Hi guys,

Burnley fan here. I've just found out that our clubs are in talks with a view to some form of partnership. I knew about being in talks with Thunder, but not you guys.

Is there any news at your end about any of this?

Here is our front page article although no mention of you there due to us not having full details yet, but we know that our clubs have definitely been in talks over the weekend.

http://www.burnley.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=112248

I have found this from another source though:

Barry Kilby, Brendan Flood, Paul Fletcher and Sandy Stewart are back on these shores after a whirlwind visit to the United States on a fact finding mission, and their visit was certainly enjoyed by one of the clubs.

The four met with three clubs, Minnesota Thunder, Carolina Railhawks and Richmond Kickers and the officials of the Kickers had positive things to say about the Clarets after they hosted us over the weekend with their club one that we could potentially partner with.

Only last month members of Stoke City and their partner club Austin Aztex spent a day with Kickers to convey some of the operations and practices regarding Kickers taking the field in the Premier Development League and Burnley chose them following recommendations from Stoke and from United Soccer League President Francisco Marcus.

"It was an enjoyable experience to meet with the Burnley Football Club delegates," said Kickers President Tom Depcrynski. "Burnley FC are an impressive club with a rich history of success and a loyal fan base. They are an ambitious club who clearly wish to learn more about the US soccer market.

"We were able to discuss a wide range of topics relating to the Richmond Kickers, USL and the US soccer market as a whole. There is no doubt that they are very serious about developing a collaborative agreement with a USL Professional Club."

Depcrynski added: "We are growing very rapidly and it will be very important that if we do decide to partner with an international club, that it is the right fit for our club and community. Our youth programmes and pro attendance continue to grow and with the addition of our new indoor team and the development of our youth soccer complex we feel the Kickers have an impressive structure and brand to be connected with."

Back in Burnley, the club are expected to reveal full details of their trip over the next couple of days.

Haven't heard that much on this end, but looks like we'll be hosting the Clarets on July 10.

Its become pretty fashionable over the past year or so for USL-1 teams to form partnerships with teams from England.

Hi lads & lasses, another Claret here and Editor of Vital Burnley, the site mentioned by smitrit above. Our friendly game is nearly upon us (week this Thursday 12th July). Why not come over and enjoy some friendly banter and tell us about your team,players to watch out for etc and we can fill you in about Burnley FC?

We have a special thread for you in the forum called 'Tell Us About Carolina Railhawks...'

http://www.burnley.vitalfootball.co.uk/forum/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=1896&posts=6