Wood draws a blank in Burnley debut

People have to get that situation [under control] really, really quickly.

All Whites striker Chris Wood has made a winning start for his English Premier League club in a match which captured headlines for the wrong reasons.

Wood produced a busy display but his finishing was awry after being introduced off the bench in the 43rd minute of Burnley’s 2-0 victory at League One club Blackburn Rovers in the second round of the League Cup yesterday.

The 25-year-old’s debut came just two days after completing a Burnleyrecord £15 million ($26 million) move from Championship club Leeds United.

Wood scored 30 goals in all competitions for Leeds last season but his ability to finish wasn’t on show at Ewood Park yesterday.

Soon after replacing veteran Irish international Jonathan Walters, Wood’s first shot on goal was well saved by goalkeeper David Maya.

The New Zealand international put a header from close range over the bar in the 58th minute and had two decent late chances — having an angled effort saved before shooting wide from the centre of the box.

A flashpoint of the Lancashire derby came midway through the first half when a Blackburn fan ran on the field and physically confronted some of the Burnley players.

The fan was eventually tussled to the ground by Burnley players before stewards removed him from the field. Sean Dyche on a pitch invasion

Unimpressed Burnley manager Sean Dyche says officials should have reacted more quickly.

“You don’t know what they are going to do on the pitch, people have to get that situation [under control] really, really quickly and it seemed a long time before anyone did anything,” Dyche said.

“There used to be a time when if someone got on a football pitch, it was kind of in jest, it was something silly and could almost be laughed at.

“Now there are all kinds of different things going on in the world and when people get on a football pitch, it has to be stopped very quickly.”

Wood’s next appearance could be a high-profile Premier League clash with Tottenham Hotspur on Monday morning (NZT). The match at Wembley could break the league’s attendance record of 76,073, set by Manchester United in 2007.

He is then to captain New Zealand in the first of two World Cup qualifying games against the Solomon Islands in Auckland next Friday. — AAP