In contrast to the Leicester game, there was an incredible amount of desire again. Every player was fired up and determined to take 3 points. It was epitomised by the (man of the match) performance of Nick Barmby, who was absolutely incredible. He played right across the pitch and up and down it. It was easily his best overall performance for us. His opta stats for tackles made will probably beat Ash's. With Parkin back as the target man and Fagan in the form of his life, Burnley couldn't cope with our front three, who combined to make a delicious opener for Marney and win the penalty for the second. We missed a bag of chances as well. Barmby miscontrolled when he would've been clean through, Parkin headed over, Turner just failed to get onto a corner, Fagan hit the bar, Parkin hit the 'keeper at the end of a flowing move and Forster went one-on-one twice, forcing a save the first time and running out of play the second time. We also had a similar number of corners, set pieces and half chances to Burnley on top of that lot.
Not only did the front three link up really well and create chances for themselves, but the service into them was much better than it's been all season. France and Dawson pushed right up from full back to provide an option and a supply, France in particular put in several excellent crosses. Ashbee passed well and Marney played high up the pitch and with real verve after his goal. The balls out of defence and from Bo were noticeably better. Rather than whacking the ball up, they caressed the ball through, giving Parkin a chance in the air and Fagan and Barmby a chance on the deck. Turner and Delaney were strong and confident and we pushed on as a team, happy to leave them and Ash back, with Dawson and Francey supporting and Marney getting around the box in the first half. In the second, we came under some pressure from Burnley, but we defended well and broke in numbers with pace and power and controlled and incisive passing. It was an absolute joy to watch at times.
Individually, unlike Leicester, where there wasn't one great performance, today, there wasn't a bad one. Bo made one world class save, but was otherwise untroubled. France was immense at both ends but particularly defensively, where he cancelled out his oppo, Steve Jones, with great pace and tackling. Dawson was as good as ever. He never wasted a pass, was superb in the air and wasn't beaten on the floor either. Delaney was as good as he can be. Lead by example, controlled the defence and calmly went about his job. Turner was excellent alongside him. I think flawless would be an accurate statement. Ashbee was another who played at the top of his game. Passed well, encouraged, demanded, tackled hard but fair and ensured everyone stayed out of trouble in the second half when tackles were flying in and everyone was getting a wee bit upset.
Marney, like Barmby, covered a massive amount of ground, made a great number of tackles and used the ball pretty well. He lost the ball a few times by being over ambitious, but I don't mind that. I'd rather see us fail creatively then play safe all of the time and still fail. Ashbee saved him from a red card when he raced over to flatten their #11 following a poor tackle on him, but it was nice to see him show some aggression and fight. More please. Livermore went about his business quietly and successfully. You could have forgotten he was playing, because he did nothing of note, but didn't make a bad pass or a poor tackle.
Up top, Parkin did well to last 80 minutes or so and he was a real threat. He linked up play well and worked hard for the team. Having someone like him or McPhee down the middle to provide that threat and also to provide an out ball from any position gives us good shape and allows Barmby to drop deep and Fagan to drift about. Fagan did so to great effect. He was unplayable. He chased and harried, made intelligent runs, outstripped defenders, played good passes and got into the box on so many occasions, I lost count. Whether he gets a new contract or a big move, he's playing incredibly well and playing himself into a great position on the negotiating table. For those interested in the youth set-up, Nicky Featherstone made his debut as sub, playing the last few minutes.
That just left Barmby, who led by example with performance full of quality and desire and completely defied those idiots like myself who felt he didn't have it in him any more. The 4-3-1-2-ish formation suits Nick and he's having a ball.
It's pretty obvious that if we play like we did today, for the rest of the season, we'll stay up easily. However, finding that sort of consistency will be a big challenge. Several players, like Delaney, Turner, Dawson, Ashbee, Livermore, Marney and Barmby gave the proverbial 110% today and were on the top of their game. To expect us to be able to put out a side with today's shape and have those players perform at their absolute best for 20 games is a big, big ask. However, with a bit of strengthening and the current level of belief and confidence, we can definitely win 10 games and stay up. No doubt about it whatsoever.
Ratings: Bo 7, France 8, Dawson 8, Turner 8, Delaney 8, Livermore 7, Ashbee 7, Marney 7, Fagan 8 (Featherstone), Parkin 7 (Elliott), Barmby 9 (Forster).