Ex-Blackburn star Hanley puts Norwich on Celebration Street against the ‘old enemy’

GRANT HANLEY admitted he relished silencing the Burnley boo-boys who barracked him.

Hanley’s six-year spell at Blackburn meant he was booed by fans of their arch rivals Burnley every time he touched the ball at Turf Moor.

But the Norwich captain, who has endured an injury-blighted season, had the last laugh with the opening goal that set the Canaries on their way to victory.

Hanley, who was sidelined from August to December following groin and hernia issues, revealed afterwards how the jeers from Clarets fans served to inspire him.

“Obviously they’re well within their rights to give me a bit of stick, with me being an exBlackburn player,” said Hanley.

“So it was a nice feeling to get a goal, especially for somebody who doesn’t score many.

“You can go one of two ways. You can let it get to you and on top of you, or you can use it as fuel to push yourself and do better, and I think that’s the way I’ve got to look at it and that’s what I did.”

Hanley’s 53rdminute header was his first time on the scoresheet since August 2018. But the 28-year-old (below) poked fun at himself by pointing out he did in fact score the first goal of this season’s Premier League campaign – albeit in his own net. Hanley’s own goal at Anfield helped Liverpool to a 4-1 win which set the runaway Premier League leaders on their remorseless run.

“I thought you were going to say Liverpool away,” joked Hanley, when asked about his last goal. “That’s the best form of defence, you’ve got to take the mickey out of yourself a wee bit. “It’s been a while. Like I say, I got a bit of stick from the stands, so it was nice to score.” Hanley is convinced Norwich’s FA Cup run can help them in what looks like an increasingly futile quest for Premier League survival. Although Norwich are six points from safety at the foot of the table, Hanley believes a cup run can help lift their league form. “We can take confidence from the character we showed, because we played here in the league and it wasn’t a nice experience,” said Hanley about Norwich’s 2-0

Ref: Michael Oliver Att: 8,071 defeat at Turf Moor in September. “You could say we got bullied a bit but today we showed up, won our individual battles, and earned the right to play our football.”

Hanley’s goal was followed by a tap-in from Josip Drmic, which was enough for Daniel Farke’s side to win, despite an Erik Pieters strike in the 72nd minute giving Burnley hope.

Farke paid tribute to Hanley and said: “He’s a great character. It’s no coincidence we decided to have him as captain.

“He’s been so unlucky with injuries in recent months but at the moment he’s in really good shape and delivering good performances for us. I’m delighted for him.”

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