THE latest quirky Arthur C Clarke style fact to emerge from the hours of painstaking research ahead of tomorrow's big game really is a little spooky.

Ray Lewington has managed four clubs in his coaching career with the Hornets the latest to benefit from his services.

He had an incredibly short spell in charge at Crystal Palace at the end of the 1997-98 season but the other two are interesting.

For half of the 2000-2001 season he was in charge of Brentford, the team knocked out by the Clarets in the fourth round.

But his longest spell as a boss was four seasons between 1986 and 1990 when he was in charge of a pre-Al Fayed Fulham, ironically Burnley's opponents in the last round.

That means that at Vicarage Road they are chasing some sort of bizarre Lewington treble. What a shame they can't meet Palace in the semis.

Mind you he did play for Chelsea and Sheffield United so the run could still go on!

Motty leads the Beeb big guns

TOMORROW afternoon the Clarets will do something they have not done for the past 41 years - they will appear live on BBC TV.

Not since the FA Cup Final of 1962 has a Burnley team played in front of Auntie's live cameras but the station has got all the big guns out for the game.

John Motson is doing the commentary with Mark Bright, who played under Stan Ternent when he was coaching Crystal Palace.

The show will be presented by Gary Lineker with his top pair of footballing pundits by his side, the Liverpool legends Alan Hansen and Mark Lawrenson.

Mind you, Clarets fans may be hoping that Preston fan Lawro tips the Hornets for glory as he actually backed Brentford to knock out Burnley at the fourth round stage.

Ref justice

IT was not just Burnley boss Stan Ternent who was left fuming by the performance of referee Mark Cooper at Millwall on Tuesday night.

The small but vocal travelling support were equally disgusted with his display, and on the coaches heading back north in the small hours of the morning decided something had to be done.

Having been angered by Mr Cooper for the second time this season they have decided to send letters to the FA complaining about his level of performance and hoping he will never get to do another Clarets game in the future.

THOSE looking for omens as to why Burnley can win the FA Cup have come up with a rather scary one.

The only time that a Burnley captain has lifted the famous old trophy was in 1914 and within months a World War had started.

It sounds ominously familiar and should make for some interesting chats at Number 10 Downing Street between Clarets fan Alistair Campbell and Rovers supporter Jack Straw!

Perhaps they will both have a different agenda when it comes to timing any attack on Iraq.