Just five weeks ago a 2-0 win at Millwall, a third successive league victory, had lifted us to seventh and within four points of sixth place. Even then I thought it was a tall order but now, with just thirteen games remaining, we have dropped to 12th and yesterday's opponents Brighton, who are now sixth, have stretched their lead over us to eight points.
That surely is too many to catch up in thirteen games, even if we were to have a remarkably good finish to the season, and it is now just about certain that it will be Championship football again next season.
Brighton is the longest trip of the season and we made the early start with snow falling and a potentially difficult journey down. It proved not to be and we made the town of Lewes in good time, passing the Amex on the way. After a bite to eat it was off on the free train to the stadium to take up our place in the away end.
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| Kevin Long gave an assured performance in the centre of defence |
It's changed a bit since our first visit there some fourteen months ago. A new tier has been added to the stand opposite the main stand and extra seats have been added all over the place with corners filled in. It is, though, still, an odd looking stadium.
We were on the train when the team news came in, that Keith Treacy was getting his second league start of the season in place of Martin Paterson in what was the only change from the team that started against Middlesbrough on Tuesday.
Pato was on the bench where there were two more changes. Luke O'Neill replaced Joseph Mills and fit again Danny Ings was preferred to Dane Richards.
This was a game that has provided is with a wide range of views. Manager Sean Dyche said he couldn't have asked more from his players, that if we continue to play like we did yesterday then the results will come.
Supporters' views ranged from similar to that right to the other end of the scale with some believing we'd been outplayed by Brighton.
I'm very much somewhere in the middle. Not in any way did I think we were outplayed and, certainly in the second half, we were very much the better side. I'm just not that convinced we can't offer more than we did as Dyche suggested.
Brighton were always going to go into this game with more confidence. We'd won none of the previous four and they were returning home after winning at league leaders Cardiff in midweek to give them a platform to go into the top six with a win.
The game started with Burnley on the front foot and we had the first effort on goal although I'm sure it wasn't meant. Junior Stanislas got in a cross from the right wing. It was too close to goal but it forced Tomasz Kuszczak to tip it over at the expense of the game's first corner.
But Brighton were soon to get a foothold in the game and it was down our right hand side where they were causing us the most concern. We started with Stanislas on that side and then switched with Treacy going onto the right, but neither, with the support of Kieran Trippier, were getting much joy with Andrea Orlandi and Wayne Bridge. That, along with the promptings of Rodriguez Vicente, was our main concern and it was that concern that saw the home side go in front some twenty minutes into the game.
Having worked the ball down the left, Bridge crossed, Orlandi flicked it on for David Lopez to volley home. There seemed to be too little cover in the box for the Clarets that had allowed the flick on too easily and Lopez too much time and space.
We needed a positive reaction to that and we got one. For a period we were very much in the ascendancy. We worked the ball forward well and Brighton could consider themselves fortunate to still be in front after a few close calls.
Those close calls became even closer from a couple of corners. Treacy took over the set piece duties and he delivered two brilliant balls into the box. Jason Shackell got to both of them. The first was cleared off the line but the second brought a brilliant save from Kuszczak when I was convinced we'd drawn level.
The score remained at 1-0, and that was the half time score, but we had some defending to do before we got there and were very fortunate when Brighton missed the chance of the half.
Again it was down their left, again Orlandi was involved and this time his cross was met by Leonardo Ulloa who somehow managed to miss target from inside the six yard box.
Dyche made a change at half time, replacing the disappointing Stanislas with Ings, and we put Brighton under a bit of pressure in the opening stages of the half. Again a feature was the quality of ball in from Treacy and from one Austin was denied by the goalkeeper.
For the first twenty minutes of the half we really did play some good football. Brighton were struggling and you sensed an equaliser might be on the way. At that point, Poyet made a double change, bringing on forwards Ashley Barnes and Craig Mackail-Smith.
I was surprised to see Mackail-Smith on the bench but one Brighton fan we spoke to suggested that was the best place for him, that he doesn't make too much of a contribution. He was obviously not at our home game against them early in the season.
It made little difference, other than Mackail-Smith doing a bit of referee conning and winning free kicks, a couple of which earned us yellow cards as referee Graham Scott fell for it hook, line and sinker.
But, in front of us, Lee Grant was virtually a spectator in the second half as Burnley pressed for an equaliser. Dean Marney and Chris McCann should both have done better with opportunities, and I'll refrain from commenting too much on the free kick Treacy took that flew out for a thrown in after he got it completely wrong.
The last chance fell to Austin. He got up well to head an Ings cross but it dropped just wide of the post and that was that. We'd suffered another loss and one we could so ill afford.
We were not free flowing enough. We didn't create enough in terms of opportunities, but we created more than Brighton and, whatever your take on the game and performance, we were very unfortunate to get nothing from it.
The two big positives for me was the play of our two Irish defenders, two young players with very limited experience. It would be a toss up for me which of the two I'd award the man of the match.
Danny Lafferty has settled in well at left back since Ben Mee suffered a ligament injury against Blackburn, and again he turned in an assured performance.
In the centre, and playing only his third first team game for Burnley, Kevin Long had an excellent game. The manager singled him out and it was no surprise given how well he played.
If players such as Lafferty and Long are to be part of our future beyond this season, it would be more than useful to leave them in for the remainder of the season to give them the experience they need.
We are not playing as well as we were and that has been reflected in recent results. But this performance was much better than either of the last two on the road, at Peterborough and Bolton, and against a side who, despite not being at their best, have now climbed into the top six.
Even so, we need to start picking up points, and quickly.
The teams were;
Brighton: Tomasz Kuszczak, Bruno Santor, Matthew Upson, Adam El-Abd, Wayne Bridge, Dean Hammond, Gary Dicker, David Lopez, Andrea Orlandi (Ashley Barnes 63), Leonardo Ulloa (Craig Mackail-Smith 63), Rodriguez Vicente (Gordon Greer 88). Subs not used: Casper Ankergren, Inigo Calderon, Kazenga Lua Lua, Jake Forster-Caskey.
Yellow Cards: Matthew Upson, Rodriguez Vicente.
Burnley: Lee Grant, Kieran Trippier, Kevin Long, Jason Shackell, Danny Lafferty, Brian Stock (Sam Vokes 80), Junior Stanislas (Danny Ings 45), Dean Marney (Marvin Bartley 71), Chris McCann, Keith Treacy, Charlie Austin. Subs not used: Brian Jensen, Luke O'Neill, David Edgar, Martin Paterson.
Yellow Cards: Danny Ings, Chris McCann, Jason Shackell.
Referee: Graham Scott (Oxfordshire).
Attendance: 25,836 (including 749 Clarets).