FIFTEEN thousand Wanderers' fans are in danger of being lulled into a false sense of insecurity.

Fireworks and balloons heralded the start of the new season but the result and certain aspects of the performance were as disappointing as damp squibs ... at first glance.

There was no mistaking which set of supporters was happier with the share of the derby spoils: more than 5,000 Clarets fans, who'd packed the South Stand and given their newly-promoted team magnificent vocal backing, celebrated their first Division One point in more than five years.

But they shouldn't delude themselves any more than Bolton followers should despair. Circumstances dictated that this opening league fixture was never going to be a reliable indicator of what is to come.

Nine members of Sam Allardyce's first team squad were unavailable and two new recruits, drafted in at the 11th hour in a desperate attempt to make up the numbers, would be asked to make important contributions.

Considering the handicaps, a point was a bonus rather than a disappointment!

Only a fool would make predictions based on the first 90 minutes of any season but it's a fair assumption that, come May 6 when Sheffield United arrive at the Reebok for the 46th and final game of the regular season, the Bolton team will bear little resemblance to the side that set the ball rolling on Saturday.

There can be no guarantees, of course, but there is every reason to expect Allardyce's army to be restored to strength in the near future and for performances to improve considerably. Then and only then will valued judgments be made.

Those with the 'glass-half-full' mentality may already believe they have seen something to build on.

Despite the disappointment that they couldn't consolidate, even extend, their deserved first half lead or stick away a late chance to snatch all three points, it wasn't all doom and gloom in the dressing room.

The first 45 minutes had been encouraging. For all the momentum Burnley were expected to carry over from last season's promotion success and the fact that Wanderers had so many 'strangers' in the camp, a 1-0 interval lead was fair reflection of the balance of play.

Burnley certainly had no complaints about the penalty - won by new loan signing Isiah Rankin when he was unceremoniously brought down by Ian Cox in a chase for Gareth Farrelly's inviting pass and confidently tucked away by Per Frandsen - and even Stan Ternent was generous enough to concede that "Bolton shaded it."

Frandsen, who was given a magnificent ovation on his Reebok return little more than 10 months after his ill-fated transfer to Blackburn, was one of four 'new' faces in the starting line-up as Wanderers began life without Claus Jensen, Eidur Gudjohnsen and Michael Johansen and he looked non the worse for his Ewood Park 'experience'. Anthony Barness looked comfortable as the spare man between Gudni Bergsson and Mark Fish in the back three while Simon Charlton had a more testing time at left wing-back - notably in the second half when Ternent unleashed the talented Glen Little in a substitution that turned the course of the game.

Little - the lanky midfielder with the big reputation - wasn't considered fit enough to go the full 90 minutes but he did enough in 45 to dent Wanderers' hopes of a first day win.

Bergsson and Co - hardly extended in the first half - were suddenly on the back foot and paid the penalty for a lapse of concentration when Paul Weller's quick throw gave Little space and time to deliver a cross which Phil Gray, one of three new signings in the Burnley side, converted with a diving header.

Jussi Jaaskelainen didn't have another save to make but it took some desperate and sometimes scrappy defending to protect him.

Burnley, who couldn't match Wanderers' accuracy or composure on the ball in the first period, got more tuned in as the game wore on and, despite Rankin's willingness, a lack of punch in attack - the area Allardyce is most concerned about - became more evident and alarming.

But the introduction of Ian Marshall, a surprise name on the teamsheet considering he only turned up with his boots to do some training on Monday, at least managed to trigger a late flourish.

And, typical of the man who has made things happen at Everton, Oldham, Ipswich and Leicester, he might have claimed another slice of glory if Mitchell Thomas hadn't been on the line to hack away his goalbound shot.