Burnley’s grit in a downpour: Anthony and Dubravka deliver a point against Forest
Soaked to the skin and spurred on by Turf Moor’s roar, Burnley fought back from conceding inside two minutes to take a thoroughly earned 1-1 draw off Nottingham Forest. Jaidon Anthony’s scruffy, deserved equaliser midway through the first half cancelled out Neco Williams’ explosive opener and set the tone for a performance built on character and shrewd game management.
Scott Parker’s side were made to suffer late on, but when the rain fell hardest, the Clarets stood tallest. Martin Dubravka’s reflexes denied Igor Jesus and then Williams, while Quilindschy Hartman’s last‑ditch block on Arnaud Kalimuendo epitomised a back line that refused to be breached again.
Stung early, the response roared back
Forest’s first attack brought an early gut punch as Williams thumped a deflected finish into the roof of the net from an inswinging corner. Lesser sides might have retreated; Parker’s Burnley reset, settled and went back on the front foot.
On 20 minutes the response bore fruit. Hartman’s dart from the left and teasing delivery created chaos, and when the ball popped for Anthony he guided a scuffed effort goalwards. Oleksandr Zinchenko, in attempting a desperate recovery, bundled it over his own line. The goal rightly went to Anthony—his third of the season—and Turf Moor breathed again.
Clarets on the front foot before and after the break
The leveller energised Burnley. Loum Tchaouna rattled the crossbar with a vicious free‑kick before half‑time, and the hosts’ counters repeatedly had Forest flustered. The shift in momentum was as palpable as the rain lashing down.
Parker’s men came out aggressively after the interval too. Anthony, dovetailing neatly with Lyle Foster, drew a sharp stop from Matz Sels, and Tchaouna fizzed a ball across the six‑yard box that begged for a touch. The intent was clear: Burnley weren’t content to sit in and simply survive.
Dubravka and the late stand
Forest, to their credit, knitted some slick moves. Dubravka answered with authority, fingertipping away Dilane Bakwa’s strike and comfortably holding Chris Wood’s tame finish before the striker’s withdrawal to boos from his former crowd.
The finale was about resolve. Dubravka sprang across goal to repel Igor Jesus’ header and then smothered Williams’ low volley. When Kalimuendo lurked at the back post, Hartman arrived with a vital block. It was the kind of rugged, collective defiance that Parker has been preaching.
A point with purpose—and what lies ahead
“Character” was the buzzword from the technical area, and it fit. Burnley’s reaction to the early blow, their ascendancy for long spells, and their willingness to survive when needed all underlined Parker’s message that this team is competitive. Recent Turf Moor evidence backs it up: a home win over Sunderland and an EFL Cup success against Derby, with only a stoppage‑time Mohamed Salah penalty denying an unbeaten stretch.
The draw nudges Burnley up to 16th and offers more proof that home comforts can be a survival platform. Next comes a quick EFL Cup turnaround against Cardiff City before a daunting league trip to Manchester City—tests that this side, on this evidence, are equipped to face with unity and purpose.