Bolton trotting in

I don't know what the answer is but I'm certainly no fan of all these international breaks at the start of each season. We've played just ten games and already had two and there's another one coming up after another six games and that total is only as high as six because we've two midweek games.

Two seasons ago there were often suggestions that it was of benefit to us with such a small squad but I'm not sure, but I do know that this season we've gone into each of those breaks on the back of an away win.

We had two weeks to wait for the next game after we'd won at Bristol City at the end of August and it's been the same since we secured all three points last time out at Rotherham. At least, if that sequence continues, we can be looking forward to beating Wolves on 7th November.

When I first started watching football, these two teams, Burnley and Bolton were First Division rivals. They were the second of the North West town clubs to depart the top flight when they suffered relegation in 1964 and we haven't played them that often since, this being only the 13th season in the last 52 years when we have met in league games.

Matt Taylor is expecting a stern test in what is not our biggest derby

I think it is because of that I never did see them as local rivals and the only time I've ever felt that was during the time the biblical Scotsman was in charge of them, he who took them out of the Premier League after eleven successive seasons despite them being ten years ahead of us.

It's sort of back to the normal Burnley v Bolton games now with the only links really being Matt Taylor and Lukas Jutkiewicz who have both played for the two clubs and goalkeeper Paul Rachubka, now at Bolton and once a loan player at Burnley. Juke, of course, isn't available due to his long term injury but Taylor will definitely be in the squad although most likely on the bench.

He joined Bolton in January 2008 for £3.5 million from Portsmouth and went on to make 123 league appearances for them scoring 23 goals before moving to West Ham in the summer of 2011 following their promotion to the Premier League. One of those goals came at Turf Moor in December 2009 when he scored Bolton's equaliser in a 1-1 draw in what was that biblical Scotsman's last home game in charge of the Clarets.

So Taylor knows about the fixture, but he also knows it is not the biggest game we are going to be playing this month. "It's a Lancashire derby, isn't it?" he queried, before answering it himself, adding: "Arguably, as I am reliably informed, it's not the biggest one.

"It will be a stern test for us but it's an opportunity to get another three points. It's just another game. As a footballer, you accept that you are going to face your previous employers and teams that you have played for. I am a Burnley player now and I want us to go and succeed and take three points."

Burnley FC reported today that Sean Dyche has a fully fit squad to select from other than Juke and Ashley Barnes although reports elsewhere suggest that Dean Marney and Kevin Long are still not there as yet although moving ever closer.

One player back in the squad, I would expect, will be German striker Rouwen Hennings. He missed the game at Rotherham when his wife went into labour. There's been no further news since but I would assume he has now become a dad again and will be back in the eighteen tomorrow.

Other than that I don't envisage any changes and should it be an unchanged starting eleven from that which won at Rotherham then we can expect Joey Barton to get his first home start for the Clarets.

Burnley's likely line up is: Tom Heaton, Tendayi Darikwa, Michael Duff, Michael Keane, Ben Mee, George Boyd, Joey Barton, David Jones, Scott Arfield, Sam Vokes, Andre Gray. Subs from: Matt Gilks, Matt Lowton, Tom Anderson, Stephen Ward, Fredrik Ulvestad, Matt Taylor, Michael Kightly, Rouwen Hennings, Chris Long.

It's been a difficult start for Bolton who, having dropped out of the Premier League in 2012, are now in their last season with any parachute money and with big debts. That's made it more difficult for manager Neil Lennon, who replaced Dougie Freedman during last season, in any squad strengthening.

They ended last season in 18th place in the Championship but they were a comfortable ten points above the bottom three and never really had any relegation concerns.

The current season hasn't got off to the best of starts. Bristol City's 2-0 win against Nottingham Forest tonight has seen Bolton drop to 23rd place, behind all of MK, Brentford and Rotherham on goal difference, just one point and one place ahead of bottom club Preston.

Seven of their eight points have come at home where they remain unbeaten. That's from draws against Derby, Forest, Sheffield Wednesday and Brighton and their one win of the season, a 2-1 victory against Wolves  in September.

Away from home they've picked up just the one point in a 0-0 draw at Blackburn, while suffering defeats at Middlesbrough, MK, Huddersfield and QPR. They've conceded some goals too on the road, they lost 3-0 at Middlesbrough and 4-1 at Huddersfield whilst they conceded four at QPR, going down 4-3 after leading 2-0 with just eleven minutes gone.

Liam Feeney has scored three of their nine league goals while Gary Madine has netted two. Their other four league goals have come one each from Zach Clough, Neil Danns, Stephen Dobbie and Wellington Silva.

