Derby v Burnley reaction

Published Sep. 22, 2012 3:16 p.m. ET

foxsports

Burnley manager Eddie Howe admitted he thought about substituting Charlie Austin before his second goal in the 2-1 win at Derby.

Austin had only two chances but buried them both to take his tally for the season to nine in eight games, although Howe admitted he could have taken him off before he grabbed a late winner.

"That's the beauty of Charlie," Howe said. "He's in the right place at the right time.

"His first goal was a fantastic finish and his hold-up play was really good today. He didn't have many sights of goal but the two that he got he took really well.

"We had a dilemma with 10 minutes to go, we were under the cosh and you think 'we've got two strikers on the pitch, do we try and shore up the midfield' and the one to come off would have been Charlie.

"It goes through your mind but we're delighted we kept him on the pitch!

"I'm delighted for him as well because he does work hard and he's a real team player.

"I think he would be the first to acknowledge that the lads behind him, the defenders and midfielders, kept us in the game.

"It's the first time we've won with an ugly win and today was certainly ugly from our perspective.

"The second part of the second half we were backs against the wall but we defended really well and popped up with a goal that was probably hard on Derby, but we will certainly take that with some of the luck we've had."

Rams manager Nigel Clough was left to reflect on missed chances after a repeat of last year's result against Burnley.

"We had enough chances in the second half but you've got to put one of those away otherwise you are always susceptible to conceding one, but that's the other side of it we've got to learn quickly," he said.

"We've got to learn you don't lose the game, at 1-1 we've played very well and missed a few chances, but if you come in with a 1-1 you bemoan your bad luck but you do it with a point on the board.

"I thought once we got into our stride in the second half, we lost count of how many chances we had. But I thought Craig Bryson was back to his best, he was absolutely magnificent today."

Derby had scored 15 goals in their first four home games and they had another in the 20th minute when Burnley failed to clear a corner and Paul Coutts and Jeff Hendrick combined to set up Jamie Ward, who steered a low shot past former Derby keeper Lee Grant from 10 yards.

The goal clearly unsettled Burnley but they regrouped and equalised in the 32nd minute when Ward's attempted clearance from a free-kick fell to Austin, who lashed a right-foot shot high past Frank Fielding.

Derby got on top in the second half and had two good chances in the 75th minute as first Conor Sammon got in on the left but failed to get any power in his shot, and the striker then put Bryson in but Grant got down quickly to deny the midfielder.

Burnley made them pay in the 89th minute when Chris McCann delivered a superb cross from the left into the six yard box and Austin headed in to give his side their first away points of the season.