BALTIMORE, Maryland April 22, 2014 - The suspense has now ended. A remarkable run through the English Championship by a team everyone described as barely adequate to make a serious run came to a wonderful conclusion Monday at venerable Turf Moor when Burnley defeated Wigan Athletic, 2-0, to clinch promotion to the Premier League. The Claret, who still have lost only five games on the season, not only survived the kind of injury jinx everyone feared, but seemed to actually profit from it when it reared its ugly head at a time of the campaign when they seemed most vulnerable. Monday, Ashley Barnes, who seemed like so much wasted effort when he was acquired in January, and Michael Kightly, on loan from Stoke, put home the two goals Burnley wanted to make this clinching match the celebration of so remarkable an accomplishment.
When Burnley lost its fourth game of the season on March 29 at Leicester City, and in the process lost Sam Vokes, one of their two leading scorers, it looked like Burnley had finally run out of luck. They would now go through a stretch of matches without either Vokes, who was lost for the season, and Danny Ings, who had been injured a few matches earlier and was no where near ready to return. They were already without Kieran Trippier, the midfielder who set up many of their goals, Dean Marney, the veteran midfielder, and Junior Stanislaus, the proverbial 12th man who came into games in the second half to jump start their offense. Despite these setbacks, the Claret continued on, figuring ways to win when no way seemed possible. Even with those players out, the Claret were 3-1-1, although, to be honest, all of the missing players trickled back onto the pitch after the Leicester game save for Vokes. In the match after Leicester, Burnley was behind late at Watford when Scott Arfield scored in the 86th minute to salvage a point. In the game after that, Ashley Barnes scored in the seventh minute as the Claret beat Barnsley, 1-0. They lost at home to Middlesbrough, but any thought that they were in trouble was quickly eliminated when they rebounded last Friday night to win at Blackpool. Then, last night, they clinched.
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