Manage Neil Lennon could be without full back Dean Moxey. He's got an ongoing toe injury that requires injections and is rated doubtful while Zach Clough is ruled out with a long term shoulder injury. The good news for Bolton is Francesco Pisano being declared fit after limping off at half time against QPR.

Should Moxey not play, Spanish defender Jose Manuel Casado could make his debut but that might not be the only defensive change. Because of their defensive concerns, Lennon is considering changes at the back with all of Derek Osede, Lawrie Wilson and David Wheater potential replacements. Only Wheater, of the three, featured at QPR and then only as a second half substitute.

Bolton's team at QPR was: Ben Amos, Francesco Pisano, Dorian Dervite, Prince-Desire Gouano, Dean Moxey, Mark Davies, Neil Danns, Darren Pratley, Liam Feeney, Max Clayton, Gary Madine. Subs: Paul Rachubka, David Wheater, Josh Vela, Jose Manuel Casado, Stephen Dobbie, Jay Spearing, Wellington Silva.

Last Time They Were Here

It was a surprise when it was announced that the 2013/14 season would kick off with a home game against Bolton given that we'd kicked off the 2012/13 season with a home game against Bolton.

For the first of them we had Olympians on the pitch before kick off but for the second it was due to the 125th anniversary of the Football League and them wanting to feature games between founder members.

That game in 2012 was the last time we kicked off a season at 3 o'clock on a Saturday; the 2013 game, Bolton's last visit to Turf Moor, would be an early kick off for the television.

Burnley had been dealt a massive blow just two days before the game when Charlie Austin was sold to QPR having previously failed a medical Who on earth was going to score the goals? Danny Ings, who was due to start up front with Austin, had scored six league goals for us in 47 appearances; his new partner Sam Vokes had also scored six but in 55 appearances. It didn't look good and had we known that no new striker would arrive until January I think the concern would have turned to blind panic.

The one saving grace was that when Austin had been out injured in the previous season we'd seen Ings and Vokes play together and the partnership had looked OK with us getting some good results, although they weren't the players scoring the goals. Even Martin Paterson's departure to Huddersfield was now looking like a catastrophe.

Danny Ings scores the first goal of the 2013/14 season ......

Vokes, who played the full game, didn't score in this opener but Ings, who was substituted on 89 minutes, did eventually. The goal was credited as a David Wheater own goal but Burnley's media machine got into action afterwards to claim it for the striker.

It was a close encounter in the end and possibly the 1-1 draw was a fair result, although if either side deserved to edge it then it was certainly us.

Burnley's team included two debutants in the starting line up with Tom Heaton in goal and David Jones in midfield. On the bench were Scott Arfield, a free from Huddersfield, and Ryan Noble who had been signed on a short term contract for the development squad. With Michael Duff and Ben Mee out injured it is fair to say we were stretched.

The previous season had given us a scare with some shocking performances during February, March and April dropping us down the table. There were concerns as to whether we had the right manager in place in Sean Dyche playing the sort of football we wanted.

We might not have won this one but we certainly played some good football, and with some real energy and purpose to it. Nowhere did we look stronger than at right back. Kieran Trippier had said in an interview that he had started the previous season unfit and it was the new manager who had indentified the problem and helped him rectify it. He could not have started the season any better.

...... and Sam Vokes celebrates

But he wasn't involved in our goal. Kevin Long headed a long Bolton ball to Jones who chipped it forward for Vokes. His header sent Ings forward and he got the better of Wheater. There is no doubt that the Bolton defender got the last touch and that he deflected it goalwards but it was a first goal of the season for Ings and this new partnership.

Unfortunately the lead didn't last long enough, just eleven minutes. Having played the ball in from the left, Darren Pratley got it out to the right where former Claret Chris Eagles was given far too much time and space to get the ball back in for Pratley to get the better of Jones and hit home from ten yards.

That was it, a draw to start the season, a fantastic season where we hardly ever looked back.

The teams were;

Burnley: Tom Heaton, Kieran Trippier, Kevin Long, Jason Shackell, Danny Lafferty, Ross Wallace, Dean Marney, David Jones, Junior Stanislas (Scott Arfield 80), Danny Ings (David Edgar 89), Sam Vokes. Subs not used: Alex Cisak, Luke O'Neill, Brian Stock, Keith Treacy, Ryan Noble.

Bolton: Adam Bogdan, Alex Baptiste, Zat Knight, David Wheater, Marc Tierney, Chung-Yong Lee, Keith Andrews, Darren Pratley, Medo, Chris Eagles (David Ngog 64), Jermaine Beckford (Craig Davies 80). Subs not used: Andy Lonergan, Tyrone Mears, Tim Ream, Andre Moritz, Robert Hall.

Previous Games against Bolton

Click HERE to see all previous results against Bolton (no cup games shown prior to season 1986/87)