four game winning streak and any team that puts that sort of run together is going to be full of confidence, and sure enough they were.

“In the second half we started to open up a little, our passing was better and we carved out three or four really good chances with some great football and that is what we want to see. For me it is now starting to come together.

“There were times when Burnley got on top but two teams in the top six are going to have a spell on the game. When that happens you have to concentrate and I think we did, it then allows you to move forward.

“There were spells when we played really well and we got the crowd cheering ‘ole’. There are just times when we need to brush up on that final pass. We have to make sure we grind out results when he have to. We had our powers of concentration when we were under pressure, we had our wits about us when we needed it and they we saw some really good open play. It was a decent day’s work at the office.”

Steve Cotterill thought the Clarets had been the better side and was not happy at the handling of the game by referee Tony Bates. “I thought we were better than them and I thought they scored against the run of play. We have no qualms with the penalty, that was just poor defending by us but then it seemed as though everytime someone bumped into someone in the final third at our end, the referee blew his whistle.

“He gave everything to them from their goal onwards and some of their free kicks were innocuous and I really couldn’t see how we didn’t get any at the other end. We lost our rhythm because of that and that was disappointing, but before that we were the best team.”

Talking about the free kick which led to their second goal he added, “If that was a free kick then how is it not a foul in the box when Kilgallon was all over Ade Akinbiyi. Anywhere else on the pitch that is a free kick, but because it was in the box he was not going to give a penalty.”

On to his own team’s performance he said, “Our final ball and finishing wasn’t like it as been for the last couple of months and we need to brush up on that before Saturday. For twenty minutes in the first half they didn’t get our of their own half, but that’s the way it is and we’ll have to take that one on the chin and move on to Saturday now.”

Nathan Dyer got his first start for the Clarets and his performance pleased the manager. “I thought he caused them endless problems,” Steve said. “I think they thought we would play with one up front so that caused them a problem and they ended up narrowing their midfield to combat us during that first half.”

He added, “The disappointing thing was the result. If we had a bit more luck and composure in the final third it could have been different because if I was a betting man, there was only one team that was going to win that game at half time.”

Steve wasn’t too happy either with the disallowed Jon Harley goal. “What’s wrong with a quick free kick?” he claimed. “Someone else does it and bends it into the top corner and they are a genius. Jon Harley does it and we have to take it again. If they are not ready what is the idea of having a quick free kick?”

He ended by heaping praise on ex-Claret Robbie Blake. “I thought he was the difference between the two teams, he was fantastic,” Cotterill said of his former striker. “He’s intelligent and I said at half time that if Blake got on the ball and came off us to turn and face up if he didn’t shoot himself he would roll someone else in with a quality pass.

“I won’t tell him though,” he joked. “I need to calm down for a few days before I speak to him but no doubt he’ll text me in a couple of days.”