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There’s one thing for certain – Branch and keeper Brian Jensen cannot play worse than they did last week.
Lee Roche will again play at right back with Dean West still ruled out with an abductor strain and with the former Bury full back expected to be out for some time it could well be that his appearance at Bradford could have been his last for the Clarets with strong suggestions that he is about to leave the club in the summer.
We have other injuries too. Richard Chaplow picked up a calf injury during his short substitute appearance in the Norwich defeat whilst Dele Adebola didn’t even make kick off last week.
He was injured after just two minutes of his Burnley career with a stomach muscle problem and has this week had a cortisone injection in the hope of him being involved in the near future.
All that should leave Stan’s squad depleted enough and McGregor for May is likely to be the only change to the starting eleven.
That would mean us lining up: Brian Jensen, Lee Roche, Mark McGregor, Graham Branch, Mo Camara, Glen Little, Paul Weller, Tony Grant, Neil Wood, Robbie Blake, Ian Moore. Subs from: Nathan Abbey, Ryan Townsend, Paul Scott, Lenny Johnrose, Richard Chaplow, Luke Chadwick, Alan Moore, Dele Adebola.
Walsall are also hit with a suspension problem but it won’t have any effect on their team selection. Paul Ritchie is serving a ban but manager Colin Lee has been ordered not to play him in any case.
Should he play 30 league games this season they are obliged to offer him a new deal under the terms of his current contract – he has played 29 league games and they have no intention of utilising the player tipped to win the supporters’ Player of the Year award. What an incredible club this lot are.
Interestingly Ritchie’s suspension comes from an incident in September at Millwall. He was sent off in the 90th minute and has already served that suspension but was then accused, and recently found guilty, of foul and abusive language at the referee.
Remember our cup tie at Mansfield and the idiot Phil Prosser? Yes, he was the referee.
Definitely ruled out for Walsall is Darren Wrack and that is good news for Burnley, Wrack has often been a thorn in our side in games at the Bescot, and the only other player missing is Vinny Samways.
Colin Lee is expected to name the same starting eleven that won at Derby last week which was:
James Walker, Zigor Aranalde, Ian Roper, Darren Bazeley, Simon Osborn, Neil Emblen, Craig Burley, Keith Andrews, Lee Bradbury, Jorge Leitao, Paul Merson. Subs from: Andy Petterson, Aaron Kerr, Kris Taylor, Matt Carbon, Jermaine McSporran, Mark Wright, Matty Fryatt.
There will be one other change today – Sam Ellis will be in charge in the technical area for the Clarets with Stan sat in the stand starting a four match touchline ban.
His two match ban last season started with a game against Walsall and that was won as was the second at Leicester. We could do with the same sort of good fortune this time round.