NINE-MAN Burnley suffered a hellish night on Humberside as Hull stole a march in the race for a play off place.

Both sides ended up two men short after referee Mike Riley went red card crazy in a madcap second half.

Steven Caldwell and Joey Gudjonsson both picked up two yellow cards for the Clarets, while Hull's Caleb Folan and Jay Jay Okocha were both shown straight reds for off the ball incidents.

But by then the real damage had been done and the Clarets were trying to climb a mountain after being blown away inside the opening 45 minutes!

Jon Harley was an absentee for Burnley to attend the birth of his son, with his left back berth going to David Unsworth.

And in attack Ade Akinbiyi was preferred to Robbie Blake, who was celebrating his 32nd birthday and possibly unfortunate to still be on the bench following his two goal cameo at the weekend.

But it was the Tigers who bared their teeth first, going straight on the attack.

The Clarets weathered an early storm before Okocha fired narrowly wide cutting in from the left.

Burnley wasted little time getting on the attack themselves and Wade Elliott robbed last defender Andy Dawson, but blazed over the angle with the unmarked Akinbiyi screaming for a low ball across the box.

Still only seven minutes in, Burnley had their first real let off as Hull's blistering start gathered momentum.

Caldwell appeared to be hauled down by Caleb Folan, but Premiership referee Riley waved play on and as the Clarets waited for the whistle Frazier Campbell fired wide form six yards out.

Clarke Carlisle was then forced to hack the ball out of the six yard box as Hull sensed the breakthrough.

And in the 14th minute, a goalkeeping mistake from Brian Jensen finally gifted the hosts the lead.

Campbell was given far too much time near the left hand corner of the box, but his skidding drive went straight through Jensen's body and bobbled over the line.

Midway through the half, the Clarets really should have been dead and buried.

Okocha picked out Campbell's run with a peach of a pass, but the youngster dragged his shot across Jensen as he homed in on goal.

Burnley finally put together a move worthy of their status as one of the division's best footballing sides in the 25th minute.

Chris McCann tore at the Tigers and after a one-two with Akinbiyi slid Cole in down the right channel.

The on-loan Sunderland striker confidently waited for support to arrive and fed James O'Connor on the edge of the box, but the Dubliner's side foot flashed across goal as Akinbiyi lurked.

But in the 28th minute, Richard Garcia doubled the lead with a stunning strike.

Carlisle missed his challenge 40 yard out, but the midfielder still had no right to move the ball out of his feet and beat Jensen with a 35 yard screamer.

It was deja vu for the Clarets, who found themselves out of the game early doors on their last visit to the KC Stadium.

And it could have been worse just after the half hour as Jensen denied Folan with a brave dive as Hull once again carved open the Clarets defence.

Owen Coyle had to make changes and seconds later he sacrificed McCann for Joey Gudjonsson.

But yet another routine ball over the top caught the Clarets cold eight minutes before the break and an overworked Jensen made a perfect challenge to deny the jet-heeled striker a third goal.

Half time simply could not come quick enough for Coyle's men, who really were hanging on for the shrill of Riley's whistle.

And with the half time words ringing in their ears, they sprung from the traps as the second half began.

Andrew Cole showed great control and when the ball finally reached Elliott and the winger stood up a great cross to the far post, Lafferty somehow failed to bundle the ball home before O'Connor fired the loose ball over.

Lafferty then made way for Blake with only eight minutes of the half gone.

And with all-out attack now the mantra, it was already much brighter by the Clarets as they began to force Hull backwards.

But Hull defiantly stood firm as Burnley tried in vain to grab a lifeline.

And midway through a much more even half, both sides were suddenly reduced to 10 men.

Folan, who had given the Clarets a torrid time, was shown a straight red card for an off the ball clash with Caldwell in the penalty area.

Caldwell earned yellow for his part in the tussle, and within seconds the Clarets skipper was heading for an early bath for a push on the half way line.

Andrew Cole saw his instinctive header turned onto the crossbar with a quarter hour remaining as Burnley finally realised it was not to be their night.

And before the corner could be taken, there was a second bout of red card madness.

Gudjonsson fell to the floor clutching his face in the area and after consulting with his assistant, Nigerian midfielder Okocha was sent off.

Incredibly, as Burnley claimed a penalty for the offence, Gudjonsson picked up a second yellow card following an earlier booking and also trudged to the dressing room to serve a two-match ban.

A crazy game was set to hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons.

But the bottom line was that Burnley, who lost the game inside the opening half hour, would now be without two key players for a crucial trip to Stoke at the weekend.

Hull: Myhill, Dawson, Ashbee, Turner, Garcia, Brown, Folan, Pedersen, Ricketts, Campbell, Okocha.
Subs: Tyler, Walton, Clement, Marney, France

Booked: Garcia 13, Ashbee 62
Sent off: Folan 70, Okocha 76

Burnley: Jensen, Alexander, Carlisle, Caldwell, Unsworth, Elliott, McCann (Gudjonsson 31), J O'Connor (Randall 71), Lafferty (Blake 53), Cole, Akinbiyi.
Subs: Varga, Kiraly.

Booked: Carlisle 48, Gudjonsson 67, Caldwell 70
Sent off Caldwell 71, Gudjonsson 76

Att: 15,838