Penalty woe for Burley

But the former Scotland boss refused to blame the officials for two dropped points and preferred to praise his illness-hit team for an impressive performance in the 1-1 draw after Brett Pitman's late spot kick cancelled out an exquisite second-minute free-kick from Neil Danns.

Burley thought his side were unlucky, but admitted: "I spoke to Julian Speroni after the game and, although he went for the ball, it seems Rose just got there first.

"It was probably a 50-50 decision, but there was contact and we accept it. It was frustrating because we had looked increasingly comfortable defending our early lead as the game wore on."

Burley praised the skilful midfield contribution of Danns, who opened the scoring after a foul by Kalifa Cisse on Sean Scannell and went on to run the game.

"Neil was terrific today and is an excellent player," said Burley. "We are doing all we can to get him to sign a new contract. I want to add four or five players to my squad during the January window and we are not looking to sell. I'm in the process of rebuilding the club and I'm hopeful that Neil will stay and play his part."

Source: PA

Source: PA