Next Game - Sheffield United (home)

Michael Brown

The Blades have just started their ninth successive season in Division One after being relegated from the Premiership on the last day of the season in May 1994. That was in the days of Dave Bassett and since then they have been managed by Howard Kendall, Nigel Spackman, Steve Bruce and Adrian Heath before Warnock moved to Bramall Lane from Bury in late 1999.

In his time there they have been very much a mid table side and have ended the last three seasons in 16^th, 10^th and 13^th positions respectively and have not threatened to push towards the play offs in any of them.

Since the end of last season there has been a massive turn round of playing staff with a total of fifteen players leaving the club and eight arriving. Patrick Suffo and George Santos, the two main players in the abandoned match against West Brom, were obviously going to leave and they were joined by the likes of Keith Curle, Lee Sandford and Adrian Littlejohn.

Paddy Kenny

Other new signings include Steve Yates (from Tranmere) and Laurens Ten Heuvel (Telstar) whilst they currently also have former Ipswich, Arsenal and QPR forward Chris Kiwomya training with them although they are not close to signing him.

Sheffield United, like Burnley, are still looking for their first win although they have got off the mark with two points from three games. The season got off to a poor start with a 2-1 defeat at Coventry after Carl Asaba had given them the lead and that has been followed by two 1-1 draws at Bramall Lane against Portsmouth and Walsall with the Blades’ goals coming from Peter Ndlovu and McGovern.

For the draw against Walsall last Saturday they lined up: Paddy Kenny, Robert Kozluz, Shaun Murphy, Ben Doane, Steve Yates, Phil Jagielka, John-Paul McGovern (Jean-Phillipe Javary 69), Michael Brown (Peter Ndlovu 60), Michael Tonge, Wayne Allison (Laurens Ten Heuvel 70), Carl Asaba. Subs not used: Colin Cryan, Iffy Onuora.

They, like the Clarets, did not have a goalkeeper on the subs bench with Simon Tracey injured.

Jamie Hoyland during his season at Scarborough

Jamie is a Blade by birth, born and bred in the steel city who watched his football at Bramall Lane. It was on this side of the Pennines though that he started his career with Manchester City although he played just a couple of games for them before moving on to Bury, a Martin Dobson and Frank Casper signing.

For four years he was a regular at Gigg Lane before the dream move back to Sheffield came. Without hesitating he signed for Dave Bassett for £250,000. In four years he played 90 league games and during that time had a short loan spell with Bristol City. Most of those appearances were in the top division of English Football including the first two years of the Premiership.

After relegation though he was no longer a member of the squad and in October 1994 he joined the Clarets on loan, making an excellent debut in a 0-0 draw against Sunderland at Roker Park.

After a successful loan spell Jimmy Mullen paid £130,000 for him and the deal was rushed through to enable him to play his first Burnley game as a permanent member of the squad against his old club Sheffield United. In front of the ITV cameras (then more than welcome) he starred in a 4-2 win and also scored his first Burnley goal.

During the Waddle season he was shipped out to Carlisle on loan for a month but on his return won a place back in the first team squad. He left the club though at the end of that season as Waddle was replaced by Stan, his last game for Burnley coming as a sub in the 3-3 draw at Oldham. He made a total of 86 league appearances for the Clarets and Cup games take that over the 100.

The following season he was a virtual ever present for Scarborough before hanging up his boots in the summer of 1999. He returned to the Turf briefly working for the Community before going to Halifax and then Rochdale as Youth Coach.

Still at Rochdale he is now assistant manager, appointed after Paul Simpson replaced John Hollins as manager in the close season and doubtless still throws up on the touchline before every game.

Turf Moor needed a lift but this wasn’t the greatest of games, however Glen tormented the Sheffield United defence throughout the game and forced cries from Warnock at the end of the game that he should be sold off to a Premiership club. Warnock said, "I don't know what Premier League managers are doing not buying Glen Little. The sooner he is sold the better! He was super.

"Burnley are a solid side but they need Little. He makes a massive difference to them. I saw the match against Barnsley and it is just a shame for us that he is back from injury in time for this game."

The two goals came in a three minute spell with the impressive Paul Cook playing a major part in both. It was his inch perfect cross that provided the first, met by Gareth Taylor’s head, and he scored the second himself with a somewhat fortuitous deflected effort from distance.

The win saw the Clarets back in the play off area in 6^th position after a poor run of results. Following this victory six of the next seven were also won that enabled us to go into the New Year top of the league.

How we could do with a performance and result like that again.

The teams were,

Burnley: Nik Michopoulos, Dean West, Ian Cox, Arthur Gnohere, Lee Briscoe, Glen Little (Brad Maylett 89), Paul Weller, Tony Grant, Paul Cook (Lenny Johnrose 75), Ian Moore (Dimitri Papadopoulos 87), Gareth Taylor. Subs not used: Luigi Cennamo, Andy Payton.

Sheffield United: Simon Tracey, Keith Curle, Shaun Murphy, Robert Page, Ben Doane, Michael Brown, Michael Tonge, Bobby Ford (Nick Montgomery 60), Peter Ndlovu, Laurent D’Jaffo (Adrian Littlejohn 60), Patrick Suffo. Subs not used: Wilko de Vogt, Phil Jagielka.

Referee: S. J. Baines (Chesterfield).