IT was the sort of straight-to-the-point response you have come to expect from Burnley.
After all, the purists have long sneered at their direct and no- messing style on the pitch, so why should it be any different off it?
⚠️ Read our coronavirus in sport live blog for the latest news & updates
Jack Cork insists most players back return despite initial ‘concerns’ over Project RestartCredit: Getty
Jack Cork certainly was not about to go round the houses, duck the issue and refuse a straight answer when others around him were treading on eggshells.
His reaction came as the prospect of Project Restart was discussed by the Clarets first-team squad during one of their regular Zoom chats.
Cork isn’t a “sick as a parrot,” and “one-game-at-a-time” footballer.
As one of the sport’s more eloquent and deeper thinkers, he wasn’t about to go down the cliche-driven road now.
And while many are so fearful of heading back to work that they are staying away, the Burnley midfielder insisted there were no such doubts around Turf Moor.
Cork said: “Of course we all spoke about it on the Zoom calls and we all wanted to get back.
“The way they’ve gone about it has been great and our testing didn’t affect the NHS ones because it was all done separately.
“People had concerns but we all came to the decision that we were happy with how it was all being done.
“There are key workers and NHS staff putting themselves at a lot more risk, putting themselves in danger, but we’re in one of the safest environments, so were all happy to do so.”
This, bear in mind, at a club where assistant manager Ian Woan was one of the six Premier League players and staff who tested positive in the first round of results.
Bear in mind, too, that Cork, 30, was speaking AFTER the club had made that news public.
He added: “When we went back and Woany wasn’t there, no one wanted to say anything, and then it came out he had it, that was a really strange feeling.
“Even one person having it isn’t great but hopefully he will recover fine and come through it OK.”
As soon as Woan’s result became public knowledge, the rumour mill went into overdrive, largely because he shares a place with boss Sean Dyche in “normal” times.
Yet this was while everyone was still apart, the tests done before anyone returned to the training ground, and no risk of Dyche and the entire squad suddenly being struck down.
Of course there will always be some concerns until a vaccine is found. But at Burnley, they are outweighed by a Prem return edging closer.
And, as Cork pointed out, of all those returning to work right now, few are doing so in such sanitised and secure environments as those enjoyed by top-flight footballers.
Yet a fearsome first day back, working in small groups with social- distancing rules still in force, didn’t come without some repercussions.
CORONAVIRUS CRISIS – STAY IN THE KNOW
Don’t miss the latest news and figures – and essential advice for you and your family.
To receive The Sun’s Coronavirus newsletter in your inbox every tea time, sign up here.
To follow us on Facebook, simply ‘Like’ our Coronavirus page.
Get Britain’s best-selling newspaper delivered to your smartphone or tablet each day – find out more.
Cork revealed: “I was working with Matt Lowton, Aaron Lennon, Chris Wood and Jimmy Dunne, with Steve Stone taking it, and he had us going 110 per cent right from the start.
“We’d been back for one day and I was soaking my feet in salt water because I had blisters, just because I hadn’t worn boots for so long.
“They’re a lot tighter than trainers, not as comfortable, and with all the changing direction I suffered straight away.
“When we were away we still had our routines to work to, we all had GPS monitors fitted and different sessions to do, and it did feel we’d been off for a really long time.”
Now, though, it is back to business and the chance to extend a run which had seen Burnley go seven unbeaten in the league before the lockdown.
Doing so without any fans at Turf Moor — a stadium which Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has described as being like a trip to the dentist — poses another challenge.
Cork admitted: “Sometimes we do feel that atmosphere from the fans can give us an advantage, because players under pressure from the crowd can make mistakes.
“It will be interesting to see how that affects things but before it all stopped we were on a good run and we were all a bit disappointed it stopped.
“We were going in the right direction, had the momentum, and it felt how it did when we finished seventh and got into Europe.”
If they return to action with as refreshing an approach as they are showing off the pitch, there’s every chance Burnley could be back there again next season . . . whenever that may be.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
