I wrote my last piece (Derby Day Dawns) high on expectation and trepidation before setting off to Ewood and catching the coach to Turf. I alluded to the morning feeling like a Cup Final and something extraordinary. The day did not disappoint.

A contributing factor was the common sense and pragmatic approach taken by the vast majority of Lancashire Constabulary Officers on duty on Sunday.

I was on the first of 50 coaches which left Ewood at 9am on Sunday under escort. We arrived half an hour later and and entered the concourse underneath the away stand. When we played Burnley 10 and 5 years ago respectively, we were given the whole end unlike Sunday. I immediately noticed how small the area was. Bottled beer was for sale but i want to emphasise that these were plastic bottles and not glass ones which the majority of the media has failed to mention.

As more coaches and fans arrived it became obvious that the area around the bar and general concourse was getting alarmingly congested. The decision was then taken to openly allow fans to take their beers into the stand to relieve pressure down below. The police clearly allowed supporters to walk past them with plastic beer bottles into the stand.This common sense and pragmatic approach by the officers in the area must be applauded and indeed myself and friends commended the police action at the time.

What is hugely disappointing to read are the comments by Chief Inspector Jeff Brown. He said "It is not correct to say that police allowed fans to take their beers into the stands" and that they were "smuggled" into the area. He does however recognise that there was a problem and the "priority was to save lives and avoid injuries"

What cannot be condoned are the actions of a tiny minority of idiots who believed it would be hillarious to smash up the toilets. If the idea was to take the p*** then surely the prank backfired, quite literally! Apparently there were also some seats broken, but I did not witness this from where i was standing. Overall, the vast majority of Rovers fans were in great spirits and in exceptional voice and produced a repertoire and array of songs both old and new in a game which rarely sparked into life.

The penalty decision was as dodgy as you will ever see and Jason Brown could have been in trouble for carrying the ball outside his box. But the impressive Olsson had worthy goal cancelled out and could easily had seen his strike, which rebounded onto the line, given to put Rovers 2 up.

It is looking increasingly likely that our unbeaten record against our nearest and not so dearest will be extended by a few more years than the current 31. There was a feeling of resignation among the Burnley supporters which surprised many of us at Turf Moor on Sunday. Dunny's goal seemed to zap any life and hope from them.

If the enevitable does happen and they go down, I hope they will bounce back because there are few occasions in the modern day football when the heart misses a beat and the andrenaline takes over. The rivalry is mutually beneficial to both clubs.The Premier League needs this fixture. It is a constant reminder where the passion in the game really lies. Too often, the FA markets artificial campaigns aimed at supporters claiming they know how we feel .The truth is, they don't.