Orient remembered
Last updated : 09 May 2007 By Tony Scholes
It's hard to believe that it is all of twenty years ago. Time has passed so quickly and although there have been some difficult times there have also been some wonderful days watching Burnley with no less than three promotions thrown in. There have been two trips to Wembley. We've had the Mullen and Ternent eras, both in their own way moving this club of ours forward.
Those three promotions. I was fortunate to have been at York in 1992. We went there in our thousands you know and came back as Champions. Six years on from the Orient game we'd finally moved out of the basement division (and through the front door) in glorious style under the new manager from Jarrow who was proving to be an inspiration.
Two years later he led his Burnley side out at Wembley in front of a mass of Clarets (and one or two from Stockport). The side still included players from the Fourth Division win, Steve Davis, John Pender, John Deary and the man who always seemed to score the important goals John Francis.
We went straight back down again but it was worth it, I don't think any of us who were there will ever forget Wembley 1994. It was the third time I'd seen Burnley play at the national stadium. I'd longed to see a win there, what a fantastic way to win promotion.
The 1992 promotion was significant in that we've never been back down there since, and the same can be said of 2000. This time another north easterner with grey hair was in charge, another manager with great passion. Our last promotion was a real tense affair on that final day. Yes Stan, it did mean a hell of a lot to us. We're going back to Scunthorpe next season, I think every time I go there I will recall May 2000.
It's the rollercoaster called Burnley FC - but for thousands all this might not have been there for them had we not won twenty years ago today. Take a look at our section devoted to the game as today we remember
The Orient Game twenty years on.
