Turf Moor Diaries: Forgettable Drubbing That's Sure To Stick In The Memory

Because pain has no memory, I have forgotten most of the game already. In particular, the six-minute spell during which Aston Villa scored three goals. Yes, three in six. And all three of them enough to make manager Brian Laws wonder what he has to do to make his players do the simple things well.

Things like not bumping into each other, as Andre Bikey and Chris Eagles did, in giving Villa the opening that led to the first of the three. Or sticking a leg out, as Leon Cort could have done to stop the second of the three going in. Or not capitulating, which is how it felt as Villa stormed forward to get the last of the three. Three in six. I can't remember the last time I saw that any more than I can remember the last time we took the lead away from home - was it Man City away, a manager and many months ago?

Oh the day had started so well. Sunny, almost warm, Birmingham looking so much nicer than I remembered it, Blackburn v Bolton live on the TV monitors beneath the stands, all of us part of a historic first, second and third - Burnley fans cheering three Blackburn goals against Bolton. I never thought I'd see or hear it, but I did, one of the loudest cheers of all reserved for the shot of Owen Coyle looking glummer through the snow than he ever did in the days of Turf Moor sunshine.

Then even more joy to come, with the Steven Fletcher tap in from a David Nugent cross after Jack Cork had done well to put Nugent through. It was heart-thumping stuff, and with Hull and Portsmouth losing yesterday, and Coyle's Bolton going down today, we dared to dream that Villa, with half a mind on the Carling Cup final, was going to deliver up our first away victory.

That was until we conceded a free kick that should never have been conceded which led to a corner that should have been avoided, which led to a move which should have been defended and an Ashley Young shot that could have been cleared by any one of the four defenders it shot past, had they reacted a fraction more quickly.

"Game over," I heard from nearby, which seemed dreadfully pessimistic, but it did have that feel about it.

And yet, for the first few minutes of the second half, with the score at 1-1, we had the possession and created the best openings. The fans started to lift an atmosphere that was oddly subdued for a tie hosted by a club one week away from a Wembley final against Manchester United. Then the Bikey-Eagles clash, the ball ran free, Villa ran riot for six minutes and we were staring disaster in the face.

We cannot really claim tiredness as an excuse. The gap between today's game and our last match at Fulham stretched almost to a fortnight.

It is the kind of break that feels better after a win, rather than the kind of comprehensive defeat we suffered at Craven Cottage, in a game in which sadly the players failed to match the performance of fans who not only made the midweek journey in large numbers but who sang one song non-stop for fifty minutes, including through Fulham's third goal. For a few minutes today, I thought we were going to get a repeat on the singing front, but this time the third goal really did take the stuffing out of us.

Laws had taken advantage of our early exit from the Cup to take the squad to Portugal for a few days, a chance for him to bond with the players, and the new players to bond with the old.

During the same period last year, with Championship, FA Cup and League Cup games coming thick and fast, we were settled into a Tuesday-Saturday-Tuesday-Saturday rhythm. Our fitness levels were one of the reasons we got up. But the difference in intensity is clear every time you watch a Premier League match. At least now we really can concentrate on the league, and boy do we have to after this.

I bumped into Villa manager Martin O'Neill before the Fulham game. He was there to watch us. I said go easy. He said "I'm going to need the points more than you, because I'm sure you'll get something off Fulham." Oh yeah? Nice guy though, said he liked the way we played and hoped we stayed up.

It would be hard for a neutral not to like the way Villa played in the second half today.

Laws showed himself capable of making big selection decisions. Wade Elliott has been in every starting line up for 13 months. Not today.

Eagles back in, alongside Chelsea loan player Cork, who impressed when on as a sub at Fulham and clearly impressed even more in Portugal and back at the Gawthorpe training ground. He looked alright. But when all is said and done he is part of a team that already has the worst away record in the Premier League, even before a 5-2 drubbing.

Next up it's Portsmouth at home. My God do we need to win that one. I got a call from the legend that is John Motson shortly before kick-off today to say he is going to be commentating on the Burnley v Pompey game for Match of the Day and is looking forward to his trip to Turf Moor.

An omen surely. He has just ended a run of nil-nil draws with a 2-0 home win yesterday with Arsenal v Sunderland. So I reckon another home win is in the Motty stars. Or am I now clutching at straws? I fear I may be.