Big cup nights had become something from the distant past until a couple of years ago when both Spurs and Fulham were beaten and what a pity it was that the Sky cameras couldn’t have been here for this one as well.
I recall when the draw was made someone suggesting that Villa were something of a bogey side but that is certainly not the case. I didn’t want to tempt fate but Aston Villa, prior to tonight, had won just once in 26 visits to Burnley in post war football and tonight’s latest defeat at the hands of the Clarets was no fluke result.
The Clarets fully deserved their win against a full strength Villa side that just couldn’t cope with our superb play and if anything the 3-1 scoreline flatters Villa who were second best right from the off as we took the game to them.
With Frank Sinclair and Ian Moore ruled out there was a further blow for Steve Cotterill when Richard Chaplow failed a late fitness test and that left us with just sixteen players to select from including three right-backs in the starting line up.
Michael Duff moved into the centre of the defence to replace Sinclair but it was Lee Roche and not Richard Duffy at right back with the latter moving onto the right hand side of midfield.
Tony Grant came back in for Chaplow and Robbie Blake was back up front on his own in a 4-5-1 formation.
We started well enough and didn’t let Villa take any early control. There was little in the way of attack at either end before the Clarets stunned Villa by taking the lead with a goal after just nine minutes.
It was created by Robbie Blake who was back to his best tonight, he got past Mark Delaney and his cross was met by Graham Branch who headed it back past Thomas Sorensen. The Villa keeper got a hand to it but had no chance of keeping it out.
So 1-0 to the Clarets and if anyone thought there was going to be a Villa onslaught they were wrong. It was Blake again when he put Mo Camara clear down the left and it took a deflection to allow the ball to get back to Sorensen.
Villa tried to get forward but the Clarets were defending well when they had to and giving the visitors virtually no opportunity to get back into the game. They did get in a couple of efforts but both went well wide of the target and as both Micah Hyde and Tony Grant came close with shots from the edge of the box Villa could think themselves very fortunate to be only a goal down.
There was just one scare before half time when they got a free kick just outside our box but twice we got in great blocks to clear any danger before referee Chris Foy ended the half with us well and truly deserving the lead we took in with us.
It had been a good half both on and off the pitch. The Clarets were playing well and the Turf was resembling a football ground again with the fans, including some 2,500 in the away end, creating a superb atmosphere and those two sets of fans rose as one to greet half time guest Tony Morley.
Villa were out early for the second half,
Steve Cotterill had said earlier in the day that Thomas Sorensen was a good keeper when it came to pens and sure enough he dived to his right to keep out Robbie’s spot kick. 
There were fears that this might just be the turning point but it inspired the Clarets even more and we just got better and better but we needed that second goal.
It came, and from the unlikeliest of sources – Mo Camara who just does not score goals. It came from a corner taken by Grant who played a one-two with Robbie before crossing for Mo to head home.
He didn’t quite know what to do and initially headed for the left corner flag before turning and running right across the field and straight to the manager. It looked for a minute as though he was heading off into town but eventually he got back into his left back spot in time for the restart.
It was all
Just nine minutes left, surely they wouldn’t get themselves back into the game after looking beaten. Surely we could hold on. We did more than that, we scored again to put it well out of the reach of the Premiership side.
Again it was Robbie Blake who played the ball in to Valois – he beat his man and cut into the box and with his right foot, yes his right foot, blasted it into the net beating Sorensen on his near post.
The Villa heads were well and truly down now, they were a beaten side and after three minutes of stoppage time the celebrations could finally start.
I’m not so sure when a cup win finally signals that a side is on a cup run but we are definitely on one now and will go into the 4th round draw tomorrow for the second time in three seasons. For years cup runs just didn’t happen at
There’s nothing to beat a cup run as far as the fans are concerned – I know the league is more important but try telling that to a Claret at around 9:35 when that final whistle blew. Now we are ready for the draw.
Man of the Match is a difficult one – there were good performances everywhere on the park – but I won’t sit on the fence. Nobody had a poor game, in fact every single player played well but the strength of a side is always down the centre and I thought that John McGreal, Tony Grant, Micah Hyde and Robbie Blake were all superb.
It is so difficult but I’m going for Micah Hyde, although it has to be said that our midfield players do always seem to play better when Tony Grant is in the side. How good it was to see Grant back in the starting line up.
But it’s not about Micah tonight, or any other individual, it has just been one of those memorable Turf Moor nights. Now we wait to see just who we play in the next round.
The teams were,
Burnley: Danny Coyne, Lee Roche, Michael Duff, John McGreal, Mo Camara, Richard Duffy, Micah Hyde, Tony Grant, Graham Branch, Jean-Louis Valois, Robbie Blake. Subs not used: Brian Jensen, Amadou Sanokho, Matt O’Neill, Joel Pilkington, Paul Scott.
Aston Villa: Thomas Sorensen, Mark Delaney, Olof Mellberg, Liam Ridgewell, Jlloyd Samuel (Thomas HItzlsperger 61), Lee Hendrie, Gavin McCann, Norberto Solano (Luke Moore 72), Pete Whittingham, Juan Pablo Angel, Carlton Cole. Subs not used: Stefan Postma, Ulises de la Cruz, Steve Davis.
Referee: Chris Foy (
Attendance: 11,184.