Burnley Football Club has been promoted to the Premier League for the first time in its history after an impressive 1-0 victory against Sheffield United in the Coca-Cola Championship Playoff Final at Wembley Stadium this afternoon.

Wade Elliott scored the all important goal for Burnley in the 13th minute after his long range effort found the top corner. After that, Burnley settled in to playing a confident game and created several chances to put the game out of Sheffield United’s reach except for wonderful goal-line clearances by United to keep the game at 1-0.

Despite a considerable advantage in possession time, Sheffield United created few chances up front and failed to test the hulk of a goalkeeper in Brian Jensen in the Burnley goal.

Not only is this a triumphant achievement for Burnley, but it’s also a considerable feather in the cap for teams in the north west of England. With Blackburn, Bolton, Wigan, Everton, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Burnley, the north west now represents eight of the 20 teams in the Premier League.

Founded in 1882, Burnley has a proud history in English football. They won the First Division in 1920-21 and 1959-60, and won the FA Cup in 1914. They were also one of the founders of the Football League in 1888-1889.

Congratulations to Burnley Football Club, its manager Owen Coyle who has worked wonders this season, and its hard-working team of professionals on and off the pitch. I’ll be looking forward to seeing how well Burnley does next season.