This was never going to be an ordinary day as Stan sent out his last Burnley team for action and he made one brilliant decision by allowing Reading bound Glen Little to lead the side out for the first time.
The teams came out to a superb reception from both sets of fans but the real welcome was reserved for the gaffer who made his way to the dug out via the usual route surrounded by photographers.
It doesn’t seem that long ago that he made that walk for the first time having been given the
I’m sure he wanted to go out with a win and for a while it looked as though it could happen. David May hit the bar and we then went in front with just eleven minutes gone and the script could not have been better.
When Paul Weller found Richard Chaplow on the left hand side of the box it looked as though he would try a shot but he saw Glen free and squared it for him to give the acting skipper his third goal of the season.
It was beginning to look as though the script had been written and already Mick McCarthy was beginning to lose it in the visitors dug out.
We could have gone further ahead but
That was about it for the first half and a 1-1 scoreline was probably about right.
The second half was something of an anti-climax with the Clarets never really getting going. There have been so many of these lacklustre performances this season and again it looked as though we were just unable to put anything together.
Not as though Sunderland were much better and it was all somewhat scrappy and Robbie Blake, looking to become the first Burnley player to score 20 league goals at this level for nearly seventy years, should have done better with a shot that was just the right height for Sunderland keeper Thomas Myhre.
In the very next move
We had a couple of opportunities to equalise but with Robbie in his diving boots at times and others around him struggling we didn’t come close and we fell to defeat.
It was the fourteenth time we have been in front this season yet gone on to lose or draw and that is an incredible number of points to drop but once behind this afternoon there was no real way back. The players hardly lifted themselves for one last performance despite their promises to win it for Stan.
It was probably indicative of the season overall but thankfully it didn’t matter and we didn’t even drop a place in the league.
The final whistle blew and after some clowns run onto the pitch the players were led round by Stan as he took his last bow in front of the
Whatever your views on him this was one of those moments you will never forget, it is not often that a manager can be at a club six years without being hounded out by the fans.
He finally left the field in front of the
Their behaviour was impeccable, even though jobs worth stopped them doing the conga. They helped create a superb atmosphere and should they not go up will certainly be welcome back next season.
Bally compared the
So that’s it for another season, an emotional end but at least an end that sees us remain in the First Division for another season at least. But that will be a new season without either Stan or Glen who somehow managed to pick up the man of the match award despite having a poor game.
They’ll both be gone, as will others, but the Clarets will remain and that’s what matters. And we have a couple of games against
The teams were,
Referee: Keith Hill (Herts).