BURNLEY operational director Brendan Flood has urged the Clarets to use Sunday’s East Lancashire derby as their platform to prove they are worthy of their Premier League place.

The Clarets and Blackburn Rovers go head-to-head for the first time in over four years. It is more than 40 years since they last met in the top division, while for the last two decades or so Blackburn have held the upper hand.

But as Owen Coyle’s men sit five points and seven places above their fierce rivals, Flood has told Burnley to go to Ewood Park without fear, and bring back the bragging rights.

“I don’t think we need to be as worried about who is superior any more because we are on even terms,” he said.

“It’s our chance to show why we are in the Premier League, and I’m going there confident we are the better footballing team.

“If we get off to a good start we can do ourselves justice. And who knows? The supremacy might move across.

“There was immense disappointment in 2000/01 when we got beat 2-0 at home then 5-0 over at theirs.

“I think that was a realisation of how inferior we were.

"But now we can go there with a degree of confidence and belief that this could be our time.”

And although the Clarets go into the game still searching for their first goal and point on their travels from four away games so far, Flood believes the club is still riding the crest of a promotion wave.

“Clubs are ultimately about the momentum they create behind the scenes and on the pitch and I feel the momentum is more with us at the moment,” he said.

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