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It was all so different in the first half and we were so much on top that the Millwall fans in the sparse crowd must have wondered if they were going to see their side take another heavy beating.
We could have been in front even before the 18th minute goal from Ian Moore when Millwall keeper saved well from the same player, reacting quickly as Mooro got in a shot on the turn from close range.
Millwall boss Mark McGhee, famed for producing boring football, warned of such in his programme notes as he stressed that the objective would be to try and prevent the opposition from playing. But they did no such thing as the Clarets ran the midfield and gave the dodgy looking Millwall defence a torrid time.
We silenced the New Den crowd but this was perhaps no surprise. It was sad to see the empty seats everywhere, even we failed to turn out with only 206 in the away end. But Millwall have had their problems and are now trying to recover with the help of those decent supporters who were there last night.
The only disappointing thing about the Clarets in the first half, apart from the fact that the lead really should have been greater, was the fact that once again we appeared embarrassed to be the Clarets and needlessly played in the so-called anniversary kit when in fact we are no longer even in the rather strangely publicised 120th anniversary year.
If we want to be critical we didn’t get enough shots in at goal but overall we were so much better than the Millwall in that first half it certainly looked as though we would pick up another away win.
How wrong we were. The second half, in more ways than one, was a totally different affair. Once again we determined that a 1-0 lead was enough and elected to sit on the lead and allow Millwall to come at us. And both teams made early second half substitutions with the first being a welcome departure for one of the most obnoxious players around, Steve Claridge.
Stan gave Arthur a rollicking for his behaviour at the home game but he should have been thanking him for letting Claridge know exactly what everyone else thinks about him. It was Richard Sadlier, returning from a long term injury who replaced him.
Almost immediately afterwards Stan brought on Glen Little and Paul Weller, replacing Ian Moore and Paul Cook. For Glen it was an opportunity to show us just why he should be on from the start and to stake a claim for a starting role at Watford. Sadly he didn’t take it up and had a dreadful time culminating in his contribution to Millwall’s equaliser.
It may have been the substitutions that upset our rhythm but just after the hour, with Millwall now in the ascendancy, we introduced Robbie Blake for Alan Moore. Shortly afterwards Millwall made two more and these were without doubt significant. Paul Ifill and the totally ineffective Dennis Wise went off to be replaced by Christophe Kinet and Andy Roberts and these two were to prove to be Millwall’s best two players.
By this time Cooperman, who had provided us with a quiet first half, had already issued two of our players with yellow cards, Ian Cox and Glen Little, and worse was to come from this most dreadful of referees.
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We had by nicely set him up and he was ready with his cards and there would be two more after the equaliser, with one of them proving costly.
When the equaliser came it was perhaps unfortunate when Marlon blocked the first effort only for it to fall nicely to Richard Sadlier. But the initial ball into the box was won easily by the Millwall player because Glen didn’t bother to challenge him. Stan once said you get nothing from him defensively but a token effort would have prevented such a positive header.
But it fell for a Millwall player who should really have scored. Marlon got down to save well but Richard Sadlier was left with an open goal when it rebounded to him. There have been shouts for offside but this goal was clearly ONSIDE, and was a goal we had brought on ourselves.
Needless to say we then tried to get forward but it was Millwall who came closest to a winner and really should have won it. In the very last minute of stoppage time he put a header straight at Marlon when it looked easier to score.
But back to the costly booking four minutes from time. Gareth Taylor for the second time recently was carded when a free kick was hit straight at him. Cooperman decided he hadn’t retreated and issued him with the yellow card that will now keep him out of two games. He will miss the home game against Leicester (or any cup replay against Watford) and the home game against Grimsby.
Just to add insult to injury Tony Grant became the sixth Burnley player carded for a stoppage time foul in a game where there had not been a bad foul.
We were warned about this official before the Palace game, and one decision from him that afternoon cost us a victory. At Millwall, although he cannot be held responsible for the way we played in the second half, he turned in an appalling performance.
This referee for starters is too fat and immobile to referee at this level. That might sound like the pot calling the kettle black but I’m not trying to officiate at Football League level, merely watching from the stands.
But it is bad performance, after bad performance, after bad performance and it really is about time this was looked at by the Football League. How he can justify issuing six yellow cards to one team and never speaking to a player from the other team is beyond me.
From worst to best and our man of the match last night had to be Marlon Beresford. Without his second half performance we would have turned what should have been a comfortable win into a defeat.
Needless to say his central defenders did well again, that almost goes without saying these days, and so did Tony Grant in midfield who turned in another good performance but they were let down by a poor negative second half performance. We will need better than that at Watford.
That win would have taken us seventh but for now we have to settle for eleventh in this tightest of leagues.
The teams were,
Millwall: Tony Warner, Robbie Ryan, Darren Ward, Alan Dunne, Paul Robinson, Paul Ifill (Christophe Kinet 66), David Livermore, Dennis Wise (Andy Roberts 66), Steven Reid, Neil Harris, Steve Claridge (Richard Sadlier 52). Subs not used: Willy Gueret, Charley Hearn.
Burnley: Marlon Beresford, Dean West, Ian Cox, Driss Diallo, Graham Branch, Paul Cook (Paul Weller 55), Ian Moore (Glen Little 55), Tony Grant, Lee Briscoe, Alan Moore (Robbie Blake 63), Gareth Taylor. Subs not used: Nik Michopoulos, Mark McGregor.
Referee: The extremely fat, unfit and dreadful Mark Cooper from Walsall.